Catholic Schools Week

As promised last week (see Friday's article, "Mancuso's hosts Holy Family School, of Le Roy, for Catholic Schools Week"), here are some photos of staff and students from Holy Family and St. Joseph schools celebrating Catholic Schools Week.

Our site has been experiencing some technical difficulties, otherwise they would have been posted sooner.

Holy Family at Mancuso Bowling Center:

The kids have just finished Mass at Notre Dame and are ready to hit the lanes!

Principal Kevin Robertson (aka "Mr. Rob") with Sister Bridget.

Amy Drakes, physical education teacher and chief organizer of this event.

"Representatives" from across the grade span. They are, left to right in the back, Ariba (fifth grade), Chris (eighth grade),  Drakes and Collin (fifth grade); left to right in the front, Annarose (kindergarten), Sam (third grade) and Nathaniel (first grade).

St. Joe's kids at the YMCA -- games and workouts:

Pictured fifth-grade teacher Todd Bowman, who did push-ups with some of his students.

Holy Family School of Le Roy celebrated Catholic Schools Week with a trip to Mancuso Bowling Center this week, following a Mass at Notre Dame High School.

Here is some footage of the students getting their games on -- and thank you to Lorie Longhany, who teaches art at the school, for indirectly providing the title of part four:

Catholic Schools Week -- which has been observed annually for many years (at least since 1889 at Holy Family) -- was actually last week, but the bowling outing and the Mass at Notre Dame were rescheduled due to bad weather. Pictures of the Holy Family crew at Mancuso's will be posted soon, along with photos of St. Joe's kids celebrating at the YMCA.

The purpose of Catholic Schools Week, according to Holy Family Principal Kevin Robertson (affectionately known as "Mr. Rob" to the students), is to give kids and staff the chance to celebrate their Catholic identity "in a way they don't get to the rest of the school year."

Kids, teachers and parents in Catholic education celebrate this annual, weeklong tradition with fun events at the schools and out in the community.

"A lot of these activities are geared toward teamwork," Robertson said. "It gives the kids a chance to work together and just have fun."

This is the third year in a row Mancuso's has welcomed Holy Family students in for Catholic Schools Week, according to physical education teacher Amy Drakes.

Drakes was in charge of coordinating this event, which she sees as a valuable opportunity to mix the different grade levels so that they can work together. She feels it's a great way to showcase the tight-knit bond between students for the community.

"The great thing about our school is that everyone knows each other," Drakes said. "Having all the (elementary and middle school) grades together is nice, too. You see a different side of the seventh- and eighth-graders when they're working with the little kids."

"There's a great sense of family and community (in the Catholic school setting)," Robertson said. "The kids get a strong foundation for morals and values, and they're conscious of the need to treat others with respect, and to be fair and productive."

Though most Holy Family students are Catholic, the school welcomes and includes students who are not Catholic as well.

"We have non-Catholic students, and we include them in everything we do," Robertson said, "but we also respect their beliefs. They can participate in the activities we have outside of school if they choose to do so -- but if they choose not to, that's understandable."

Education at Holy Family, as at other Catholic schools, goes beyond the classroom. Recently, the kids worked on fundraising efforts for Catholic Appeal's Week (see Feb. 7 announcement). Robertson said they will continue to have many activities through Catholic Appeal's Week, which is April 10 through 17.

Visit the Holy Family School website for more information.

SUPPLEMENTAL VIDEO:

St. Joseph School students enjoy the "bouncy house" at the YMCA: