Distinguished Alumni

List of 1 items.

• Past Award Recipients

  JANE BROEREN LAMBESIS '79 Jane Broeren Lambesis SHM ‘79 continues to shatter glass ceilings in the male-dominated financial securities industry. She celebrates her 36th year with Federated Hermes as one of the first female Consultants at Federated Securities Corporation and now serves as Senior Vice President of Sales. Jane was recently named one of the first Federated Securities Rich B. Fisher Award recipient, a significant honor within the firm. Jane has been a Member of the Board of Trustees of John Carroll University for the last five years as well as a Board Member on the Saint Viator Board of Trustees for 10 years. She currently mentors in the SV IncubatorEDU Entrepreneurship program, coaching her last two teams to the Final Pitch Night. Jane approaches everything with drive, competitiveness and a great sense of humor. Jane and her husband, Peter, are the proud past parents of three alumni, Annie, Susie and Peter.

  
  

  DR. JOHN TRACY, O.D. '77 For over 33 years, Dr. John Tracy served as a respected Doctor of Optometry in Santa Rosa, California. Dr. Tracy had always been known in the Santa Rosa medical community as a professional colleague who demonstrated integrity, compassion, highest standards of care, strong work ethic, and a long held commitment to giving back to his community. John bought and established his private practice, John J. Tracy, Optometrist, in 1989. He remained a private practitioner until 2015 when he sold his private practice and began working at Kaiser Permanente full time. He had a special place for children in his big heart in his local and international volunteer work, including working with those living in poverty in the Santa Rosa area, the Sonoma County, Valley of the Moon Foster Care Center, inmates in juvenile detention at the Santa Rosa Correctional Facility, and elementary classrooms in the Santa Rosa Public Schools. For 16 years, John would temporarily close his practice and join fellow doctors on a service trip to Mexico to provide eye exams, eye treatments, patient instruction, correction, and eyeglasses for families living in poverty in rural and urban areas in Mexico. Dr. John Tracy continued to live his life with grace, dignity, humor, and love until the end on September 13, 2022 after battling a rare brain cancer. He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Alumni Award. Classmate and best friend, Tim Shevlin ‘77 accepted this award on behalf of the family on January 31st.  Hear his speech here.

  
  

  MARCUS LANNIE '19 Marcus Lannie is already well-known within the Saint Viator community for his academic achievements, energetic approach to everything he takes on, and his social media presence. Marcus is a founder developing products for individuals with dementia, a global product manager at A-Laser, and Purdue University alumnus. As an undergrad, Marcus led Purdue’s chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) from 10 to 300 members as President, won the college’s most prestigious honor of Engineering Fellow, and received ASME’s highest award as “#1 Global Student Leader” for positively impacting thousands of students around the world. While at Purdue, Lannie also launched Marcus’ Morning Minute (MMM), a daily video series that ran for over 500 consecutive days sharing an idea of optimism and perspective that helps people make the most of their day. He is currently continuing his studies as a Fung Scholar at the University of California Berkeley, pursuing mechanical engineering.

  
  

  

  NICK ESPINOSA '97
  
  

  Nick Espinosa is recognized as one of the leading global authorities on cybersecurity, cyberterrorism, and cyberwarfare. After graduating from Saint Viator, Espinosa started his first company, Windy City Networks, which focused on network infrastructure and cybersecurity. He was among the first voices in the industry to raise concerns about network security and cybersecurity. He grew his business, ultimately selling to another company after 15 years. In 2015, he launched another company, Security Fanatics which he currently runs. In addition to his business interests, Espinosa has created a significant media presence. He hosts a daily podcast on cybersecurity, hosts a bi-weekly nationally syndicated radio program on NPR, has created and presented 3 Ted Talks, including one which is regularly used in college curricula and has been utilized by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, wrote a book "Easy Prey," is a member of the Forbes Technology Council, and has written for Forbes magazine. He is a tireless volunteer, serving on multiple academic and charitable boards including the Board of Advisors for the Roosevelt University College of Arts and Sciences as well as the Roosevelt Center for Cyber and Information Security where he helped launch an NSA-certified cyber warfare program. He serves as a Cybersecurity Advisory Committee Member for the College of Lake County, is a member of the Board of Directors for Kids Enjoy Exercise Now, and is a member of the Saint Viator Board of Trustees while also volunteering with the Northwest Special Recreation Association and Habitat for Humanity. Watch his Distinguished Alumni speech here.
  
