Even though the annual ski trip and the fashion show are remarkable, the Xavier Dads’ Club and Mothers’ Guild go even further than that to plan other events that are exciting and inviting. They even give up their time to give back to Xavier through volunteer work.
The Dads’ Club strives to accomplish its goals by making an inclusive and welcoming environment for dads, Xavier students and the XCP community.
“My view of the goal of the Dads’ Club is to provide opportunities for dads to build shared experiences and stronger relationships with their daughters,” said Brian Cantoni, treasurer of the XCP Dads’ Club. “It also helps dads stay more in touch with what is going on at the school, and build relationships with other dads who can help them get through common experiences (like college search, etc.).”
“The Dads’ Club mission is to create events for dads and daughters that create lifetime memories,” said Eric Silvernail, president of the Dads’ Club. “The five major events are Father-Daughter Bowling in September which had 200 participants, Father-Daughter Mass and Breakfast which has 290 attending, Father-Daughter Pickleball next month, the Father-Daughter Ski Trip in January which will have 350 attendees, and the Father-Daughter Dance in March.”
The Dads’ Club not only puts on fun events at which dads and daughters spend quality time together, but the club helps the dads stay in-the-know about what is going on at Xavier and it provides assistance and advice to the dads of baby gators who are new to Xavier.
“We are a community for dads to learn about what is going on at Xavier and with each other because upperclasswomen dads answer questions and experiences with baby gator dads,” Silvernail said.
Besides the Father-Daughter events, the club contributes immensely to numerous Xavier events.
“Not part of our mission but the Dads’ Club actually provides all the tents, chairs, waters, cookies and volunteers for the after-graduation party, all the burgers and volunteers for the incoming Frosh BBQ, and the food for senior nights when attendees of one home game for every Xavier sports team are provided hot dogs- for Xavier players, families and visitors,” said Silvernail.
Similar to the Dads’ Club, the Mothers’ Guild (or the Moms’ Club) hosts and plans activities for mothers and daughters, but it also puts on activities just for the mothers.
“We support mother-daughter events, that we call Adventures. Our upcoming Adventure is line dancing lessons at Handle Bar J,” said Maria Murphy-Fontes, the head of Mothers’ Guild. “We support a lot of events just for moms. Other upcoming events are a moms’ retreat in November and an Advent reflection in December.”
The third annual Xavier Moms’ Retreat from November 3-5, 2023, will be at the Triangle YMCA Ranch Camp in Oracle, Arizona. It is a great opportunity for Xavier moms to relax and bond with other moms. The Xavier Moms’ Book Club’s next meeting is Wednesday, October 18, and The Xavier Moms’ Hiking Club meets on October 24 at the Piestewa Peak trail head. These are wonderful ways to get to know other moms while doing activities that are enjoyable.
The XCP Mothers’ Guild also organizes events for the seniors like the senior treat days and the Xavier Mothers’ Guild Fashion Show. Performances at this show are only done by the seniors, but everyone is welcome to watch. It takes a great deal of effort by the mothers to organize the sponsors and coordinate all of the parts for the fashion show and the dinner auction. Dinner auctions are held each autumn in order to raise money for the school and to provide an opportunity for the Xavier community to socialize.
Murphy- Fontes said, “We host fundraising events with proceeds going to the scholarship fund. These events are the annual auction and the scholarship fashion show.”
The Mothers’ Guild strives to make an exceptional influence and impact on the Xavier community through volunteering its time.
“We impact the Xavier Community by fostering friendship, fellowships and leadership with our moms,” said Murphy-Fontes. “Our three main events, the annual auction, Zoolights and the scholarship fashion show, have a positive impact on our community; they build camaraderie and are fun and entertaining.”
“The Gazette,” the Mothers’ Guild newsletter which can be found on the Xavier College Prep website at https://xcpmg.org/ and the Dads’ Club link, https://www.xcpdadsclub.org/, are great sources to stay in touch with upcoming events at Xavier. The Mothers’ Guild and Dads’ Club are fantastic ways to get involved with the Xavier community and to create lifelong memories.
