Servite High School

It’s expensive to run a private school. Without any financial support from federal or state governments, private schools must pay teachers, purchase supplies, maintain facilities and feed students on their own. Tuition covers most of the cost but keeping expenses down will always make a private school stronger and more viable.

At Servite, over 300 student interns report for duty at various job sites on campus. They are trained by other student leaders and adult supervisors to sell merchandise in the student store, to prepare food in the cafeteria, or to upkeep facilities.

All of these jobs present many different leadership opportunities for students who wish to achieve more during high school. One of these opportunities is Trinity Corporation. Trinity Corporation is a student-run leadership, for-profit model corporation. All profits acquired go towards financial aid to benefit student interns.

Founded by Mr. Jim Carter, Mrs. Sue Hamrock, and Mrs. Robin Foersch in 2009, With an annual income budget of $950,000, Trinity Corporation provides student leaders with real-life work experiences in retails sales, online sales, marketing, advertising, food services, and catering  During the 2014-2015 school year, Trinity Corp provided additional financial aid amounting to approximately $185,000. The combined efforts of everyone involved made it possible for 80 students who struggled with tuition to remain at Servite. Trinity Corp Students are involved in a very intricate chain of command that starts with CEO Amar Raj Grewal, who also is the Vice President of Human Resources. Anthony Pinel is the VP of Retail. Saul Betancourt is the VP of Food Services. And Colin Koerin is the VP of Marketing.

Due to the creation and presence of Trinity Corporation on campus, Servite has been able to involve the student body in activities like the annual spirit shirt contest, not to mention various construction projects.

Thanks to the real-life work model of Trinity Corp, students can acquire many skills necessary to thriving  in the workforce right out of high school or even during a  high school career.

“Trinity Corporation reflects the commitment that Servite High School has made to financial aid and the improvement of the students’ experience in achieving the goal," Hamrock said.

Trinity Corporation continues to provide a multitude of opportunities for Servite students that will enhance their high school experience and expand their full potential.

Photos courtesey of Magic Moments Sports Photography

The Servite Friars basketball team fell short of victory in their home opener against the Fullerton Indians in a close shootout 49-48.

With the gym packed as the intimidating Asylum made its return for 2014-2015 basketball season, the pressure was on for both sides to perform well.

The Friars started out strong taking the lead in the first quarter 13-11. Fullerton responded well by taking the lead 23-21 heading into halftime.

The Asylum kept the gym packed during halftime which in turn helped the Friars come out strong in the second half. They started out on a 9-0 run, with the assistance of three pointers from Anastasios Marcopulos and Jeff Toomey. The early start wasn’t enough to put down the Indians as they fought back and held the lead at the end of the third quarter 32-31.

Senior captain, Trevor Treinen, gave the Friars a burst of energy at start of the fourth quarter with two quick buckets. He went on to score 11 points in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough to help the Friars top the Indians.

The Asylum will return next year on January, 6th 2015 against Sonora High School.

Coming into the season no. 4 in CIF Southern Section by Orange County Varsity, the Friars were looking to kick off this season with an upset against the Corona Panthers, ranked no. 3 in the Southern Section.

The Friars struck first, led by senior, Christian Packard, who scored off a header thrown in by junior, Zan Rojas.

Corona quickly tied things up with an equalizer just three minutes later. Corona then took the lead with eight minutes left in the first half, but the Friars weren’t ready to throw in the towel just yet.

Rojas and his golden arms were able to bring the game quickly back to equal ground when his throw in deflected off the goalkeeper and into the net! Rojas then scored the final goal for Servite just before the end of the first half with a header off of a free kick from senior captain, James Cook.

The Friars were able to hold off the Panthers for the entirety of the second half leading to a glorious victory to start the season off.

Before the official start of the season for the Friar's soccer team on Dec, 5, I had the chance to sit down with three seniors who have recently committed to play soccer at Cal State Fullerton.

Here's what the players had to say about the upcoming season and their decision.

As the winter sports season is set to begin in the coming weeks, fall sports have officially come to an end at Servite High School as of Friday, November 15.

The football team lost to Long Beach Poly 34-33 in a nail biter on Friday. Oregon Duck bound quarterback, Travis Waller, had two rushing touchdowns, but it was not enough to lead the Friars past the Jackrabbits.

The water polo team’s season came to an end on November 6th after the Friars lost in a battle to earn a wildcard spot in CIF Playoffs against Santa Margarita. The Friars fell in another nail biter 9-8.

