U Magazine, Fall 1987

ALCALA PARK

Friends seek to fund Briscoe scholarship K evin Briscoe '82 liked people . He was friendly, caring and involved. In fact, he went out of his way to befriend people others might shy away from, according to one of his college roommates, Paul Brownell '80 . During his under– graduate days at Alcala Park, Briscoe was a four– time letterman in football. He graduated with honors, a degree in political science and a lot of friends. His USD affiliation didn't end there. Briscoe was accepted into the University's law school, where between classes, he helped coach the Torero gridders. A law degree, he reasoned, might help him in politics, a dream he often discussed with Brownell. Those dreams where shattered in the fall of 1985, when in his third year oflaw school, Briscoe was acciden– tally electrocuted while he visited hi s home in Seattle. His family, classmates and teammates mourned their loss. Now, two years later, some of those friends want to establish a scholarship at USD to honor Briscoe's memory. "We want to award a scholarship to someone who exemplifies Kevin's selfless giving and involvement in campus life," says Brownell. He and Shawn Caine, one of Briscoe's law school class– mates, are spearheading an effort to contact all of Briscoe's college friends in an attempt to raise money for the scholarship. The October 17 home football game against

Pomona-Pitzer will be dedicated to Briscoe's

memory . Fans attending the game will have an opportu– nity to make a donation to the scholarship fund . Plans call for the Kevin Briscoe Memorial Scholar– ship to be split between two students each year - one undergraduate and one law student . The scholarship selection committee wants to announce the first recipients next spring. The amount to be awarded will depend on the response to Brownell and Caine's efforts. "Kevin was almost like a establish this scholarship to keep his spirit ali ve. I hope others feel as I do." Friends and classmates of Briscoe who would like to support the scholarship effort can contact Brownell at (6 19) 285-9343 or 481-5 524, Caine at 42 1- 0374 or USD's Annual Fund Office at 260-4724. D brother to me," recalls Brownell. "I want to

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Fr. William Wasson and actress Helen Hayes meet the press during a campus v isit in J anua17.

Priest's orphanage gets helping hand L ast J anuary, when she was presented with an honorary doctorate by the University, legen– dary stage and movie actress Helen Hayes shared the limelight with Fr. William

Wasson, a shy priest who has fed, clothed, housed and educated thousands of orphans during the last 30 years at orphanages he administers in Mexico and Honduras. Miss Hayes, who has sup– ported Fr. Wasson's orphan– age in Cuernavaca, Mexico since 1954, hoped to bring attention to her friend's efforts through their joint campus appearance . Those efforts now appear to be paying off. Fi- . Wasson's work has caught the attent ion of shopping center developer Ernest Hahn. Hahn, vice chairman of USD's Board ofTrustees, attended last January's dinner hono ring Miss Hayes. In September, Hahn and hi s wife J ean hosted a benefit fiesta at their Rancho Sante Fe home to help raise funds for Fr. Wasson's newest project-an orphanage in Haiti . With that kind of endorsement, the orphanage seems headed for reality. To give others a chance to share in the efforts, the benefit was also the occasion to announce establishmen t of a formal organization - Friends of Fr. Wasson - to support the priest's efforts. D

One of USD's young neighbors receives a balloon at the Univer– sity's booth during the Linda Vista Multi-Cultural Fair August 22 . Paul Davis '86 (in background) helps out.