BENVENUTE, DONS!

ITALIAN TWINS FOUND NEW HOME AT CATHEDRAL CATHOLIC

By Hong-An Phan '24

While there are many appeals to the beauty of Cathedral Catholic High School’s campus, a major component of our community is our apparent diversity in the student body. Within our 1,600+ student population, we proudly represent ourselves with students of various ethnicities, backgrounds and cultures. Among these Dons are Francesca and Isabella Baldati, twins who studied abroad here at Cathedral Catholic, thousands of miles away from their home in Pescara, Italy. The sisters enjoyed spending part of their junior year at Cathedral Catholic last semester.

The exhilarating experience of moving far from the comfort of home is nothing short of exciting for Francesca Baldati, who describes, “Coming to America and having an experience abroad is something that I always dreamed of doing since my first year of high school. Even though it is something that many teenagers in Italy do, I have always felt this opportunity is something personal. It is an experience that enriches you a lot, changes you and opens you up.”

The sisters chose to attend Cathedral Catholic High School under the advice of their host family, as their daughter is an alumna of Cathedral Catholic. However, they were also attracted to the opportunities available from both the educational curriculum and extracurricular activities.

Isabella Baldati explains, “Thanks to CCHS, after many years of trying to take some art classes, I had the opportunity to join Digital Photography with Mr. Hoff. I not only got to learn one of my favorite hobbies but also the process of making my own finished, printed photos.” Being a Don nurtured her passion for creative arts as both a piano player and artist. She hopes to specialize in business, communication and marketing at a college in Milan after graduating high school.

Francesca is also seeking a path of higher education in Milan but in the medical field. Her favorite class at Cathedral Catholic was Anatomy & Physiology with Ms. Harris, which is one of the many unique courses available in the Science and Engineering Department. She describes, “I have always been fascinated by the human body, its functions, discovering all of its mechanisms and how each of them is related to the other. Having the chance to do labs in high school is something that I’ve never experienced before since it is not common to have the tools and all the necessary objects in Italy.”

In addition to the educational opportunities Cathedral Catholic has to offer, Francesca expresses her admiration for the school community: “The people, the atmosphere and the teachers are what make the school a perfect balance between academic duties and the serenity, sociability, availability and hospitality that a high school should also represent. Also, the organization of all the extracurricular and curricular activities surprised me a lot.”

As students raised by the norms of Italian education systems, the girls recognized the difference between the Italian and American cultures during their course of studying abroad. Isabella explains, “America and Italy have lots of differences in people, habits and cities, but the biggest difference, in my opinion, is the education in high school. The school system is the opposite here at Cathedral Catholic High School. There are many opportunities academically and also in sports and hobbies that can be developed and improved. In Italy, it is more about learning and listening to the lesson behind your desk.”

Although the opportunity to study overseas is an appealing adventure, the sisters sometimes found themselves missing home. Francesca describes, “I definitely missed my family, especially my little brother, my friends and, I admit, the food - especially the fresh bread from the bakeries.”

Isabella adds, “Probably other than my family and friends, the thing I missed most was the feeling of comfort. The way you need to fit into a completely new environment is not easy. They say you get used to it after a couple of weeks, but for me that was not true. It took time. You meet new people and they are so welcoming; but, when I walked around campus sometimes I felt nostalgic.”

Off campus, the sisters’ adventures spanned across the state of California, as they made the most of their opportunities to have new experiences and make new memories. The girls visited other cities in California, including San Francisco and Los Angeles. They enjoyed trying new foods from various cultures and learning how to do things they wouldn’t normally do in Italy, such as surfing. The twins also enjoyed experiencing holidays, such as Thanksgiving, that are not celebrated in Italy. The beauty of the Baldati sisters’ journey is the growth that they experienced during their time abroad. Born and raised in Italian society, their courage in choosing to study abroad and to make a defining decision in their lives opened new doors to them through academic opportunities. Their decision to join the Dons family is appreciated by our community as a whole; as they pursued their dreams, we were here to grow with them.

Francesca explains, “This is the first time I was so far away from my everyday life, my world and my family. However, I was very happy to be able to open myself to other aspects of the world and, in particular, to this country. I learned to live outside my usual patterns and integrate into a different environment. I also learned to further mature and feel more independent and responsible for myself.”

Here at Cathedral Catholic High School, we pride ourselves on our diverse student body, in which students of various cultures and heritages come together to learn and share their stories. We are grateful for Isabella, Francesca and each student that joins our Dons family, coming together to form a unique bond that lasts past graduation into the years to come.