Cassidey Kavathas is a sophomore journalism major from Lancaster, New York. She serves as News Editor of The Bona Venture and News Director of WSBU-FM, 88.3 The Buzz. She volunteers as a Peer Coach and is also a reporter for TAPintoGreaterOlean and PolitiFact NY. A recipient of three scholarships, she has proudly achieved dean's list status each semester. Below is Cassidey's Bona story in her own words.
The road to St. Bonaventure University is different for everyone. I like to consider my path unique. Believe it or not, I didn’t want to come to Bonaventure. It was actually my mom who forced me to go to Communications Day and tour the school. Mothers are always right as the second I set foot on campus I felt like I came home.
The sense of community that surrounds Bonaventure is unlike any other. Even as a prospective student the community welcomed me. My first time on campus Aaron Chimbel, dean of the Jandoli School of Communication, went out of his way to introduce me into this family. At the time, I was struggling to find internship and job shadow opportunities in the journalism field due to being a high school senior. Dean Chimbel reached out to our network of alumni to help me even before I was considered a true Bonnie.
Through the dean, I met Bob McCarthy, ’76, a veteran political reporter for the Buffalo News. Bob invited me to shadow him in the newsroom during the debate for Erie County Executive in 2019. Just like Dean Chimbel, Bob welcomed me into the Bona family before my application to the university was even submitted. The night I spent shadowing him not only ignited my need to pursue journalism but confirmed that there is nothing like being a part of the Bonaventure community.
At an admissions event and my first-ever Bonnies basketball game at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, I
received an unexpected surprise. I met Bob again, this time with his wife, Ann Flynn McCarthy, Class of 1974. She welcomed me with open arms just like any Bonaventure alumni, student, faculty or staff would. Bob informed me that he was at the event to speak. You can imagine my surprise when he started speaking about me as he stood at the podium in front of everyone. It was during this speech he officially welcomed me into the Bona family, unveiling my acceptance to the university.
As a sophomore, I’m blessed with the sea of opportunity that engulfs me at Bonaventure. I am honored to hold the positions of news editor of our newspaper, The Bona Venture, and news director of our radio station. I believe that I wouldn’t have excelled as much without the true welcome into the community by Dean Chimbel, who shared a free T-shirt and a warm smile the first time we met. It is also through the mentoring skills of Bob McCarthy that I have realized my genuine love of journalism and writing.
By Cassidey Kavathas
November 2021
