Cathedral / Pope Alumni Soccer Game – Honoring Chris Whalen (‘03)
The Cathedral/Pope alumni soccer players have kept a great tradition going for decades — the annual alumni game, always held on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Over the years, there’s always been a handful of familiar faces you could count on seeing, whether they were playing or just stopping by to cheer everyone on.
One of those familiar faces was Chris Whalen (Cathedral Class of 2003). Chris was an incredible player at Cathedral and an even better teammate and friend. He played a huge role in Cathedral’s back-to-back Western MA Championships in 2001 and 2002, and later returned to coach the boys’ soccer team in 2011.
Anyone who knew Chris loved him. He was always cracking a joke, making people smile, and lending a hand whenever someone needed it.
Sadly, Chris passed away in February, and this will be the first alumni game without him. It’s going to be tough to be out at Surrey Road on Friday, November 28th, without him there, but I’m hoping we can get a great crowd together to remember and celebrate him. We’ll head over to Nathan Bills Bar and Restaurant after the game for some food and drinks and laughs.
Even if you’re not a soccer alum, please stop by the field or Nathan Bills afterwards — Chris was a big supporter and fan of all Cathedral/Pope athletics.
📅 Friday, November 28th at Noon
📍 Pope Field (Surrey Rd)
⚽ The game will last about an hour.
🍻 Afterward, we’ll head over to Nathan Bills for some food, drinks, and laughs in honor of Chris.
Hope to see you there if you’re in town.
Thanks,
Mike Ryan (‘03)
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