14
Canisius High School Today
Tree others named to board
DougBenzhadabusy June: firsthewasvotedto
serve as president of the Canisius Alumni Board
of Governors. Then, he and his wife, Liz, celebrat-
ed the arrival of their fifth child, George Michael.
Benz joined the Board of Governors in 2009 and
has been active in supporting the Downtowners
Luncheon Speakers Series and alumni spiritual
programs. He brings to the Board a strong loyal-
ty to Canisius and a passion to build on the suc-
cesses of outgoing Board of Governors President
Todd Mazurek ’89.
Benz will be joined on the executive board by
returning Vice President Sean McPhee ’95 and
Secretary Jonathan Ward ’98 of the Washington,
D.C., Canisius Alumni Chapter.
Three new faces will join the Alumni Board
of Governor meetings this fall. Ryan Crawford,
JohnMcGowan, and Jerry Piskorowski have been
named full members for the 2012-13 school
year.
Ryan P. Crawford, Esq. ‘99
After graduating from Canisius,
Crawford went on to graduate from
Ithaca College in 2003 and the State
University of New York at Buffalo
Law School in 2006. After being ad-
mitted to practice law in New York,
Crawford joined the United States
Army as Judge Advocate. He served on active
duty from 2007 to 2010 and currently serves as
a captain in the United States Army Reserves. He
is an associate attorney with the law firmGibson,
McAskill & Crosby, LLP, in Buffalo, New York,
where he practices in litigation.
Crawford is a strong supporter of Canisius,
most recently sponsoring a graduating senior
through the Canisius High School Mentorship
Program (CHAMP). He joins the Alumni Board
of Governors with the hope of giving back to the
school, an institution that he believes was instru-
mental in his personal and professional develop-
ment. Crawford lives in Orchard Park, N.Y., with
his wife, Kristen, and daughter, Clare.
Gerald (Jerry) S.
Piskorowski ‘65
Piskorowski joins the Alumni Board of
Governors after serving two years as the agent for
the Class of 1965. Currently retired, he worked
in various capacities, from sales to management
at the lobbying group, for the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce inWashington, D.C. After graduating
from the College of the Holy Cross, Piskorowski
served in the U.S. Army Reserves for six years.
Piskorowski is workingwith Canisius on a new
initiative, the Alumni Bereavement Group. This
group of volunteers will serve as representatives
of the school at wakes and funerals of alumni and
their immediate relatives. He will help recruit
and coordinate members of the Bereavement
Group to ensure that alumni and their families
are remembered in their time of loss. Piskorowski
lives in East Amherst, N.Y., with his wife, Marcia,
and has two daughters, Jennifer Zerby and Jessica
Skipper.
John M. McGowan ‘95
After his Canisius gradu-
ation, McGowan contin-
ued his Jesuit education
in Syracuse, graduating
from Le Moyne College in
2000. Returning to Buffalo
in 2002, McGowan joined
M&T Bank shortly thereafter. He currentlyworks
as a business and planning analyst in the bank’s
Retail Administration Department. Having
played rugby since leaving Canisius, McGowan
was afforded the opportunity to return to the
school to coach the rugby team in 2008. In 2011,
he began coaching the Canisius College men’s
rugby team.
In joining the Alumni Board of Governors,
McGowan looks forward to contributing again
to the Canisius community. He considers his ex-
perience at the school one of the formative pe-
riods of his life and relishes the opportunity to
afford this experience to the next generation of
Crusaders. McGowan lives in Buffalo with his
wife, Cameron.
✠
Douglas Benz ’96
named President
of the Alumni
Board of
Governors