WILMINGTON — Salesianum School will induct six distinguished alumni — including a 2023 inductee who could not attend last year’s ceremony — into its Alumni Hall of Fame on Oct. 19.
“Salesianum has always been a place of stories,” said President Thomas Kardish, Ed.D. “What I love about the Hall of Fame is the opportunity to tell some of the more extraordinary stories of our graduates. The achievements, of course, are laudable, but this year’s honorees highlight the importance of the journey and the influence of our patron, Saint Francis de Sales, on their remarkable lives. There’s heroism, risk, creativity, grit, and moxie: it’s the full spectrum of the human experience and, in a single day, we get to see how these stories intersect at Salesianum and, in turn, how Salesianum is carried through their lives into the world.”
The inductees are:
Charles Raskob Robinson ’57: His first book, A Nation without Coins, which foretold of the need to replace the nation’s silver coinage, received front page and editorial coverage nationally, led to his testifying before Congress, and eventually involved him in the drafting of legislation that changed American coinage for the first time since Alexander Hamilton. He began his painting career in New York City, attending the Art Students League and the Carnegie Hall Studios. He has exhibited in one-man shows and national and international contemporary marine art exhibitions across the United States. His works are in many institutional, private, and museum collections, and he has appeared in several books. He is a contributing writer for Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine. Of his induction, Robinson said, “Several virtues associated with a Salesian education – Humility, Patience, Optimism, Tenacity – and the Gentleman Saint, Saint Francis de Sales, as exemplified in the legendary Father Lawless, showed that all of these are had through Gentleness.”
David Sysko ’60: In 1960, Sysko earned First Team All-State honors, leading Coach Jim Hagan’s team to an impressive 21-2 record. At the University of Delaware, he further distinguished himself as a basketball player, leading the Blue Hens to a 45-23 record and setting two significant scoring records that have stood for more than six decades (most points in a single game (45) and highest single-season scoring average (23.9 points per game). In 2006, he was named to the University’s 100th Anniversary Basketball Team, and he’s a member of the University of Delaware Athletics Hall of Fame, the Delaware Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Delaware Sports Museum & Hall of Fame. Dave retired as a partner and co-head of the Private Clients Group at Kidder Peabody & Co. in 1992. Following this, he served as President of C.F. Kettering, Inc., a personal holding company for the family of the renowned inventor Charles F. Kettering, from 1998 to 2018. In addition to his corporate roles, Sysko was the Executive Director of the Laffey-McHugh Foundation from 2000 to 2018, further solidifying his commitment to philanthropy. Sysco said, “The two Salesian virtues that stuck with me throughout life were Optimism and Tenacity. The school set high expectations for all students. In those very formative years, you learned that the way to achieve what seemed out of reach was to be positive and tirelessly persevere.”
E. James Burke ’67: The Honorable E. James Burke is a former Wyoming Supreme Court Chief Justice who retired in 2018. Justice Burke’s legal career spanned four decades and is marked by a steadfast commitment to enhancing the accessibility and understanding of the legal system for the citizens of Wyoming. He founded the People’s Law School, which has empowered countless Wyoming residents by providing them with a clearer understanding of the legal system and the role of attorneys within it. The program has received accolades from the Wyoming State Bar, the Wyoming Trial Lawyers Association, and the Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce, demonstrating its significance in the community. In addition to the People’s Law School, Justice Burke was the initial chair of the Access to Justice Commission, which created the Wyoming Center for Legal Aid, later renamed Equal Justice Wyoming. Justice Burke said of his induction to the Alumni Hall of Fame, “I was stunned and deeply humbled to learn of my selection. My thoughts went immediately to my parents. In many ways, Salesianum was their dream for their son. They were willing to sacrifice to make it happen. Salesianum delivered. In retrospect, it’s pretty obvious that my career path dovetailed with the principles and values emphasized at Salesianum.”
William H. Schieffer ’79: Bill graduated from Salesianum near the top of his class in the Spring of 1979, and received his B.S. in Accounting in the Spring of 1984 and went on to serve as a senior tax associate at Deloitte, Haskins, and Sells from 1985-1988. Shortly after receiving his Master’s in Taxation from Villanova in 1991, Bill partnered with Rob and George Siegfried to found The Siegfried Group, where he currently serves as an executive vice president. The Siegfried Group is an entrepreneurial leadership organization that provides financial executives with a powerful combination of leadership advisory, talent delivery, and financial advisory services and has been recognized recently as Inside Public Accounting Top 100 Firms, as the 25th largest CPA firm in the United States, and as one of the nation’s fastest-growing CPA firms for seven years in a row, and ranked among the Inc. 5000 for four years in a row. Schieffer has made landmark gifts to every major capital project across campus and been at the vanguard of lay leadership at Salesianum, most notably as a trustee and as the long-time chair of the Advancement Committee. More than anyone else at Salesianum, Bill is responsible for bringing forth an unprecedented era of philanthropic success. His efforts to professionalize and modernize the advancement operation set the stage for landmark commitments from Salesianum’s biggest donors while simultaneously revamping a leadership structure that had grown stagnant and ineffective. Of his induction, Schieffer said, “One of the very best virtues of Salesianum is a basic tenet of St. Francis DeSales, “Be who you are and be that well’. This resonates with everyone who walks through the halls of Salesianum; it doesn’t matter who you are or what you do; just be the very best you can be. Sallies has a huge cross-section of servicemen, tradesmen, and professionals from all walks of life, and we are bound by that simple virtue. We are all being the best version of ourselves and living in that best version possible.”
Captain Ralph “Jay Harting III ’94: Jay excelled academically and as a state champion goalkeeper. Following his high school achievements, Jay was accepted into all four U.S. service academies, ultimately choosing to enroll at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. He graduated in 1998 with a degree in mechanical engineering. After graduation, he was assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, based at Fort Irwin, California. In January 2005, he was deployed to Iraq, where he commanded a company of 120 soldiers. Tragically, on April 29, 2005, Captain Harting was killed in action while inspecting a truck
at a checkpoint in Diyarah, Iraq, just 30 miles south of Baghdad. He was only 28 years old at the time of his death.
In addition to the 2024 inductees, 2023 inductee Nick Marsini ‘73 will be recognized at the ceremony. During Nick’s 39 years with PNC Financial Corp, which ended with his retirement in 2016, he served as president of PNC Bank Delaware (2011-2016), executive vice president, and chief financial officer of PNC Global Investment Servicing (1997-2010), and director of finance for PNC Financial Corp (1993-1997). Nick served on Salesianum’s board of trustees for 18 years, including six years as chair—the first layperson to hold this position in the school’s history. Additionally, he is a member of the board of trustees at the University of Delaware and received the University’s Lerner College of Business and Economics Alumni Award of Excellence. He chairs the Christiana Care Health System board of directors and serves as board chairman for several mutual funds. Of his induction into the Salesianum Hall of Fame, Marsini said, “In combination with my parents, the Oblates of St. Francis DeSales at Salesianum provided me a strong foundation of faith and the spirit of brotherhood that has carried me throughout my life. These values guided my behavior in how I raised my family, the way I conducted myself in business, and provided me with lifelong friends that I made at Salesianum.”
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