On December 18, 2025, faculty and staff gathered for the annual Christmas luncheon at Mount de Sales. This year was unlike any other, as we introduced the Sister Mary Aquin Mission in Mercy Award to a beloved faculty member. Emily Brown, Upper School Division Head and alumnus from the class of 1994, revealed the first award recipient in a heartfelt speech that brought tears to several in the room. Below are several excerpts from Emily’s speech. Read the full speech here. 

“One of the great privileges of life at Mount de Sales Academy is witnessing, year after year, the way ordinary days are shaped by extraordinarily dedicated people. People who carry the heart of this place not through grand gestures, but through the quiet consistency of how they teach, how they serve, and how they care for those around them.   

Since our founding in 1876, this school has been formed by individuals who understood that their work, whether in a classroom, an office, a gym, or entirely behind the scenes, was more than a job. It was a vocation. A calling rooted in faith, in service, and in the Mercy tradition that continues to define who we are.

The Sister Mary Aquin Mission in Mercy Award exists to honor that calling. It recognizes a faculty or staff member who reflects the best of our heritage: someone who invigorates student learning, who builds a collaborative and faith-filled community, and who cares deeply, for students, colleagues, and the life of the school as a whole. This award is grounded in the charism of Catherine McAuley, carried here by the Sisters of Mercy, and preserved through generations of educators who believed that forming young people is holy work.

This award is named for Sister Mary Aquin, one of Mount de Sales’ first graduates and a woman who devoted fifty-five years of her life to teaching here. Her life reflects what it means to answer a calling and live it out faithfully and fully on this mount. 

With Todd, physics is both the discipline and a daily lesson in action and reaction; how what we do matters, and how we respond matters just as much. The real lesson is about who these kids are going to be: their character, their integrity, and their sense of responsibility to others. He teaches them not just how to do things, but how to do things right. Because that’s what you do.  That’s what Cavaliers do.

Over the years, Todd has served this community in countless other ways. He has overseen discipline, coached baseball, softball, volleyball, and more, always stepping forward when needed. He had an idea that ultimately led to what we now know as Freshman Forum, a program that shapes the experience of every new Cavalier, helping students enter high school with confidence, connection, and a sense of belonging.

Recently, a hashtag has surfaced that pretty much sums it all up: #ToddDoesItAll.

When you look at Todd’s life at Mount de Sales, you can see echoes of the generations who came before him. In the Sisters of Mercy, who arrived in Reconstruction-era Macon with nothing but a mission. In the teachers whose names fill our stories, those who taught, coached, mentored, and built the traditions that define this place. In the people who understood that doing what is right matters more than doing what is easy, and that their work was part of something larger than themselves.

This award is named for Sister Mary Aquin, whose life of service shaped this school in profound ways. She carried the mission of Mount de Sales wherever she went, quite literally, as symbolized by the traveling trunk that once accompanied her in her ministry. Beginning this year, that trunk becomes part of this award. Each recipient of the Sister Mary Aquin Mission in Mercy Award will keep the trunk in their classroom or office for the semester. Before passing it on to the next recipient, we ask that they add a reflection or memento that represents their experience of our Mercy mission. Over time, it will become a living legacy archive of the educators and staff who have carried the heart of Mount de Sales forward, year by year.

In addition to this honor, the recipient of this award also receives the Aquin Cup. Catherine McAuley believed deeply in the power of a “comfortable cup of tea,” the idea that hospitality and care often begin with noticing and responding to what someone needs in the moment. The Aquin Cup symbolizes that same way of showing up. And Todd shows us, again and again, what that looks like in practice.

In addition to these symbols of our Mercy tradition, Todd will also receive a cash award of $1,000, very generously sponsored by Prince Manufacturing, in gratitude for his extraordinary service to our community.

Todd, you strengthen our mission.

You strengthen our community.

And you strengthen all of us who are fortunate enough to work alongside you.”

Todd was overcome with gratitude as he accepted the award, beaming at his family who surprised him. He shared a simple but impactful truth: ”I have all my family in this room. My family and my Mount de Sales family.”