Friar’s of St. Francis

from Tau - Winter 2022

In Memoriam

THE FRIARS OF ST. FRANCIS

HIGH SCHOOL BY SUE SCHAFFSTALL

Seven as a lucky number is a concept that most of us have heard at one time or another.

Seven is the number of charity, grace, and the Holy Spirit. It was also used by the early writers as the number of completion and perfection. Many instances of this use appear in Biblical writings. There is reference to the seven deadly sins, and the seven joys and the seven sorrows of the Virgin, as well as the seven seals on the Book of Life and the seven churches in the Apocalypse. There are seven sacraments in the Catholic Church and at present, there are seven Friars who are working at St. Francis High School. The last time there were at least seven Friars on staff at St. Francis High School was 2006 when there were eight. We were holding at four Friars for a number of years and this school year brought us three Friars, almost doubling their ranks and presence on campus. Fr. Max Avila teaches Spanish and has a tendency to wear crazy hats, came to St. Francis in the 2018-2019 school year. That same year, Friar Matt Foley began his ministry at St. Francis as a religion teacher and Campus Minister. Friar Matt is the President elect of St. Francis and will

become the schools third President when Fr. Michael retires at the end of June.

Br. Tim Blanchard is the youngest Friar at St. Francis, having professed his solemn vows on July 30, 2021. Br. Tim is the genius behind the popular “teacher feature” at St. Francis titled “Friars, Fries and Frosties.” He serves as the schools social and digital media coordinator.

Br. Michael Duffy joined the St. Francis High School family as Principal in the fall of 2021. (See the last edition of the Tau for the full story) Another newcomer this year is Fr. Bryan Hajovsky who teaches science. Fr. Bryan was at St. Francis High School in the 2015-2016 school year for his teaching year. Fr. Michael Sajda is the current President of St. Francis. He came to St. Francis in 2001 as Principal and assumed the duties as President in 2006. Fr. Michael will retire, after 44 years in education, on June 24, 2022. Fr. Mark David Skura is a 1971 graduate of St. Francis, the only Friar on staff to hold that honor. He returned to St. Francis to teach in the 1982-83 school year, where he would remain for 36 years. A brief stint as Associate Pastor of St. Anne Catholic Church in Columbus, GA took him away from St. Francis for the 2018-2019 year. We are happy to say that Fr. Mark David came back to St. Francis in 2019 and is still with us!