Search
-
CLEVELAND — Learn. Serve. Lead. Succeed. The Saint Mary Byzantine Catholic School community embraced these words during Catholic Schools Week, celebrated nationwide Jan. 27-Feb. 2.
Each day of this past Catholic Schools Week, St. Mary School focused on a theme central to Catholic education: community, students, vocation, nation, faculty and family.
On Monday of Catholic Schools Week, students celebrated the community by participating in a career fair. Parent volunteers came in to speak about their careers, which included a zookeeper, a nurse, a firefighter/paramedic, and a network engineer. Students saw and used equipment, tried on uniforms, and encountered animal life related to these fields.
Students were celebrated by the faculty and staff on Tuesday with goody bags that included notes of encouragement from their teachers. Science fair judging also took place that day. Students who completed science fair projects had the opportunity to display and discuss their research and experiments with judges.
Activities to celebrate vocations and the nation, scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday of that week, had to be rescheduled due to inclement weather. Consequently, Bishop Milan Lach, SJ, of Parma and Father Marek Visnovsky, pastor of St. Mary Parish and school chaplain, only celebrated Divine Liturgy with students and staff Feb. 11.
Bishop Lach shared with the students that St. Mary School is the only Byzantine Catholic School in the country. He said the school community should embrace this and be proud.
After liturgy, he and Father Visnovsky visited the students in their classrooms.
The activity scheduled for Thursday was rescheduled for Feb. 19. Students visited residents of St. Augustine Assisted Living, which included hosting a sing-a-long and read-aloud. Handmade cards and crafts created by the entire school community were given to the residents.
Family and faculty were celebrated on the Friday of Catholic Schools Week, Feb. 1, as St. Mary School became the Byzantine House of Pancakes. Faculty and staff flipped flapjacks for a “Pancakes with Parents” breakfast that celebrated the importance of family in Catholic education. Students participated in an afternoon awards ceremony that recognized science fair accomplishments and classroom goal achievements.
Other activities for Catholic Schools Week included a penny war for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, a student council sponsored bake sale, and a STREAM (Science, Technology, Religion, Arts and Mathematics) project that involved all grades building a sled with classroom resources.
As a commitment to Catholic education and in support of one another, St. Mary Byzantine School staff and students also pray for one another through prayer partners.
The school is now accepting applications for the 2019-2020 academic year.
“St. Mary Byzantine students are challenged to reach their fullest potential in all academic areas, guided in developing respectful relationships, and most importantly provided opportunities for spiritual growth,” said principal Rita Basalla.
All applicants have potential for full tuition assistance. Call (216) 749-7980 or visit www.smbyz.org for information.
Caption 1: First-grade student Blake Kirchner and his dad, Mike, the school’s new athletic director, pose for a photo at the Pancakes for Parents event, Feb. 1. (Photo: Suzanne Frasier)
Caption 2: Left to right: Teachers Katie Sass, Katie Nadson and Katie Battaglia have a little fun as part of the kitchen crew at the Pancakes and Parents event, Feb. 1. (Photo: Suzanne Frasier)
As published in Horizons, March 3, 2019.
Sign up for Horizons’ digital newsletter.
