St. Bonaventure cross country/track graduate James Fitzmaurice has been named the Mt. Irenaeus Student of the Year.

Every year at the end of the St. Bonaventure spring semester, The Ryan Realbuto Mt. Irenaeus Student of the Year Award is presented to the student whose dedication and commitment most exemplifies the mission and ministry of Mt. Irenaeus. The award was named for a student who tragically lost his life on the streets of Washington, D.C. Ryan was returning home with two other Capuchin Volunteer Corps volunteers after engaging in youth ministry at a neighborhood church when he was shot and killed during an attempted robbery.

"A Light for this Campus"
Br. Kevin offered a tribute to James Fitzmaurice, recipient of 2025 The Ryan Realbuto Mt. Irenaeus Student of the Year Award.

Over his college career, James became very dear to everyone in the Mountain community, especially to Fr. Dan Riley. James has been a leader among men. He was always up for the tasks of Mountain workdays, was a part of the "On the Road" team that hosted spiritual programs for St. Bonaventure alumni and others, and brought many teammates from the cross-country circle to the Mountain for their own retreats and on our men's overnight retreats. In each of these settings, James has shared his faith, his dreams, and his struggles in an honest and non-self-conscious way.

In addition to his involvement at the Mountain, over the past four years James was also a big part of the prayer and service life on campus. He was a lector and Eucharistic Minister at Mass on campus and was an accounting intern for the Franciscan Center for Social Concern.