By Nicole Tafe
Brewing Up a World-Class Destination
Peters Township alum Matthew Sherwin works to bring a national beer museum to Pittsburgh .
By Nicole Tafe
For the past two years , Peters Township ’ s Matthew Sherwin has been focusing on creating a national beer museum — Brew : The Museum of Beer — that would tell beer ’ s 10,000-year history and call Pittsburgh its home . Sherwin , 33 , son of Mark and Marcia Sherwin , attended St . Louise de Marillac Catholic grade school and graduated from Peters Township High School as class valedictorian in 2001 . While at PTHS , Sherwin was involved in extracurricular activities , including forensics , mock trial , Future Business Leaders of America ( FBLA ) and tennis .
“ I gained a good deal from these after-school activities , including excellent mentors and stronger relationships with teachers ,” says Sherwin , who credits faculty members Brian King and Kevin Bastos as two of his strongest mentors at PTHS . “ The activities were fun in themselves , but my favorite part was always what happened after our practices when we would all hang around with Mr . King and Mr . Bastos and debate , almost always about politics ,” laughs Sherwin . “ The late night bonding was the best — no one had to be there , but everyone wanted to be .”
With the additional support of many other mentors including his parents , St . Louise priests Fr . Tom Kredel and Fr . Al Zapf , PTHS chemistry teacher Walt Jennings , PTHS biology teacher Dr . John Fabian , PTHS FBLA instructor Kathy Sekely and PTHS guidance counselor Vicki Mannion , Sherwin continued on to Yale University for his undergraduate studies . He pursued a dual degree in Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry and Ethics , Politics & Economics , graduating in 2005 .
“ After graduation , I wasn ' t certain what my career path would be , but I knew I had developed a love of writing and politics and wanted to experience life outside of the United States ,” says Sherwin . “ So , I applied for
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Conceptual rendering of the inside of Brew : The Museum of Beer .