Bequest

Alfred P. DiCenso ’52

Alfred DiCenso ’52 found out he was going to be attending Peddie the way most students did at the time.

“One day, my dad said, ‘get packed, you’re going to Peddie!’” laughs DiCenso. “The next thing I knew, I was there.”

As it turns out, DiCenso’s time at Peddie was one of the best things to happen to the school. Now living in bustling Annapolis, Md., with Barbara, his wife of 48 years, DiCenso reflects back on his time at Peddie fondly.

“At Peddie, I really enjoyed participating in the Motion Picture Club, where we would show full-length feature motion pictures. I was also a part of the Camera Club and had the opportunity to develop my own black and white pictures. It was great fun for me,” he said.

Outside of clubs, DiCenso connected with a few faculty members that strongly influenced his time at Peddie, including Latin teacher Hiester R. Hornberger and music teacher H. Leonard Richardson.

“I had great respect for Mr. Hornberger. He was a tough disciplinarian but an excellent teacher and a memorable person. But, I have to say, I really enjoyed the glee club and choir with Mr. Richardson.”

One of DiCenso’s culminating moments at Peddie was when he had the chance to tour with the choir and perform for various alumni and parent groups. He also had the opportunity to perform on stage at Carnegie Hall.

After graduation, DiCenso attended Cornell University where he majored in engineering. He spent his career working in the industrial textiles industry, eventually owning his own marketing company.

DiCenso credits his success in engineering to another faculty member, Dr. Ross A. Harrison, chair of the mathematics department at the time. “Doc,” as he was affectionately called, received permission to teach calculus to a select group of five students.

“This really gave me a head start on calculus in college,” said DiCenso. “I’m very grateful.”

Years later, DiCenso returned the favor to Peddie by steadily increasing his annual contributions to the Peddie Fund, eventually ending up on the Alumni Board in 1970. Living in Pennsylvania and traveling to Peddie three times a year for meetings, DiCenso was asked to represent the Alumni Board on the Board of Trustees in 1975. Within a year, he became a permanent Trustee and has remained on the board for over 40 years.

Al ’52 and Barbara DiCenso

“When I came on board, Peddie was broke. Headmaster Potter rejuvenated the faculty and students, and Anne Seltzer and Tom DeGray carried that with them. I have said throughout my experience on the board, we always had the right head for the school at the right time.”

Tom and Anne helped carry out the well-known endowment gift given by Ambassador Walter Annenberg ’27 of $100 million in 1993.

“Before Walter wrote the check, though, he wanted to know that Peddie was headed in the right direction,” said DiCenso. “And of course, his gift inspired many other alumni, parents and friends to give.”

One alumnus was DiCenso himself, who has named Peddie for a percentage of his estate.

“I take pride in my work and time at Peddie. To me, there was no better way to continue that legacy than by naming Peddie in my will.”