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First grade teacher Kelli Blithe, right, welcomes, from left, Maureen Williams and Lou Marchozzi of Oxford, and their granddaughter Kaia Williams, 7; and Cathie Knaus of Media, and her grandchildren Brendan Sullivan, 7, and Jack Sullivan, 4, during Catholic Schools Week at St. James Regional Catholic School this week. Kaia and Brendan were showing their grandparents the sprinkle graph activity that they were working on for their math lesson in Blithe’s class. Jack is in Pre-K 4 class at St. James. (PEG DEGRASSA – DAILY TIMES)
RIDLEY PARK — “Every day when Ryan comes home from school, we see such happiness,” Rich Barclift of Essington stated when describing his grandson’s experience at St. James Regional Catholic School. “Even when he had a snow day a few weeks ago, he couldn’t wait to get back to school.”
Barclift and his wife, Tina, also known as Pop-Pop and Mom-Mom, were visiting St. James Regional in Ridley Park on Tuesday during Grandparents/Special Friends Day, a special event held during the celebration of Catholic Schools Week.
They proudly watched their grandson, Ryan Barclift, 6, make a birthday card for a World War II veteran who will soon turn 103 years old, as a service project in Danielle Solomon’s first-grade classroom. They also enjoyed watching Ryan writing on the interactive digital whiteboard mounted on the classroom wall.
“I just love it here,” added Tina. “I was a Catholic school student myself, so I’m so happy that Ryan is here. The school provides a wonderful sense of community and everyone genuinely cares about the students.”
St. James Regional and the entire Archdiocese of Philadelphia joined in the 50th anniversary of the national observance of Catholic Schools Week this week, celebrating with Mass, open houses, special events and activities. The National Catholic Schools Week 2024 theme is “United in Faith and Community.”
Established in 1974, CSW is an annual celebration of the Christ-centered, faith-based education that students receive in the 102 elementary, 15 secondary and 3 special education schools in the five-county metropolitan area of the archdiocese.
At St. James Regional, Grandparents Day began with a special assembly, where the students demonstrated some of their learned skills.
Students reverently prayed the Our Father in Spanish and the American Sign Language Club introduced themselves, one-by-one, and sang the alphabet, all by signing.
The students then dispersed with their older guests to tour the school, visit the book fair, and spend time in their classrooms where they showed off more learned skills and introduced their teachers.
Among the special guests were Michael and Linda Bradley of Springfield, accompanied by two of their grandchildren, Quinn, 5, a student in the St. James Pre-K 4 class and her younger cousin Brooks, 2.
Michael Bradley is chairman of the Advisory Board for Elementary Education for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
“Obviously, I not only believe in Catholic education, but I also invest my time and money into it,” Bradley stated. “I believe our 21 Catholic schools in Delaware County turn out outstanding students that have an excellent education in a faith-based environment. The discipline and strict deadlines that our schools teach our students prepare them for high school, college and the workforce. The faith-based part prepares students for this life and the next one! Catholic Schools Week is an excellent showcase to see what our schools can offer students in Delaware County and the rest of the archdiocese.”
Susan Koch of Havertown, who came to visit her granddaughter Emily Comtois, 6, visited St. James Regional for the very first time on Tuesday. Emily excitedly led her “G-mom” down the hallway, pointing out her art work on display.
“Emily is very happy to be at St. James,” Koch said. “All my children went to Catholic School and so did my nephews and other relatives. I’m a believer in Catholic education. It makes a difference.”
“I love this school,” Cathie Knaus, of Media, proclaimed with enthusiasm while visiting St. James Regional as the special guest of her grandsons, Brendan Sullivan, 7, and Jack Sullivan, 4. “It’s really like one big family here. Everyone cares about each other.”
Knaus said that all of her own children attended Notre Dame deLourdes School in Swarthmore and had a good experience, so she is very happy that her grandchildren have the same opportunity of getting a Catholic education.
“I am so impressed with all they’re learning here,” Knaus shared. “Father Flanagan and the entire parish, principal, teachers and school staff here do a wonderful job running this school!”
Michael Goessel of Glenolden was also impressed after visiting his granddaughter Sarah Gilbert, 6, a first-grade student in Kelly Blithe’s class.
“I was really impressed watching the students use sign language,” he said. “I never expected that from grade-school kids. I have nine granddaughters and Sarah is one of them. She is doing well here and learning a lot. It’s a really nice environment.”
Seventh-grade students Bella Garcia, 12, and Tessa Doerr, 13, echoed the grandparents’ positive comments.
“I enjoy all the extracurricular activities here,” Bella, a member of the school’s volleyball team, shared. “I like that we get to learn a lot of extra things, in addition to our school work.”
“I like that it’s a big community here and we all work together,” Tessa added. “I have lots of friends here and the teachers are very caring and supportive.”
In addition to Grandparents/Like-A-Grandparent Day, St. James Regional Catholic School held a plethora of other activities to celebrate Catholic Schools Week, including a teacher/staff appreciation day, a student spelling bee and religion bee, an eighth grade vs. faculty and staff basketball game and more.
St. James Principal Colleen McManus, a former student of St. James, then known as St. Madeline-St. Rose School before it converted to a regional school in 2012, returned to work at her grade school alma mater after working at St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in Philadelphia for 16 years.
“St. James truly lives up to this year’s Catholic Schools Week theme of ‘United in Faith and Community,” she remarked. “It’s an honor to participate in this special week at our school, which has an amazing community and especially to celebrate all the people — the students, teachers, staff, parents, grandparents and friends — who make St. James the wonderful and special school that it is!”
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