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St. Dominic and St. Roch Schools Close
From: Sr. Mary Cecile Swanton,C.S.JB.
Provincial Superior of the Sisters of St. John the Baptist:
" On January 11, 2011 the Archdiocese of New York announced the closing of 27 parish elementary schools. Included were St Dominic's (Bronx) and St Roch's (Staten Island) - the last two parish elementary schools in the Archdiocese of New York staffed by the Sisters of St. John the Baptist."
"This is a tremendous loss for us and in particular for our Principals and Sisters who are presently serving in these ministries. We express our prayerful wishes to those Sisters and we promise them continued concern with loving compassion and gratitude during these coming months."
"Let us also keep in our prayer our lay faculty members, students and their families whose lives will be greatly affected by these closings. "
"Our legacy of having offered a quality Catholic education in a loving familial environment will live on in the lives of
all who have been part of
St.Dominic and St. Roch Schools."
"Our God can never be outdone in generosity. We continue to walk faithfully in hope along the path God has provided."St. Dominic School
On Saturday, June 25, 2011 at a farewell Mass of Thanksgiving at St. Dominic Church, it was standing-room-only as Baptistine Sisters, faculty, students past and present, along with parishioners came to say goodbye to each other. The farewell was even more poignant because with the closing of the school the Baptistine Sisters who began teaching CCD in the parish (1942) before their educational mission in the school began (1953) were also leaving the parish. Many "old-timers" in the parish expressed their sadness saying, "With the Sisters going the heart of our parish is gone."
Most of the Sisters who currently reside at St. Dominic Convent will be moving to St. Raymond Convent, also in the Bronx, where a number of the Sisters will be working in the school. In a bittersweet twist, since many of the St Dominic students will be transferring to St Raymond School. come September, for both the students and the Sisters it will be a joy to see familiar faces.
For an article in the Daily News about St. Dominic School, click here: " Farewell to St. Dominic School"
Alumni from Saint Dominic's Grammar
school from the classes of 1963, 1964,
and 1965 met on Veteran's Day to honor
their fellow classmate Peter Wiesneifski
who was killed in action in Vietnam
St. Roch School
On Sunday, June 5, 2011 a 12:00 noon Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated in St. Roch's Church
for all Baptistine Sisters, lay Faculty and Staff, colleagues, students and families who have been associated with the educational mission of St. Roch's School since its foundation in 1959. As Sr. Mary Patricia, principal, noted: “Today is a chance for us
to celebrate all the memories. The school is closing, but we can still come together and enjoy each other’s company.” After the Mass a crowd of about 300 gathered in St. Roch’s Church parking lot for a farewell celebration that featured food, music and teary farewells.
The Sisters who are currently in residence in the parish convent will continue to live there for the coming year. Vincent Innocente, a 2004 graduate of St. Roch School, authored a beautiful tribute to St Roch School which was printed in the Staten Island Advance: "A Fond Tribute to a Family Institution.
St Roch School's Class of 2011
poses with Sr. Mary Patricia,
principal and Alum John Lago of
the U.S. Marines, at the finale
of the school's last Christmas Concert.