It seems apropos that during November, the month of All Souls, we put to rest the Catholic League and state fall sports calendar.

This weekend (Saturday, Nov. 4), seven boys and girls cross country squads from the CHSL will be running the 5,000-meter course at the Michigan International Speedway for a state championship.

Three won their regional tests: Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice in boys Division 1, Wixom St. Catherine in girls Division 3, and Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes in girls Division 4.

Football crowns its state champions on Thanksgiving weekend. Seven CHSL teams are still in the hunt this weekend. Among them are the Prep Bowl winners: Warren De La Salle, Dearborn Divine Child, and Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood. Log on to MHSAA.com for all the results.

In between, the CHSL girls swim and dive championship will happen Nov. 11 at the Livonia Recreation Center. Farmington Hills Mercy will be seeking its 27th consecutive title, and 50th in the last 51 years.

A week later, the Marlins will be at Oakland University for the Division 1 state finals which Mercy lost by a slim 10-point margin a year ago.

The Knights keep on giving

This was the 45th year in a row the Michigan Knights of Columbus sponsored the Prep Bowl, staged two weeks ago at Ford Field.

In 1973, then CHSL director Walt Bazylewicz was facing a financial report described as “low funds, big debts.” He approached Julian Joseph, of the Allen Park Fr. Saylor Council and a state officer, about K of C sponsorship. The deal was made, in effect rescuing the Catholic League. (You can read more about that in my column online at themichigancatholic.com/features/in-sports).

State Deputy Ken Unterbrink and fellow state and local officers were on hand all day handing out trophies, medals and awards to hundreds of elementary and high school students for athletic and academic excellence and to more than a hundred administrators and teachers celebrating five to 50 years of service in archdiocesan schools.

Unterbrink announced the K of C has made an eight-year commitment to raise a minimum of $1 million for a Tuition Endowment Scholarship Program for Sacred Heart Major Seminary. This comes on the heels of the Knights’ recently successful $1.25 million campaign for the Fr. Michael McGivney Chair of Life Ethics at the seminary. Fr. McGivney founded the K of C in 1882.

More about the Josephs

The Julian and Wanda Joseph family legacy remains alive and well at the CHSL. Sons Rick (Class of 1966) and Tom (’69) played football at Allen Park Cabrini. Son Jim (’80) and daughter Gloria (’70), both longtime officials in the CHSL and MHSAA, were inducted into the CHSL Hall of Fame, she in 1989, he in 2016. Gloria was one of the first female basketball referees in the state.

Jim met his wife, Laurie, at Allen Park Cabrini High. They celebrated 34 years of marriage last week.

Jim was a pitcher-outfielder on Cabrini’s 1979 Class B state champs. His son Nick played third base for Divine Child’s 2005 Division 2 champs. Daughter Rachael was a member of Divine Child’s three state runner-up competitive cheerleading squads.

Shoulders for teenagers

A pair of Detroit U-D Jesuit’s faculty members, Christopher Buryta and Charles Gumbel, were honored for their 50 years of service to Catholic education.

Buryta, 70, a 1965 grad of Detroit St. Hedwig High School, taught at St. Francis of Assisi and Harper Woods Notre Dame before coming to U-D Jesuit 45 years ago. He teaches math and advanced calculus.



Before he arrived at U-D Jesuit 35 years ago, math teacher Gumbel, 71, a 1964 alumnus of U-D, taught 15 years combined at Madison Heights Bishop Foley, Royal Oak St. Dennis, and Southfield St. Michael. He also served as assistant principal and athletic director at U-D.

“Teenagers are teenagers, today or years ago,” they said in a statement. “They’re looking for someone to put an arm around their shoulder and tell them, ‘You’re doing OK.’”

Something else they agreed upon about their vocation: “It’s a great life.”

Contact Don Horkey at [email protected].