By Dan McGrath

Sunday, May 10 was a truly memorable Mother’s Day for each Leo senior who celebrated graduation, and especially so for Chase Jordan.

In addition to graduating as an honor student and a member of the National Honor Society, Chase was the recipient of three individual awards presented to the Class of 2026: the Stafford L. Hood Gold Medal for English, the Frank W. Considine Gold Medal for Social Justice and the Andrew J. McKenna Gold Medal for Leadership.

Chase, who also played football and runs track for the Lions, is headed for Augustana College on scholarship.

The weather cooperated magnificently and the church at St. Margaret of Scotland was just about filled to capacity as Leo once again celebrated a time-honored tradition: graduation on Mother’s Day. 

And in what is becoming an equally poignant tradition, Assistant Principal Titus Redmond had each graduate prepare a Mother’s Day poem for the occasion. After Khamari Carter and Stephen Jackson read theirs from the podium, they joined the other graduates in moving into the crowd to present framed copies of their poems to their mothers.

Mrs. Tiffany Harston, Leo’s Senior Guidance Counselor, served as master of ceremonies. Dr. Shaka Rawls, Leo’s president and principal, congratulated the grads on succeeding as the “first post-COVID class” to attend Leo in person after a year or more of remote learning.

“And whenever I yelled at you, there was a purpose behind it,” Dr. Rawls said. “A lot is expected of a Leo Man, and you’re going out into the world as Leo Men now.”

Eddie Hernandez, who has had the class’ highest GPA since freshman year, was the Valedictorian and said the brotherhood he experienced at Leo is something he will value and try to emulate for the rest of his life.

Eddie will attend Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo on an academic scholarship and hopes to walk on to the baseball team. 

Steven Jackson edged out his twin brother Stephen as Salutatorian. Steven said his four years at Leo gave him the preparation and the confidence to go out into the world and make something of himself, and he and his brother intend to do just that.

The Jackson brothers will attend Purdue University-Fort Wayne. Both are members of the world-renowned Leo Choir and intend to continue singing. 

Another highlight of the ceremony was the presentation of the Michael L. Thompson Gold Medal for Music to the eight senior members of the Leo Choir: Tyshawn Brown, Derrick Davis, Bernard Freeman, Stephen Jackson, Steven Jackson,  Isiah James, Michael Lewis and Xavier Smith. All eight were veterans of the “America’s Got Talent” campaign and all eight played a role in the Choir achieving world-renowned status, so it was fitting to honor all eight of them rather than single out an individual.

The complete list of senior award winners:

* William J. Koloseike Award for Athletics: Jaivon Dale
* Bishop John R. Gorman Gold Medal for Religion: Eddie Hernandez
* Michael L. Thompson Gold Medal for Music: Senior Choir Members Tyshawn Brown, Derrick Davis, Bernard Freeman, Stephen Jackson, Steven Jackson, Isiah James, Michael Lewis and Xavier Smith
* Donald F. Flynn Gold Medal for History: Antonio Thomas
* Dr. James J. Ahern Gold Medal for Science: Stephen Jackson
* Thomas and Mary Owens Gold Medal for Mathematics: Damari Griffin
* Stafford L. Hood Gold Medal for English: Chase Jordan
* Br. James Glos Gold Medal for Foreign Language: Novell Chester
* Frank W. Considine Gold Medal for Social Justice: Chase Jordan
* Andrew J. McKenna Gold Medal for Leadership: Chase Jordan