JULY 2017 12 | FRONTDOORSMEDIA .COM Photo Credit: Thurlkill Studios Betty and Herb Bool

JULY 2017 FRONTDOORSMEDIA .COM | 13 Pro deo: Bool and his wife Betty still go to church — not just on Sunday, but every day. Pro domo: Herb and Betty have made a family since settling in Phoenix in the 1950s, with four children and seven grandchildren. Pro patria: Bool served as a pilot in the Air Force and has served Saint Mary’s in several capacities since he left. Bool’s path to service is like that of generations of Saint Mary’s alumni who have served or are serving their city, state, or country as politicians, judges, police officers, firefighters, and servicemen and women. “Our graduates work pro patria (for country),” Fessler said. Bool, who turns 85 this month, has been “always a Knight” in a most significant way. He and fellow businessman Jim Meenaghan founded the “Sponsor-a- Student” program in 1996. It has since helped hundreds of students be able to attend Saint Mary’s whose families, in most cases, would not have been able to afford a private Catholic education for their children. Bool recently reminisced about his days at Saint Mary’s. He recalled that the priests who ran the school at the time were “strict but pretty fair.” But his favorite memories were made on the football field, where Bool, as quarterback, led the Knights to a state championship and two city championships. He went on to play quarterback for Cornell University (he drove there in a 1937 Ford), where he also excelled at lacrosse and swimming. One of his classmates at Cornell, Peter Eisenman, would go on to design University of Phoenix Stadium. Bool would later attend the opening of the stadium as a guest of Eisenman and the Bidwill family. Bool moved to Phoenix from Dayton, Ohio, as a boy because his father has tuberculosis and was told by a doctor he was going to die very soon but could extend his life by six months if he moved to Arizona. Six months turned into 40 years and his father started a cactus business on Camelback Road, a dirt thoroughfare at the time. “He did pretty well having come here to die,” Bool said. COVER STORY CONTINUED Left: Herb Bool High School Basketball Photo, Middle: Betty and Herb now. Right: Herb Pool Graduation Photo