Dear Friends
Greetings from our hot and dry high desert. Summer monsoon season seems late in arriving, I hope and pray it is still on the way. Our land is parched making it vulnerable to fires. The 4th of July saw two wild fires breakout on the pueblo; thankfully, both were contained quickly by emergency services.
Our 102nd graduation took place as school closed for the summer vacation. I felt it was a special event, particularly meaningful for me. I have known several of the graduates since kindergarten. To see them leave was like a disruption in family life. Yet I know it was time for them to move on to the next phase of their lives and after all that is why we exist… to give them the best formation and start for new and greater things. Following our tradition 7th graders served a special breakfast for the graduations, looking forward to their turn to move on.
June was also a time for graduation from High school. Several former students of St. Anthony’s invited me to their celebrations. I am pleased to report that all of them, having done well in High School are moving on to colleges in the New Year. Both these graduations encourage us with glimpses of success. I am also pleased to report that several of our graduates have been accepted by excellent High Schools including the prestigious Santa Fe Indian School. (We have two former students graduating from there this year.)
Our dear Sr. Marsha returned to us for our graduation, together with her guitar to lead the music for the ceremony. The warmth with which the students and parents received her was testimony to her strict but motherly leadership of the school.
One event that I failed to report on before school ended, was a presentation by Zuni High School students on the dangers of drug addiction. (Sadly, the use of drugs is growing among younger people.) The High School students made a first class presentation in two parts, one for younger and one for older students. Our students most certainly listened, asked meaningful questions and fully participated. Peer group presentation from young people whom they knew was highly effective for our students.
After a week’s break, summer school got underway and the sense of purpose returned to our hallowed walls. I always enjoy this time. In a more relaxed atmosphere, the students wander in out of school uniform. Although serious about the study, they are even more serious about sports and games. I made a mental note for next year to try to install a better fashion sense. You would not believe the ensembles that walked through our doors!
Once Summer School over, the campus was taken over for Vacation Bible Camp. A group of young people from Centennial Colorado came well prepared with chaperones to lead the camp. Most of the 17 in the group, including chaperones, had been to St. Anthony’s in previous years to help with summer maintenance and were delighted to be back. Just another example of the ‘magic’ of St. Anthony’s.
The young people took “The Angelus” as their theme. I was surprised how well it worked out. Each morning began with a slide show presentation followed by a short talk by one of the young people. They broke up into groups for talks, games, sports, drama and music. Each day ended with Mass in the church, followed by lunch. Once again, presentation by peers held the young people’s attention although it was a challenge to old folks like me to retain that level of attention. Yet thanks to the enthusiasm of our young visitors and their chaperones our young people, were instructed and enjoyed every moment.
Fun, education and games aside, we have to move forward with our maintenance and preparation of the school. There are always repairs of course. Classrooms need to be cleaned, floors to be scrubbed and polished, tiles to be replaced, carpets to be shampooed, rest rooms to be cleaned and repainted. It’s amazing how much damage, even well behaved students can cause.
We planned two major projects for this summer. First is to upgrade “switches” for the internet access, to improve speed and response time. Each year, we find that clever use of internet by faculty enhances student learning. We are blessed to have slowly equipped all our classrooms with interactive boards, lap top computers for individual students to use for research. The kids love these and learn a great deal.
The other major task is in the school quadrangle. It had been covered with gravel. While it looked handsome for a time it soon becomes over whelmed by weeds. Kneeling on gravel to pull weeds is time consuming and no fun at all. With the help of Jeremy one of our teachers, we are converting the space to grass. This of course requires water not readily available here. So a large part of the project is harvesting rain water from our roofs, whenever the skies open. I was fortunate enough to have personal funds available for the project so as not to put the burden on the school finances. While ecologically sound, the project will ease the maintenance of school grounds, effect an even better environment for the students and save my knees!
We are still searching for a school principal. Our remote location adds to the difficulty in finding a suitable principal but we have an interim plan in place, thanks to the wonderful cooperation of our faculty. School is almost ready for the 103rd year and I am truly looking forward to the student’s return.
Thank you for making it all so wonderfully possible.
Fr. Patrick McGuire
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