Hughes News

Marmion scores $20,000 for Sox winning season
The Lincoln-Way Sun, October 30, 2005

AURORA - When the Rev. Charles Reichenbacher was rooting for the home team this year, he was salivating for more than just peanuts and Cracker Jack.

The lifelong White Sox fan cheered for every crack of the bat and whiz of the ball.

But it was the ch-ching of the dollars coming in that really had the Catholic priest tuning in.

Reichenbacher's not a greedy man, but every time the newly crowned World Series champs put a round-tripper on the board, it meant another $100 scored for Marmion Academy.

And to the prep school's director of development, that's a reason to get into the old ball game.

For the second year in a row, Wheaton-based developer Wiseman-Hughes Enterprises has participated in ESPN's Home Run Call and donated to Marmion Academy every time the White Sox hit a home run during the regular season.

That added up to $20,000 this season that will be given as financial aid for needy students to attend Marmion. As if that weren't enough to root for, Marmion also got a mention on ESPN radio (AM 1000) for every White Sox homer.

"I was a little worried this year when (the White Sox) traded a couple of their bigger hitters," Reichenbacher said. "But they still got 200 runs, and that's a lot of money for deserving students. "Some of us (at Marmion) are Sox fans, and some happen to be Cubs fans. But this year, we were all cheering for the White Sox."

About 20 percent of Marmion's 482 students receive financial aid. Last year, Wiseman-Hughes' donations gave 10 students $2,420 grants to attend the school.

Wiseman-Hughes partners James Hughes Jr., Michael Hughes and Sean Hughes are all Marmion alumni. Founder James Hughes Sr. serves on Marmion's Board of Trustees.