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ONTARIO
OREGON
Aaron Franks, if not a lawyer, would almost certainly be a chef. He loves to cook, and but for being interrupted by COVID, would have continued the part-time pursuit of a culinary degree, which he hopes to re-start again when life resumes. Aaron played violin for twenty years and then switched to saxophone. He wrote, directed, produced (and was in the orchestra – saxophone, of course) for the Osgoode Hall Law School “Mock Trial,” an annual music/comedy revue with proceeds going to charity.
John Coletti and his wife are both runners and have completed multiple marathons, though John confesses that his wife usually has the faster time. John has completed five Ironman Triathlons, but none of them quickly. John enjoys fishing and hunting and has recently taken up golf but is not sure his personality suits the sport.
OHIO
Marc G. Pera played both baseball and basketball in college, although “played” might be a bit of hyperbole for basketball, since his primary position was end of the bench. Baseball runs in the family. Marc has a son who pitches for his college team and another son in high school committed to play at the University of Louisville (currently ranked in the top ten). And it runs in his practice. Marc successfully represented a brain injured child who was injured by a foul ball at a minor league game, getting past summary judgment despite a hundred-year-old Ohio rule that granted baseball stadiums immunity.
OKLAHOMA
Kayce Gisinger was a competition twirler (also twirled fire batons and swords) and an avid snow skier. She decided on ac- counting because she did well in math and did not like the idea of an additional three years of law school. But by the end of her freshman year she knew accounting was not for her and had no real plan B. She got a part-time job at the local district attorney’s office doing clerical work and slipped out to watch the closing of a high-profile case. She doesn’t remember what the case was about, a word that was said or even who won. She just remembers feeling as though she had been struck by lightning and knew then what she would do for a career.
PENNSYLVANIA
Angie Halim competed at two National Trial Competitions as a law student at Temple. She gave birth to her first and only child following the first evening of competition at a Regional tournament in Philadelphia. While she was in the hospital, her teammates finished the competition and advanced to the National tournament. Angie competed in Texas with her four- week-old daughter in tow. Nineteen years later, that “Trial Team baby” is a sophomore at Howard University. Angie is a solo practitioner in Philadelphia, where she lives with her wife and dog. She only accepts court-appointments to represent indigent defendants in federal criminal cases. Her favorite nickname is “The Punisher,” earned during a tensely-litigated three-month criminal trial.
Susan Lin is the first person in her family to be born in the United States and the first to go to law school, where she earned extra money by singing for the Choral Conducting Program for graduate students in the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. These days, she sings in the Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia. Susan is in the middle of a three-year plan to paddle
(kayak) all 444 miles of the main stem of the Susquehanna River from Cooperstown, NY to the Chesapeake Bay.
Michael O’Mara has completed multiple Tough Mudders – an endurance event series in which participants complete a ten to twelve mile run with various obstacles that include elements involving fire, water, electricity and heights. When not practicing or slogging through mud, Mike is actively engaged with several non-profits, such as the Center for Autism (the oldest autism treatment center in the country), BLOCS (Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools, which raises funds to provide more than 16,000 need-based scholarships every year), and St. John Vianney Center (a non-profit mental health facility that provides comprehensive programs, services, and resources for those in church ministry).
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