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His "Ned Devine Moment" Changed His Life
As a geriatric social worker, Michael Ungari often dealt with mortality. A touching scene in the movie "Waking Ned Devine" caused him to consider his own mortality, wondering, "Why not do something while I'm still alive?" So he did!
Ungari, a member of the Saint Patrick Class of 1963, was inspired to donate to his alma mater by what he calls his "Ned Devine Moment." After seeing the movie "Waking Ned Devine," Ungari felt the need to do something. The film features a title character who lives in a small village and dies of shock upon realizing that he has won the lottery. The villagers cover up his death to collect the money, leading to a scene in which a man delivers a heart-felt eulogy, over Ned Devine's body, to his best friend, who is sitting in the front row of the church.
The poignant message that Michael took from the "Ned Divine" eulogy was to "do something meaningful while you are alive and can get some appreciation and satisfaction for your effort." Michael notes that "I won't hear my eulogy-- that is for those that should have said something to you while you were alive."
Michael and his wife Jane were able to donate a substantial gift to the financial aid program at Saint Patrick, in memory of their good friend, John Kustak '62. The financial aid program allows Saint Patrick to offer tuition assistance to nearly 50% of our families.
Michael and Jane have also been able to incorporate their love of the performing arts into their gifts to the school, purchasing a seat in the Saint Patrick Theatre. The Ungaris also donated money to help send the Saint Patrick student production of "Over the Tavern" downstate to perform in the Illinois High School Theatre Festival in January of 2006.
Michael finds it particularly gratifying to hear directly from the students themselves. "The letters and cards that we get from St. Pat's students who we are sponsoring, thanking us for helping them, are really touching," said Ungari. "I'm glad to know that I'm helping to make a difference at St. Pat's, helping the school/institution/faculty provide a quality education to young men and the opportunity for them to be the best they can be, with their concerns for the expense of education eased."
Michael fervently urges all of us to "focus on helping a student!" He emphasizes that we should appreciate and take advantage of all of the opportunities available now, not only to "sponsor" a student, but also to further contribute to a student's life by meeting and sharing time with him at the annual Benefactors' Luncheon.
