“At Brother Martin, we merely seek to be God’s faithful instruments by acting with dynamic fidelity to the charism given by God through the Holy Spirit to Father Andre Coindre.” - Partners in Mission
For almost 50 years, the Brother Martin High School Board of Directors annually selects an alumnus who receives the prestigious award for his contributions to his profession and for his religious, civic, business, educational, and community involvement.
Keeping with our rich history of serving as God’s faithful instruments and our commitment to supporting our mission of educating young men for life, this year Mr. J. Donald “Don” Garvey, St. Aloysius Class of 1950 was celebrated as our 2020 Alumnus of the Year at a Mass and ceremony held on Saturday, September 19 in the James B. Branton Chapel, along with his wife, Marge, family, friends, and previous recipients.
Fr. Paul Hart ’70 was the celebrant for the Mass. President Greg Rando ’77 and Mr. David Gallo ’77, Chairman of the Brother Martin High School Board of Directors and our 2010 Alumnus of the Year recipient, presented the award following Mass. Director of Alumni and Advancement Kenny Spellman ’84 was also present to welcome guests and oversee the program.
Mr. Rando described Don as “having a large and generous heart, one moved powerfully by Jesus’ Gospel message, by the love and support of family, by sacrifice for the greater good, and by an instinctive love of humanity that longs to see everyone bettering themselves.” Like our founder André Coindre, “Don sees, he is filled with compassion, and he acts. The lasting effects of this compassion are untold.” Don’s work at Brother Martin and in the community is often imitated, but never duplicated as he instills the values of the Catholic Church with our Crusaders for Life & Justice Team, leaving a lasting impact on their hearts and minds.
As Don graciously thanked all for the award, he mentioned his older living brother Dr. Tom Garvey from the St. Aloysius Class of 1940 along with his two other siblings who also attended St. Aloysius, Larry Garvey ‘55, namesake of our current Office of Campus Ministry, and Judge Richard Garvey ‘43. Don reflected on the sadness of seeing the St. Aloysius campus close in 1969, but relayed that when he first stepped on Brother Martin’s campus, he felt like he was coming home. He saw many familiar faces and practices from his formative years as a student at St. Aloysius High School. During his time at Brother Martin, Don’s example of seeing, having compassion, and acting is constant through our Crusaders for Life, and he said, “ I am proud to be associated with our administration and faculty at Brother Martin that create young men for life.”
In closing, Rando extolled, “Don, you have forever changed Brother Martin for the good. We are a better institution, school, community, and, most important, a family because of you.”
Thank you to Don and Marge Garvey, family, friends, members of the Crusaders for Life & Justice serving as Ambassadors, and school administration, (all of whom were safely distanced) in attendance at the 2020 Alumnus of the Year Mass and celebration.
About J. Donald “Don” Garvey ’50 SA:
Don, the son of Thomas and Loretta Garvey, grew up with six brothers and sisters in a small house in Gentilly. In keeping with a good Catholic upbringing, he and his siblings attended grammar school and weekly Mass at St. Leo the Great. Don’s strong desire to follow in the footsteps of his brothers led him to St. Aloysius High School. Upon graduating, Don then followed his siblings to another Catholic educational institution, Loyola University, where he graduated with a degree in Accounting.
Feeling a strong loyalty to his country in a time between military wars, Don joined the Army, where he put his degree to use by serving as an officer in an administrative capacity. In addition to earning recognition as a marksman on the pistol range, Don felt a calling to the legal division of the Army and spent the final days of his enlistment working in the Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps. When his enlistment came to an end, Don made use of the G.I. Bill by returning to Loyola, earning a Juris Doctorate. After graduation, Don put his legal and accounting experience to use by joining his younger brother, Larry Garvey ’55, to start and run several successful businesses that provided a telephone answering service, paging service and eventually cellular telephone service throughout southeast Louisiana and several other states. Over a 50-year span, those companies were most commonly known under the name of Radiofone, Inc.
As Don experienced success with the Radiofone companies, he began acting upon the philanthropic actions that were instilled in him by his Catholic upbringing and the education his parents provided. In more recent years, and hand in hand with his wife Marge, Don has paired his financial giving with the gift of his personal time. This has manifested itself through their many hours of volunteer service on numerous committees at St. Catherine of Siena Church as well as other organizations. Most notably, Don’s work at Brother Martin has focused on instilling the core values of the Catholic Church in young Crusaders.
Don and Marge have received the Order of St. Louis Medal and received an Apostolic Blessing from Pope Francis. Together, they have five children and seventeen grandchildren, including alumni Dr. Michael Christner ’91 and Brandon Williams ’18.
