I don’t know about the rest of you, but I consider January to be…well, a drag. Not much sunlight. Cold weather. Taxes coming up.
So it was on a recent visit to St. Jude School in Chalfont, Bucks County that I relayed my feelings to Principal Sr. Elizabeth Marley. She wasn’t buying it.
“Not at St. Jude,” Sr. Elizabeth said. “There’s never a drag around here.”
In fact, there had been two long-term projects getting the attention of students. “Right now we are planning for our Spring Show, which is Aladdin,” Sr. Elizabeth said. “We have a number of students who have joined the cast and crew. They began their practices this week.”
And of course, there is Catholic Schools Week which is going on this week. “We have a full slate of activities and the kids love it!” Marley said. “Every day is special.”
Marley sees her job as special. She’s been principal at St. Jude for 12 years. Says the kids keep her going. And the kids keep coming.
“Our enrollment has been steady. We are very happy with that,” she said. “Of course we are always open for more students. We have a very large and beautiful facility.”
St. Jude had a very special honor last fall. They were one of nine schools across Pennsylvania—all from the Philadelphia Archdiocese—to be named as Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence.
That made for a special day. Several days actually. “Oh we’ve been celebrating big-time,” Marley said. “Initially we gathered in the gym to hear the announcement. That was a great day of rejoicing and we had some formal celebrations after that.”
Marley praised the parents for helping out at school.
“We have quite a few parent volunteers on a weekly basis. We also have a very strong home and school association. That‘s a key to our success.”
Quick story about my visit to St. Jude…I was heading toward the front door when I saw a tennis ball sitting in the driveway. I look to my left and there’s a young boy just standing there.
“Hey is this yours,” I asked. He nodded yes. I found out later that the ball went past the restrictive cones and this little fella was NOT going to break the rules. I loved it.
I picked up the ball and tossed it to him.
“Thank you,” he said.
Of course he said ‘thank you.’
This is a Catholic school.
