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At our Gala in May, Charline Castillo '13 was invited to be our Alumni speaker. A graduate of Cristo Rey New York and Georgetown University, Charline spoke beautifully about her journey to BJP, her gratitude for our school, and the positive impact a Jesuit education has made on her. We invite you to read Charline's speech below.
Good evening, everyone.
I am honored to be here speaking with you this evening as a Brooklyn Jesuit Prep (henceforth BJP) alum, and as a representative of the BJP alumni community. My name is Charline Castillo, and I graduated from BJP in 2013. Although it doesn’t sound like that long ago, to me at least, to think that was almost 10 years ago really gives me a bit of a reality check every time: there have been so many updates and changes in my life in what feels like such little time. After graduating from BJP, I went on to Cristo Rey New York High School in Harlem, then became a Hoya at Georgetown University, which I graduated from in 2021 (Hoya Saxa!). Fast forward to the present day, I work in Operations and Facilities, for Ross Stores Inc, a field that I stumbled into unintentionally.
As time goes on, the more I learn that life tends to be that way: unexpected and even coincidental. So much so that just a few days prior to receiving the invitation to speak tonight from Mr. Max Ickes, I received a call from the BJP Graduate Support associate, Mr. Joe Aguilera. He called to catch up and talk about these life updates I briefly mentioned earlier. In that conversation, we went over the usual introductory questions: what I have been up to, what I do now, and so on. Then, he caught me off guard a bit with this question: How has BJP contributed to your success? I realized up until that moment that I never really thought about it.
In the few seconds I could gather an answer, I said “Well, had I not been to BJP, I don’t think I would have ended up in Cristo Rey or even at Georgetown.” I know, very cliche of me to say, but even after the call, I thought about the question a bit more, and it is honestly as simple as my answer was. BJP changed the course of my journey with opportunities that were accessible to me in my family in ways that I could not have imagined at my previous schools.
BJP gave me a community of people many of whom are still part of my personal community through to this day. From the Algebra classes with Brother Michael, the Reading sessions with Ms. Malcousu, the Math classes with Ms. Locario, to Summer camps at Fairfield with my peers, every moment and memory here taught me to be disciplined, inquisitive, driven, and a woman for others. All in all, BJP contributed to my successes and to my becoming the version of me that made the choices to be where I am today.
As a testament to that, I will leave you all with this final anecdote. Growing up, my mom has always emphasized to me the value of receiving an education and how important it is to one’s success. I am not only referring to learning about subjects and culture but the type of education or environment that builds, shapes, and contributes to your character or who you are in a positive, impactful way.
That was a major reason for her decision to enroll me in BJP. To that point, something she has often said to me, and also tells everyone she recommends BJP to is BJP is not just the middle school I went to, but a place that laid the foundation for the confident and caring adult I have become and continue to grow into, the kind of adult she could not be more proud of. I couldn't agree more because I am also proud of who I have become and am still becoming. For that, my family and I will always be grateful to this institution.
Thank you!