Cross Country’s season also came to an end last week on November 7. The friars failed to qualify for a CIF run at the Trinity League Finals.

With fall sports in the rear view mirror, Servite fans now turn their attention to the wrestling, basketball, and soccer teams. The soccer team is entering the season ranked #2 in the nation with already five players committed to division one colleges.

Rosary Lacrosse Team Facebook Page

In the past few years, lacrosse has been a sport that has grown in popularity in many schools. However, in a school of only around 500 students, it can be a difficult challenge to come up with a large team. At Rosary High School, the sister school of Servite, there are only around 20 players on their all-girls lacrosse team.

Because of this unfortunate disadvantage, there is only one team whereas most schools have a junior varsity and varsity teams. When asked about effects of having a minimum amount of players, junior attacker, Amelia Pesci stated, “There are not a lot of players therefore we don’t have any subs so we are running the whole game without any breaks.”  

Recruitment can be a difficult thing to do in a small school. However, it’s not to say there is none. According to Senior player Wanda Gomez, “Our coach also comes to freshmen P.E classes to teach them about the sport and how to play. During Fall Ball, we have a bring a friend day as well.”

Despite the setback of having fewer players on the team, the girls are still getting pumped and prepped for the upcoming season this January. The team is currently in “Fall Ball” which consists of constant practice and conditioning. From the looks of the energy coming from this team, the Royals should not be underestimated. They may be small in number, but boy are they going to be deadly.

Pictures provided by Higher Ground

As the Servite Soccer prepares for their upcoming season, they are not only putting in work on the field, but also in their local community.

The Friars are currently working with the organization, “Higher Ground.” Higher Ground Youth & Family Services is a nonprofit organization that provides mentoring programs for youth in at-risk communities in Anaheim and Santa Ana. According to their website, the goal of Higher Ground is to foster a commitment to the youth of this area that will promote positive educational habits, strong interpersonal skills, and a sense of empowerment.

Servite students have been helping at Lincoln Park in Anaheim during the week for over a year now. Soccer captain, James Cook, took it upon himself to take on the role as head coordinator between Servite and Higher Ground. Cook works together with Joe Baldo, founder of Higher Ground, to make sure there are Servite students helping out during the week.

“We are there to act as mentors to the kids and to give them positive role models to push them in the right direction in life," said Cook. "I love being able to share my talents with other people and use them to positively affect other people.”

Higher Ground also offers students a great way to earn service hours and be active in the community.

Senior soccer player, Eric Hemann said, “I do Higher Ground because it’s a fun way to help others and get service hours, but it also has a big impact on the community to help kids and be role models for them.”

If you have an interest in becoming a volunteer for Higher Ground please visit their website here.

After falling to Santa Margarita in a nail biter of a game on Saturday night, Servite water polo looks to bounce back in their last league game of the season against JSerra on Nov. 5.

Servite heads into the game with a record of 2-2 in league play. With a win against JSerra, the Friars will be in a three-way tie for second place in the Trinity League.

If there is a tie, Servite, Orange Lutheran, and Santa Margarita will participate in a coin toss to decide who gets a secured seating in the playoffs. The other two teams that do not win the toss will play each other for a wildcard seat in the playoffs.

Senior Andrew Armen is confident in his team about their chances against JSerra.

“We have a strong counter along with two solid meter men," he said. "Our defense is also pretty strong. We are all crossing our fingers for the coin toss Wednesday night.”

After falling to Mater Dei and Santa Margarita in league play, Servite football is looking to bounce back this week against St. John Bosco. This is a must-win game for Servite if they plan to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Heading into Friday’s game, Servite holds a record of 1-2 in league play. With two of the toughest teams in the Trinity League left on the schedule, St. John Bosco and JSerra, Servite has their work cut out for them.

Servite Head Coach, A.J. Gass stated, “It all starts with this week, we’re just looking to go 1-0 right now by beating Bosco.”

The Friars can make the playoffs with a win this week against Bosco and next week against JSerra.

Senior linebacker, Jack Savage said, “Our backs our against the wall, and we know that. It's simple. We win the next two games, and we're in. That's where our focus is at right now. We aren't going down without a fight.”

The consensus from the team is that they have put the past behind them and are now looking at a “fresh start this week” as stated by senior Defensive Lineman, Jalen Motley.

— Ryan Hartnett, Editor In Chief for The Spokesman