June 03, 2010
On Tuesday, February 2, 2010 alumni and friends gathered at the
Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA for an exciting NHL hockey game
between the LA Kings and the NY Rangers. It was a battle for
east-west bragging rights in a classic coast-to-coast confrontation
between California and New York as members of the St. John's
University family demonstrated their hometown pride by urging their
favorite team to victory.
Prior to the face-off guests enjoyed a pre-game reception at the
Arena Club, an exclusive location overlooking the ice, where they
mingled and renewed their ties to alma mater while
catching up on where their lives had taken them since their day on
campus.
The event was hosted by the Los Angeles Alumni Chapter.
"This was a wonderful indication of how strong the connection to
St. John's has become among our West Coast alumni," remarked Bill
Schaeffer '73CBA, Director, Office of Alumni Relations. "The alumni
out here have not allowed distance to separate them from the
University, and we're planning to hold similar events in the future
to keep that connection strong."
The possibility of similar gatherings in the future struck a
responsive chord of many West Coast alumni. "It was nice to see St.
John's come all the way across the country to have an event for
us," noted Chris Kelly '84CBA. "It would be great to set something
up for a Yankees-Angels or Mets-Angels game during baseball
season."
At the end of the evening bragging rights belonged to the West
Coast, as the Kings eked out a 2-1 victory over their East Coast
rivals. The excitement of the close game and the final outcome
added to the euphoria as the happy alumni headed for home.
"It was a lot of fun organizing this event," said Juan Capdet III,
'02CPS, '04MBA, Chapter Leader, Los Angeles Alumni Chapter. "The
game was exciting and everyone had a really good time. We'll
definitely be doing more things like this in the future."