  

  KATIE BARRETT FORD '89 After graduating from Saint Viator, Katie Barrett Ford has become one of the most recognized names in digital media, with a career built at Fortune 100 media and technology companies at the intersection of data, marketing, and creativity. She spent two-plus decades at Publicis Media, rising to the rank of President where she was the Executive lead on P&G, Coca-Cola, USAA, and Kellogg’s accounts. During her time at Publicis she was recognized by Ad Age as one of the “Women to Watch,” and by Campaign US, as a leading “Media Maven.” From there she joined Amobee’s executive team as Chief Client Officer and was integral in delivering two successful acquisitions along with achieving positive EBITDA with over $1 Billion in annual revenue. Katie then served as Head of Global Brands for Twitter and today she is the Chief Operating Officer of a data | technology company. She has served on a variety of charitable and service boards including committees of the Saint Viator Board, the Board of Directors at Journeys | The Road Home, and She Runs It chapters in New York and Chicago. Katie and her husband Stephen have two children and reside in Arlington Heights. Watch her Distinguished Alumni speech here.

  U.S. ARMY MAJOR GENERAL EMILE BATAILLE '68 U.S. Army Major General Emile P. Bataille retired from active duty after 34 years of service in the U.S. Army, Army Reserve, and National Guard Components. His last assignment was as the Director for Combat Support at the United States Strategic Command (STRATCOM). He managed a staff of over 1,000 and was responsible for a range of assets from multiple communication satellite constellations to establishing procedures for Military Inter-Service computer network systems defense. While at the US Strategic Command, he served in the command operations center when President Bush arrived on 9/11. During his military career, General Bataille is proud to say he was fortunate to have the opportunity to command fine American soldiers from a platoon to division-level units. He holds multiple Master's Degrees. The most recent Master's Degree was in Biblical Studies completed at the age of 67. After which he taught an introductory class on the New Testament at the University of St. Mary of the Lake. MG Bataille and his wife Carol have three daughters, nine grandchildren, and two great-grandsons. They currently reside in Harvest, Alabama. Watch his Distinguished Alumni speech here.

   

  DR. MILDRED OLIVIER SHM '78 Dr. Mildred Olivier (SHM) ’78 built her career by helping people. The ophthalmologist saves the lives of hundreds of patients each year. She travels around the world teaching doctors how to fight blindness from glaucoma, helps hospitals and medical schools to eliminate healthcare disparities and ensure cultural competencies among medical practitioners, and assists young doctors and researchers in acquiring skills and support needed to discover new ways to manage and cure eye diseases.

  JIM FRUCHTERMAN '76 Mr. Jim Fruchterman '76 has been a rocket scientist, founded two of the nation's foremost optical character recognition companies, and developed reading machines for people with disabilities. He received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2006 in recognition of his work as a pioneering social entrepreneur. He is CEO of Benetech, a nonprofit technology company based in Palo Alto, California. In 1989, Fruchterman founded the nonprofit Arkenstone to produce reading machines for the blind, based on the technology developed by one of his companies. Arkenstone became Benetech in 2000 and began creating new technology for people with disabilities. He has also researched for the human rights and environmental conservation communities. Benetech's programs include Bookshare, the world's largest accessible online library for people with print disabilities.

