Fr. James Schall, S.J., was the first teacher I had at Georgetown who I felt like I could ask for any kind of help and receive it, whether it was a recommendation letter or a bit of food or cooking advice — he is the reason that I am now a lover of duck, and I am forever grateful to him for expanding my poultry-palate. During my second year, I applied for a government internship that required a background check, and Fr. Schall kindly agreed to be a reference to affirm my presence on the Hilltop. After the investigator spoke with him, Fr. Schall sent me this email:

katelyn

the fbi, secret police, kgb, loomis detective service, or whoever it was called with regard to my view of the life and times of a certain katelyn jones. i told him that she was currently writing her “confessions,” so i did not have the whole scoop, but that judging from the outside, asschumacher said, you would never know she was not the ideal type, for whom plato has been waiting all these years.

pray for me, jvssj

Who, other than JVSSJ, could reference so many great thinkers when talking about a security check? Probably no one.

Fr. Schall’s wit, wisdom and good humor have always brightened my day. Reading through our past email exchanges, remembering conversations at Wolfington Hall and staying in touch with Fr. Schallcontinue to make me joyful and remind me why I loved my undergraduate years so much.