Three of Bona’s best will be honored for their influential work May 18 during St. Bonaventure University’s Gaudete Medal Celebration at The National Press Club Ballroom in Washington, D.C. 

The Gaudete (pronounced gow-DAY-tay) Medal is one of the university’s highest honors. Awarded every year since 1996, the recipients are chosen through their demonstration of joy and service that exemplify the life of St. Francis of Assisi.

This year’s honorees include Janet Bodnar, ’71, editor-at-large, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, Kevin C. O’Connor, D.O., FAAFP, ’88, physician to the president of the United States, and Mark H. Tuohey III, ’68, senior counsel, BakerHostetler.

Bodnar, a nationally recognized expert in the field of finance, assumed the position of editor-at-Large after retiring as editor following eight years at the helm. While editor, she was honored by Folio, the magazine publishing organization, as one of its Top Women in Media.

She received her master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University, where she was also a Knight-Bagehot Fellow in Business and Economics Journalism. She served for nine years on St. Bonaventure’s Board of Trustees, and has been inducted into the Steel Valley Hall of Fame in her hometown outside of Pittsburgh. 

O’Connor is commissioned as the 16th physician to the president selected by Joseph Biden, 46th president of the United States. He retains his academic credentials as associate professor of Health, Human Function and Rehabilitative Sciences with a secondary appointment in Medicine at George Washington University. O’Connor served in the Army for 22 years and returned to the White House after already spending a decade there.

O’Connor, a diplomate of the American Board of Family Medicine, was appointed as a fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians in 2009 and inducted into the Order of Military Medicine Merit in 2013. In 2016, he received the Army Surgeon General’s “A” Proficiency Award. 

Tuohey is a defense attorney with a distinguished 45-year career in public service and private practice. He recently completed service as the first director of the Mayor of Washington, D.C.’s Office of Legal Counsel while also overseeing the legal work of the District of Columbia agency counsel. He has previously served as a federal prosecutor as well as an assistant U.S. Attorney and special counsel to the Attorney General.

Tuohey has served as chair of the District of Columbia Sports and Entertainment Commission, former president of the District of Columbia Bar and a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Tuohey, a Fordham University School of Law graduate, is routinely selected to Best Lawyers in America.

The event will celebrate the lives of these three exemplary individuals as well as highlight Dr. Jeff Gingerich’s tenure as St. Bonaventure’s 22nd president and the fundraising campaign for A Bolder Bonaventure. The celebration will begin with cocktails at 6:30 p.m.

For information concerning tickets, sponsorships and event advertising, please contact Angela Nelson, director of donor engagement at anelson@sbu.edu or visit www.sbu.edu/gaudete.