Brian Foley's Schools

• Providence College , Class of 1996 Bachelors in Marketing

Brian Foley's Publications

• St. Teresa of Avila, Brian Foley January, 2011 by Brian Foley A Carmelite nun who gained renown as a Spanish mystic, St. Teresa of Avila consecrated her life to God at an early age. Born in 1515, Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada was the child of a noble family. Influenced by her pious father and her romantic mother, St. Teresa of Avila loved novels as young girl but was forbidden to read them by her father. A popular girl, St. Teresa of Avila eventually turned from a life of excess to a monastic existence. The devotion to a life as a nun took hold of St. Teresa of Avila after her mother’s death and her father’s subsequent decision to send his daughter to a convent. Although he brought her home after she contracted a disease, now believed to have been malaria, St. Teresa of Avila eventually left home to join the Incarnation of the Carmelite nuns in Avila. Because she experienced illness during her teenage years and underwent long convalescences, St. Teresa spent long hours praying. One of her greatest devotions was to St. Joseph, with whom she credited her recovery. St. Teresa of Avila called her long hours of meditative contemplation the “prayer of quiet.” Many of her books include information about St. Teresa of Avila’s grades of prayer, which she defines as ever-greater levels of introspection. However, she warned Christians to beware of becoming too immersed in their own thoughts, and instead, to focus on their love of God and their devotion to Him. In her later life, St. Teresa of Avila founded a community of Carmelite nuns dedicated to unceasing prayer. The success of the Avila community established by St. Teresa of Avila caught the attention of Church officials, who gave her permission to institute additional communities. Considered a Doctor of the Church because of the wisdom of her writings, St. Teresa of Avila authored such works as her autobiography, The Way of Perfection, and The Interior Castle. St. Teresa of Avila passed away in 1582 and was canonized 40 years later by Pope Gregory XV. Pope Paul VI declared her a Doctor of the Church in 1970. The Feast Day of St. Teresa of Avila is October 15.

• The Boston Red Sox, Brian Foley February, 2011 By: Brian Foley In my free time away from overseeing activities at Summit Benefit Solutions, LLC, I derive a great deal of pleasure from relaxing with my family. To get away from the bustle of daily life, we often venture out for a weekend at Cape Cod We also attend baseball games on a regular basis, an activity I hope my three young daughters enjoy as much as I do. I grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts, developing a love of sports, particularly baseball, at a very early age. Like so many other longtime residents of the East Coast, I root for the Boston Red Sox, easily one of the greatest franchises of all time. A Major League Baseball team established in 1901, the Boston Red Sox maintain membership in the American League Eastern Division. Calling Fenway Park home since 1912, the Boston Red Sox boast a rich history of wins and losses, standing apart as a team with a successful and exciting future ahead of them. Participating in the first World Series in 1903, the Boston Red Sox beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, securing their position as one of the Eastern Division’s strongest teams. Continuing their streak of wins for the next 15 years, the Boston Red Sox collected 4 additional American League pennants, sweeping the World Series in 1912, 1915, 1916, and 1918 as well. Following the 1918 Series, things took a turn for the worse. That year, the Boston Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees, an unfortunate turn of events referred to as the “Curse of the Bambino” by many fans. After Babe Ruth was traded, the Boston Red Sox experienced a string of losses, 86 years passing before the team won the World Series again. The “Curse of the Bambino” thankfully lifted in 2004 when the Boston Red Sox earned their sixth World Championship, a feat they repeated in 2007. The team’s intense rivalry with the New York Yankees shows no signs of ending anytime soon, and I look forward to watching my team garner numerous World Series titles in the coming years.

• Coach Brian Foley’s Soccer Passing Drills March, 2011 Coach Brian Foley’s Soccer Passing Drills 1. For the first part of this drill, players form a circle around the coach, who stands in the middle with a ball. The coach passes the ball by kicking it to a random player, and the player returns it to the coach in the same manner. The coach then kicks it a little faster to another teammate, and the drill repeats as the pace continues to increase. At this point, the players should start jogging slowly in the circle formation and continue receiving and returning the ball. As they become comfortable with the speed, they should quicken their jogging pace and make the circle wider, forcing them to kick the ball with more power. 2. The team should separate into groups of three players for this drill and form triangles. Each group starts kicking the ball in one direction between the three teammates. Eventually, the coach should ask the groups to switch direction of the ball. To start, players may use two-touch passing, with the ultimate goal of using only one-touch passing in order to increase difficulty and build skill. Once a group masters this step, while using both the insides and outsides of their feet, the three players should begin moving around the field while passing the ball to one another. When doing this, the groups need to avoid crossing paths with each other, and communication remains the key. 3. This drill requires that players group into sets of three people, and each set takes a single ball. Two teammates kick the ball between each other while moving up and down the field, and the third person attempts to intercept the passes. When the third player successfully steals the ball, he or she switches with the individual who made the impeded pass. This drill teaches how to avoid a member of the opposing team and make a completed pass. As a variation, several players form a circle with two or three individuals in the middle. One ball should be in play for each person in the middle. The people along the perimeter try to pass to each other while their teammates in the middle attempt to steal the balls. By Brian M Foley

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