From Our President

Dear Eastside Catholic Community Members,

good friend of mine from high school recently reminded me of this story about George Washington Carver:

George asked God, “What was the universe created for?” The response he received was that it was too big a question to be revealed to him. Again, in prayer, George asked God, “What was man made for?” The response he got back was that it was too big a question to be revealed to him. Finally, George asked, “How can I use the peanut to bless mankind?” This was something that could be shown to him.

The world is better thanks to that revelation. While it is commonly misunderstood that George invented peanut butter (he did not), he fundamentally changed the world with over 300 peanutbased products, including shampoo, ink and even chili sauce!

When I read that story, it immediately brought me back to the past 20 months or so. Let’s be honest, we’ve all worked our tails off despite a lot of stress and frustration. I think my big questions around, “Why this pandemic?” “Why the new variants?”—have yet to be revealed to me or anyone.

Without understanding the greater why, I’m incredibly proud of our response to the unknown and our resolve to overcome the challenges brought on by the pandemic. Through God and the goodwill and talents of those around us—our faculty, staff and students—we have become more resilient.

Knowing that nothing replaces the energy and excitement of the in-person classroom, we have found creative ways to utilize technology that advances teaching and have doubled down on inperson education when it is safe to do so. When service opportunities disappeared and were deemed unsafe, our students found new ways to perform over 5,000 hours of service undeterred.

Knowing that we had to rethink how to keep our community safe, we were able to reexamine schoolhouse confi gurations and evaluate spacing to ensure comfortable and safe classrooms while providing a suitable environment for learning. As an example, the tent between the Athletic Pavilion and Commons created an outdoor dining

Aspace allowing air circulation and spacing for lunches, and became a space for department meetings and drama or choir rehearsals, an opportunity to hold class outdoors, a gathering space for alumni and friends and so much more.

We may not always immediately receive answers to the big “why” and “how” questions we have about the world around us. I am confident that “what” we can do to help our students in the near future will continue to be answered through God’s grace and by our school and extended community. In March, we will gather together for the 37th annual STARS Gala Auction for a night of fun and community, focused on raising funds that allow us to adapt and support our students. We will continue to seek answers to the big questions, but in the meantime, let’s get busy and work on the small ones.