WILMINGTON — The lower bleachers at Ursuline Academy’s Laffey-McHugh Gymnasium were filled with girls in red and black uniforms, and more students and guests sat in folding chairs on the floor. A few minutes later, they heard news that will bring big changes to their school at the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Franklin Street.
The group was convened Feb. 29 to learn about a $5 million donation that will help transform the Wilmington campus. The gift from Delaware philanthropist and real estate developer Anthony N. Fusco Sr. is the largest in Ursuline’s 130-year history. It will focus primarily on athletic facilities, but its effects will touch the entire school.
“The Ursuline community is in awe of the overwhelming generosity of Mr. Fusco,” Ursuline president Trisha Medeiros said in a statement. “These funds will support the long legacy of Ursuline’s superior athletic programs by transforming spaces focused on health and wellness so that our students can continue to grow, learn and thrive.”
Fusco took in the cheers and appreciation from his spot on the floor. He wore a big smile and repeatedly raised his arms.
“Ursuline is a place with a profound athletic legacy producing top-notch athletes at the collegiate and professional levels, as well as leaders in our community,” he said in a statement. “It is an honor to be part of the transformation of the Ursuline athletic facilities into a state-of-the-art fitness and health center that is parallel to the caliber of the Ursuline outstanding athletic program.”
The gym, built in 1980, will be completely renovated. The school will create the Anthony N. Fusco Sr. Fitness and Health Center for students and faculty; improve accessibility for those with disabilities; add locker rooms and athletic offices; and introduce technological advancements that will support the overall academic and athletic experience.
With renderings of the finished product displayed on a big screen behind her, Medeiros expanded on what to expect once the project is complete. The gymnasium will include a skywalk, a new lobby, better seating and improved lighting.
The donation “will elevate our athletic facilities to unprecedented heights, matching the caliber of our exceptional student-athletes,” said Anthony Pullella, Ursuline’s director of operations.
Laffey McHugh-Gymnasium has been the home of some stellar athletes over the years. The basketball standouts include Sarah Gause Flanders, Class of 1982; Val Whiting, Class of 1989; Elena Delle Donne, Class of 2008; and Adrianna Hahn, Class of 2015. In volleyball, the Raiders have won 12 state championships and been runner up seven other times.
Junior Claire Kelly, a member of the volleyball team, represented the school’s athletes.
“We are so grateful for all you have done for us,” she told Fusco.
The school presented Fusco with a lanyard that includes the names of all three of the school’s “houses,” or groups of students. Attached to the lanyard was an all-access pass to the school.
“We will always be there for you as you have been for us,” she said.
Ursuline’s director of marketing and communications, Brittany Keller, said the gymnasium and lobby will be the first part of the project, with work anticipated to begin at the end of the current school year.
“The goal would be that at some point in the fall, our volleyball team would be playing in here. That is our goal,” she said.
The project has been a long time coming, she continued. The school has wanted a facility that matches the caliber of its athletes. It will benefit the entire school community, not just athletes, she stressed.
“This space is used by almost every single student in the school every day. This is going to impact every student on this campus,” Keller said. “It’s really not going to impact just our community, but the greater area as a whole.”
The gym is the site of all school Masses, graduation, special events and reunions. In addition, it is rented out for other events.
Athletic director Lauren DiSabatino said the school’s athletes deserve a space like the new health and fitness center.
“They have a long history of tradition in their athletic programs. This will bring not only the attention that it deserves, but it will continue to elevate the athletics in the future,” she said.
Volleyball player C.C. DeCaro, a junior, is excited to show off the new facility to players who come in to battle the Raiders.
“We’re known for our athletics here, so to walk in and see that gym, it’s so exciting,” DeCaro said. “That’s the first thing people are going to see when they walk in.”
The donation also will anchor “a comprehensive campaign to support Ursuline Academy’s Blaze Brighter strategic plan, launch needed facility improvements across campus, and enhance the school’s financial stability through endowment and annual fund growth, the school said.
The gift continues Fusco’s record of philanthropy at Ursuline and elsewhere. At Ursuline, he provided the lead commitment to transform the campus’ convent into the Anthony N. Fusco Sr. Student Life Center, which was completed in 2019. He and his family’s foundation have supported the school’s financial literacy programs and tuition assistance.
Fusco’s granddaughter, Picara Vassalo, graduated from Ursuline in 1997. Fusco, an honorary member of Salesianum’s Class of 2014, left school when he was a youth to work to support his family. His first business was a season Italian water ice stand on Union Street in Wilmington’s Little Italy.
Ursuline’s field hockey, outdoor track, lacrosse and soccer teams play at Serviam Field, located a few miles from campus off Route 141.
Last May, the Anthony and Catherine Fusco Foundation donated $10 million to Salesianum School to install all-turf athletic fields on the Wilmington campus. In 2014, Fusco donated a similar amount to Salesianum’s endowment. His foundation has supported Padua Academy and St. Edmond’s Academy as well.
He also has donated to Delaware Military Academy, which has the Anthony N. Fusco Sr. Athletic Center and Fusco Memorial Field, and the Delaware Art Museum.
DiSabatino appreciates Fusco’s dedication to his hometown, where he arrived when he was 3. “Just having him give back to Ursuline not only in the Student Life Center, but now in athletics, just shows how much he has pride in his community, and we’re happy to be a part of it.”
Kelly said seeing the students’ faces as the announcement was made was a great moment. She can’t wait to step on the new floor.
“Ready to put the gym to use,” she said.
Photos by Mike Lang.
