Johnnies Learn the Value of Philanthropy, One Axolotl at a Time
May 28, 2025 | By Kerri Braly
The words weren鈥檛 bawdy like Chaucer or elegant like Shakespeare, and they won鈥檛 be found in a St. John鈥檚 classroom text, but the curious couplet鈥斺�淢ark鈥檚 departure was such a loss. We now have another boss鈥濃�攚as intriguing enough to send Ryan Otieno (SF27) on a search for hidden treasure.
The riddle was among a list of 20 clues divided between the Santa Fe and Annapolis campuses, released this past spring on . They pointed students to the location of 20 hidden plush axolotls鈥攖he school鈥檚 unofficial mascot. Each toy was named after a Program author and worth a $200 gift to St. John鈥檚 when found.聽
鈥淭here it was,鈥� Otieno says of his axolotl, which he spied in the executive office just outside Santa Fe President J. Walter Sterling鈥檚 workspace, 鈥渢ucked behind a seat like it had quietly slipped out of sight.鈥� That moment, Otieno recalls, 鈥渕ade the Day of Giving feel tangible for me. I thought, 鈥業 actually get to be a part of this.鈥欌��
Otieno wasn鈥檛 the only student who made a serendipitous discovery. Not even an hour into the scavenger hunt, Johnnies from East and West had tracked down every single stuffed animal. With the snap of a photo for social media bragging rights (one student鈥檚 shot depicted the axolotl ceremoniously held aloft like a trophy), the amphibians were claimed and $4,000 in challenge gifts unlocked.
Newly launched in 2025, the axolotl hunt was part of the third annual Johnnie Day of Giving, which invites members of the St. John鈥檚 community to support the needs of the college. A group of 885 donors joined together over 24 hours to raise roughly $242,000, turning the April 9 event into the most successful Johnnie Day of Giving yet.
The St. John鈥檚 collegewide advancement office, which oversees fundraising and alumni relations, orchestrated the axolotl scavenger hunt from rhyme to find. They attribute the 鈥渢hrill of the chase鈥� to getting students directly involved in the day鈥檚 excitement and its accompanying philanthropic goals without the pressure of making a monetary gift. Delivered through email, posters, and social media, its lyrical clues motivated participants to search high and low in locations like Mellon Hall in Annapolis and the Pritzker Student Center in Santa Fe. Many axolotls were discovered in communal spaces recently refreshed through philanthropy, a symbolic reminder that generosity can be hidden in plain sight.
For Vivian Miyakawa (A27), there was a personal connection. As a tank room assistant who helps care for the college biology lab鈥檚 living axolotls, Miyakawa knew right away that she wanted to join the hunt. Her clue? 鈥淕lass all around, ideas in flight; find this axolotl basking in light.鈥� Miyakawa鈥檚 strategy? Stake out her favorite campus study spot鈥攅arly. 鈥淚 woke up to do my homework in the Fishbowl lounge in Mellon Hall, hoping to find an axolotl waiting,鈥� she says. 鈥淣o such luck. But a little after 8 a.m., I spotted the grail.鈥澛�
The Fishbowl was a fitting location for the discovery, and not simply because of its nickname, which references the communal space鈥檚 transparent glass walls: A major renovation to Mellon Hall had just been completed when Miyakawa arrived at St. John鈥檚 for her freshman year. She says she 鈥渃ouldn鈥檛 be more grateful鈥� for the alumni and friends who made it possible and acknowledges a growing awareness of how gifts to the college are shaping her education. 鈥淲hether it鈥檚 through scholarship money, internship funding, or even the weekday cookies provided for students in Mellon Hall, giving really does impact my daily life.鈥�
That鈥檚 exactly what Brett Heavner (A89) hoped students would take away from the experience. Heavner, the president-elect of the Alumni Association Board of Directors, co-sponsored the axolotl hunt with a gift to St. John鈥檚 along with Eric Jacobs (SF04). 鈥淚 love that the college found a clever, entertaining way to involve students,鈥� Heavener says, 鈥渢o illustrate that every gift helps the college immensely.鈥�
That reality, he recalls, wasn鈥檛 so obvious to him during his undergraduate years: 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 realize how much the college relies on regular giving. I certainly didn鈥檛 realize that tuition doesn鈥檛 cover anywhere near the cost of this education.鈥� And even years after graduation, Heavner notes, alumni don鈥檛 always see the full picture. 鈥淭here is this idea that because St. John鈥檚 is small, we鈥檙e simple to operate. But we provide the same services as larger universities鈥攕tudent support, financial aid, lab equipment鈥攂ut without their economies of scale.鈥�
Heavner views Johnnie Day of Giving as a particularly satisfying way to support St. John鈥檚 because a variety of challenges and matches means that gifts are often multiplied in real-time. And for the donor who has ever wondered whether the impact will be seen, this Johnnie Day of Giving offered an answer: it was sought out, seen, and celebrated鈥�20 times over.