Joe DiNicola an alumni from Cathedral Prep who graduated back in 1999. His years at Prep were full of excitement, fun, and happiness. He experienced so many opportunities for the future ahead of him. All in the process he still lived his high school experience with gratitude.

“It was a family tradition,” DiNicola said, about attending Cathedral Prep.

Joe attended Cathedral Prep mainly because it was a family thing. Four of his older brothers attended Prep as well as many other family members, including several cousins. One of his favorite things about Prep at the time was being that age, meeting different people, and building friendship networks.

Prep also helped prepare him for his current career. He has been a financial advisor for the past 20 years.

“How Prep prepared me for life after high school was in more ways than I could list,” DiNicola said.

Joe had both a step ahead in life circles in college and in life in general. He learned how to be a leader and gain the confidence and ability to stand up for others. He feels that if it wasn’t for Prep he wouldn’t be exactly where he is at today. Prep has definitely added to the ingredients of where he is in his life. It has made him who he is today.

“[I was] part of something big because of [Prep’s] history and tradition,” DiNicola said.

People he met at Prep made him feel comfortable and wanted. He claims that classes didn’t get challenging until college. The classes were more fascinating and still very impactful. He still draws back to those classes till this day.

There have been many different changes at Prep since he graduated in 1999, mainly focusing on the student body and the demographics of the school with Prep now being coed.

“It was a privilege to go here,” DiNicola said. 

If there is anything Joe wishes he could have done better or more while he attended prep at the time, it would be to have been more focused and become a leader to the community. This could have given him so many opportunities to stand out to his peers and classmates. It would have shown great leadership and what he was capable of.

Though DiNicola enjoys his life today, he said he does miss some things from his high school days, like hanging out with friends learning life, and special moments like the rallies and sports events.

DiNicola played sports in his early years. He then started to take charge in the social committee. His focus was to make time in his life and others’ lives that was filled with fun memories. It made him feel good, and he found joy in seeing others included, happy, and having fun.

Reflecting on the ways Prep has influenced his life, DiNicola talked about how character-building at Prep has informed him in fatherhood all the way to how he does his job and him as a person overall.

DiNicola hopes that his daughter likes the same things as he did when he attended Cathedral Prep. If he could go back and redo it all over again he would, only if he was still an adult and had his daughters. He doesn’t regret anything he has done though. He made his impact and would fight for perfection. Everything has happened for a reason.