Noteworthy Dolphins at Le Moyne College

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Andy Parrino ’09

Andrew Lunetta

Parrino crouches to field a ball during a game as a San Diego Padre (left) and he enters the field before a game (right).

Le Moyne College alumnus Andy Parrino ’09 became the latest former Dolphin to reach the Major Leagues when he made his debut with the San Diego Padres on Aug. 26 as they took on the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks won, 5-0.

Parrino started each of his three years as a Dolphin before being drafted by the Padres in the 26th round of the 2007 MLB First-Year Player Draft, after his junior year. He became just the seventh player in the program’s history to reach the Major Leagues and just the second infielder to do so.

In 150 games as a Dolphin, Parrino hit .350, the seventh-highest record in the program’s Division I-era, with a .434 on-base percentage (6th), 201 hits (tied for 8th), 122 runs scored (10th), 98 runs batted in, 41 doubles (tied for 9th) and 15 home runs. As a junior, he was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Year, a third team All-America selection by ABCA/Rawlings and Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and led the Dolphins to the MAAC Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. That same year Parrino hit .402 (7th on the program’s single-season charts) with 80 hits (2nd), 128 total bases (4th), 46 runs scored, 44 runs batted in, 17 doubles (T7th) and nine home runs.

Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle ’77

When alumna Ann Marie Buerkle ’77 was sworn in as a member of the House of Representatives on Jan. 5, she made history as both the first woman to represent New York’s 25th congressional district, and as the first Le Moyne graduate to be elected to Congress.

A native of Auburn, N.Y., Buerkle first arrived on the Heights in 1969, taking classes at the College as part of its partnership with St. Joseph’s College of Nursing. She returned in 1976 to complete her bachelor’s degree in multiple science, this time balancing work and a young family with her studies. (Her daughter, Elizabeth, was born just days before she took an English final.)

“Le Moyne espouses the principles of the Catholic faith and respect for the individual,” she said during a recent interview. “And that is still there.”

A mother of six and grandmother of 11, Buerkle stressed that as a nation we have an obligation to prepare young people to meet the global challenges that face them and to enter the world marketplace. In particular, she said that schools like Le Moyne, with programs in nursing and physician assistant studies, have a crucial role in preparing the health care providers of tomorrow.

They also play an important part in helping veterans returning from service avail themselves of the educational opportunities needed to prepare for the next phase of their lives. Launching a media awareness campaign to inform veterans of professional and educational opportunities is one of the components of Compact 25, Buerkle’s commitment to the voters of the 25th district.

“There is no reason that the U.S. should not lead the way in terms of educational outcomes,” she said. “We have every advantage in this country and we should really be pushing our kids to be part of that.”

Early in her career Buerkle worked at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse and Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, and later as a substitute school nurse. She went on to earn her law degree from Syracuse University in 1994, and served as a member of the Syracuse Common Council for one term and as an assistant New York state attorney general for 13 years.

Buerkle said that it was a combination of her love for the district where she grew up, her professional experiences and her concern about the future of the country that prompted her to announce her candidacy as a Republican in February 2010.

One of 94 freshman members of Congress, Buerkle serves on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Veterans Affairs. She said that her immediate priority will be to put a staff in place to “hit the ground running with constituent services.”

“Happy constituents will be the measure of my success,” she said.

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More Remarkable Alumns

Tim DeKay ’85

Tim DeKay has traveled with George Peppard as part of the Broadway National Tour of The Lion in Winter, taken on the challenging role of an Irish journalist captured in Beirut in Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me and even portrayed the boyfriend of the loveable, yet neurotic, Elaine on the NBC hit Seinfeld.

Today DeKay portrays the no-nonsense federal agent Peter Burke in the USA Network’s White Collar. The program was nominated for a People's Choice Award in the "Favorite TV Obsession" category in 2010 and the "Favorite Cable TV Drama" category in 2011.

Now a lifetime member of the actor’s studio, DeKay has taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California, and appeared on numerous top-rated TV shows such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Scrubs, Friends and Party of Five. His career began at Le Moyne when, as a sophomore, he was cast in the role of the moving man in the musical I do, I do. He also portrayed Sebastian in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, the gentleman called in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie and the title role in Tim Jones during his time at the College.

In 2001, DeKay returned to Le Moyne to teach a workshop titled “Acting for the Camera,” and offered advice to students seeking to break into the profession. He received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the College in 2010.

The Hon. Michael C. Green ’83

The Hon. Michael C. Green ’83 has been nominated by President Barack Obama for appointment to U.S. District Court. Green was one of six individuals nominated recently by the president for U.S. District Courts.

Green currently serves as the district attorney for Monroe County, based in Rochester, N.Y.

“Throughout their careers, these distinguished men and women have demonstrated a steadfast commitment to public service,” President Obama said in a written statement. “I am confident they will serve the American people with distinction from the District Court bench.”

Green has been in his current position since 2004. He has served as a prosecutor in the office for nearly his entire legal career, starting as an assistant district attorney in 1987 and serving in several leadership positions prior to becoming district attorney, including chief of the DWI Bureau, deputy chief of the Major Felony Bureau, and first assistant district attorney from 2001 to 2003.

Green has tried more than 100 felony cases, including 40 homicide cases, and currently manages a staff of more than 80 prosecutors and 140 employees. He received his juris doctorate in 1986 from Western New England College School of Law and his bachelor’s degree in industrial and labor relations from Le Moyne. His wife, Karen Wood Green, is also a member of the class of 1983.