   

  DR. MAUREEN O'HARA SHM '71 Maureen O’Hara is the Purcell Professor of Finance at the Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University. She holds degrees from the University of Illinois (B.S. Economics), and Northwestern University (M.S. Economics and Ph.D. Finance), and Honorary Doctorates from Facultés Universitaires Catholiques à Mons (FUCAM), Belgium and Universität Bern, Switzerland. Professor O'Hara's research focuses on issues in market microstructure, and she is the author of numerous journal articles as well as the book Market Microstructure Theory (Blackwell: 1995). Her most recent research looks at the role of toxicity in affecting liquidity in high-frequency markets. A past president of the American Finance Association, Dr. O'Hara publishes widely on a broad range of topics including banking and financial intermediaries, law and finance, and experimental economics. Professor O’Hara is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Investment Technology Group, Inc. (ITG), a global agency brokerage firm, and she serves on the Board of Directors of NewStar Financial, a commercial finance company, where she is on the audit and governance committees. She also serves on the Board of Trustees of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA-CREF). She is a member of the CFTC-SEC Emerging Regulatory Issues Task Force (the “flash crash” committee), the Global Advisory Board of the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI), and the Advisory Board of the Office of Financial Research, U.S. Treasury. She was recently named to Institutional Investors’ Trading Technology 40, a list of the top innovators and managers in the field. She has consulted for a number of companies and organizations, including Microsoft, Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse, the New York Stock Exchange, Bristol-Meyers Squibb, and the World Federation of Exchanges.

  JOHN AIELLO '86 As Co-Founder of SAVO, John spent the past 14 years pioneering the Sales Enablement software category. Under his leadership as CEO, SAVO became the unquestioned category leader, growing at least 40% annually. In late 2010, John brought in a new CEO, but he remains active on SAVO’s Board. John holds a BA from the University of Illinois and an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. Since stepping down as CEO of SAVO, John has been serving in Christian ministry, teaching at Kellogg, and sitting on company Boards. He and his wife, Carla, live in Arlington Heights with their two sons.

   

  REV. L. SCOTT DONAHUE '72 Rev. L. Scott Donahue is President & CEO of Mercy Home for Boys & Girls, a therapeutic home that helps children who’ve suffered abuse, neglect, abandonment, and emotional traumas. Since joining Mercy Home’s board in 1990, Fr. Donahue has continued to expand and enhance the services that Mercy Home provides to its children, especially in the area of education. Fr. Donahue holds bachelor’s degrees in political science and accounting from Loyola University of Chicago and master’s degrees in social work from Loyola University, theology from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary and applied spirituality from the University of San Francisco.

  KERRY LAVELLE '77 Kerry Lavelle is the Founding Partner at Lavelle Law, Ltd. Utilizing his MBA and J.D. from DePaul University, Lavelle utilizes his versatility by focusing his practice in the areas of Corporate Law, Federal, and State Taxation, and Estate Planning. Among others, Lavelle has delivered lectures on a variety of topics, most notably as an adjunct professor at John Marshall Law School, the Illinois CPA Society, and private accounting firms on taxation matters. Lavelle believes that as a business owner, he has a responsibility to commit to the local community, and participates fully in events that are important to the residents.

   

  KATE SCHAFER COSTELLO SHM '70 Kate Schafer Costello graduated from Sacred Heart of Mary High School in 1970 and began her theatrical experience in the Saint Viator/Sacred Heart of Mary musicals. She completed her Bachelor of Arts Degree at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1974, where she studied speech education with a theater emphasis. She then earned a Master’s Degree in Theater from Northwestern University in 1978 and taught speech and theater at Buffalo Grove High School for six years. Kate “retired” to raise a family, though she remained active in community theater and puppetry, including directing four musicals at Saint James, her parish. She directed the Saint Viator theater program for over 2- years. Kate and her husband Jim are the proud parents of four Saint Viator sons – Jack ’99, Robert ’02, Paul ’05, and Philip ’09.

  CHUCK HEINRICH '65 After graduating from Saint Viator, Chuck graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater (UW-W) and began a 21-year career with the Arlington Heights Police Department, primarily assigned to the Criminal Investigations Unit. In 1990, a second 20-year career began as an agent/air marshal with the Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Homeland Security wherein he traveled worldwide while performing assessments, conducting investigations, and providing training to aviation security officials as part of an anti-terrorism assistance program. Chuck has served numerous organizations and boards, including the Saint Viator Advisory Board & Charter Class of 1965 Reunion Committee, UW-W National Alumni Association, Indianapolis Ski Club, Indianapolis Yacht Club and has participated in Habitat for Humanity projects. He and his wife Martha enjoy boating, skiing, and travel when not at home in Indianapolis.