Marietta School Revitalized By New Facilities

ERIKA ANDERSON, Staff Writer

Published: September 2, 2004

MARIETTA—This year there was even more anticipation than usual for the first day of classes at St. Joseph School.

Thanks to a new building, the entire school community now has a little more room to stretch out, and after being cramped in a too-small school building and separate temporary buildings, they couldn’t be more excited about it.

On Aug. 20, Archbishop John F. Donoghue visited the school to celebrate Mass and to bless the new building, and as the students and teachers filed into St. Joseph Church, the air was charged with anticipation.

Many parents were scattered throughout the church, their children grateful for the special treat of sitting with them during the school day. St. Joseph’s has 450 children in kindergarten through eighth grade.

Father Paul Berny, pastor of St. Joseph Church, and Father Ricardo Bailey, parochial vicar, concelebrated the Mass, as well as Father James Harrison, pastor of nearby St. Catherine of Siena Church in Kennesaw.

In his homily, the archbishop said that St. Joseph’s has all the necessary ingredients to make a Catholic school successful.

“We have parents, who love their children, and who want the very best teaching for their children that they can get,” he said. “We have students—you young boys and girls, who know that you can’t get through life unless you learn—learn to think, to organize, to act, to listen, and to pray.”

Also included in the mix of ingredients, the archbishop noted, are the dedicated faculty and staff of both the school and parish.

“But it is not really us who makes the miracle of family happen,” he said. “It is God who makes it happen through us. He reaches down and mixes the ingredients—He reaches down and touches us, in our hearts and minds and souls, and tells us how much to do, how much to give, how much to put up with—and he even tells us when we should do nothing at all, and let someone else take over.”

He reminded the congregation of the most important commandments—to love God and to love each other.

“Here at St. Joseph’s you have gotten things in the right order—you love God, and you love one another. You come to the Sacraments, you receive our Lord in Holy Communion, and then you go out and take care of one another, including building this great new school where everyone will find their own measure of happiness—parents, children, teachers, priests, deacons and professionals,” he said. “You love God first, and then He takes care of you, and then you take care of one another.”

“Dear friends, this is the meaning of why we are all here today—the meaning of the new school, and all places and people that make St. Joseph’s Parish and School—and it is the meaning of our lives,” the archbishop continued. “God made us to love Him—and if we do, then everything else will fall into place.”

After Mass, the archbishop walked through the new building, where singing children greeted him in each room. He blessed classrooms, the gymnasium and the cafeteria, sprinkling water and offering a prayer of blessing. The sounds of children’s voices echoed through the hallways that were decorated with colorful artwork.

Later there was a reception for those who had been involved in the building project.

The $2.8 million project includes new kindergarten and middle school classrooms, new computer, music, art and foreign language labs, as well as an advanced lab for middle school science. A new cafeteria and the school’s first gymnasium are also housed in the new building. Marist Hall, the parish social hall, was also renovated and now includes a stage and an attached kitchen.

The new facilities also allow more opportunities for the parish, Father Berny said.

“We are just having so much fun with all this extra space,” he said. “There are so many options that allow us to meet the ministerial needs of the parish.”

The classrooms will also be utilized by the parish school of religion, which provides catechesis to as many as 1,200 children.

John Montelione, a major contributor to the project, had the cafeteria/student center named after his parents, and above its entrance, it now bears the name “The John and Agatha Montelione Catholic Student Center.”

Montelione became involved through his sister, whose children attended St. Joseph School. His niece Nikki Malgeri is now a senior at Marist School in Atlanta but remembers her St. Joseph’s days fondly.

“I made a lot of friends here that I’m still friends with,” she said, adding that it was a bit strange to be back in her alma mater. “It’s weird to see all the changes that have been made, but it’s great to come back. I loved it here.”

Pat Allen, interim principal of the school, said that the school staff feels blessed.

“We are very fortunate,” she said. “The children were just so thrilled to see the building.”

With the addition of the gymnasium, the school will be able to host its very first home basketball game since the school opened in 1953.

“We can’t wait for that,” Allen said. “It’s been a long time coming, and it is just so, so satisfying. I’ve been with this community since my son started here in 1997, and there wasn’t even a music program here . . . Now to see that gym, it’s just so gratifying.”

In thanking the contributors and St. Joseph’s parents, Allen expressed her deep gratitude to the community and invited them to visit the facility.

“The door is always open for you. We’d love for you to come back and to see our children. We are very proud of this place, and we are so grateful to you.”

Shaun Bradley, the father of five St. Joseph’s schoolchildren, served as a co-chair of the school’s capital campaign and is glad to see the community’s efforts come to fruition.

“This is a great school,” he said. “And now we have a facility that is worthy of the great staff and parents and children.”

Bradley’s eldest daughter is in eighth grade, while his youngest child is in first grade.

“We have never regretted sending our kids to St. Joseph’s,” he said. “This place has a really unique spirit, and we feel very connected here. And it feels good knowing that our kids are learning in a protective and loving environment, with other kids from families that share our same values.”