14 minute read
The Power of Mercy 10
POWER OF MERCY
“The poor need help today, not next week. ”
VENERABLE CATHERINE MCAULEY
Catherine’s spirit of outreach and service that was instilled in our students here continues throughout high school, college, and beyond.
Closer to God
We were overjoyed to host not one, but six First Holy Communion Masses this spring at St. Margaret of Antioch’s Church in Narberth. In line with our COVID safety precautions, each third and second grade homeroom separately received the Sacrament of First Holy Communion surrounded by close family. The experience was especially exciting for our third graders who had experienced multiple COVID-related delays. Students reflected on their experience after receiving Communion:
“First Holy Communion is special to me because I am happy to receive the body of Christ. Jesus will now be fully in my heart. ” - Dylan C., grade 2
“The second I ate the host I felt closer to Jesus than ever. I feel like my life has changed. I hope Jesus will guide me in Mercy and peace forever. ” - Charlie A., grade 3
“I pray that receiving First Holy Communion will help me to be closer to Jesus and God through prayer and continue to help me grow in faith, love, Mercy, and obedience to God. ” - Mila F.
Right: Students participated in retreats to prepare for the Sacrament.
Lending A Hand
Music teacher Ms. Barbara Baldwin exemplified Mercy in action by donating retired music curriculum materials to a school in need! She reached out to seven organizations, in Pennsylvania and nationally, before finding a home for the material at a local Catholic school. “I told the kids there’s always somebody who needs help and sometimes you have to search for them, ” she said.
Mrs. Ann Marie Braca and Ms. Barbara Baldwin help Mr. Michael Lawlor load our retired music curriculum into his car for use at his school.
Providing Warmth to Cancer Patients
Hands-on outreach was nate in the pandemic, hard to but our coorditeachers made it work! In eighth grade, students created 20 no-sew Linus blankets that were distributed to local cancer patients. In fact, this is many of the students’ favorite service project they completed at WMA!
Creating a Mercy Mindset
Our alumni carry their Mercy mindset for the rest of their lives. In our new video series, aptly titled Mercy Mindset, eighth grade students interview alumni to find out how they continue to exemplify and spread Mercy in their lives. These interviews are then shared with the entire student body so they too can see how a Mercy Mindset will influence their life long after they’ve left the halls of WMA. Here are a few snippets of what our alumni had to share. You can watch the full interviews, or read a transcript, by visiting waldronmercy.org/mercy-mindset
Pierce Hodges ’15
“For our society to be the best it can be we have to show love and opportunity to all people no matter their race, creed, gender, or color. Things like equality, respect, and love -- these are all values that were cultivated in my experience at Waldron. We are all God’ s children and in some cases in our society, there are some things that have been unfair to certain factions of people, and I make it a point to assist people in all backgrounds to achieve the best they can be. ”
Dr. Melanie Perez Pellechia '92
“The mission of making sure you are able to help others who are less fortunate is really something that has driven much of my life and my work, and I definitely got that from my time at Waldron. ”
Dr. Greg Guffanti '97
“It’ s super important to be a member of your community...being kind to one ’ s fellow human beings. It’ s fairly innate, I think. Most people want to be pleasant with each other and supportive of each other and be able to allow people to demonstrate their opportunities. ”
Michala Maciolek '13
“Look at every day as an opportunity. Instead of looking at every day as “Ugh, I have to wake up early; I have to go to school, ” change that mindset to “I have the opportunity to wake up and go to an amazing school. God gave me another day to make a difference, and I’ m going to make a difference today. ” Just changing that mindset from “I have to ” to “I can ” or “I have the opportunity to ” is really going to help you have a lot of success in the future. ” .
Families of
Each WMA family brings a unique value to our school and has been a part of making WMA what we are today. This overwhelming sense of community lives within WMA. The contributions of our families’ time, talents, and resources are generous and greatly appreciated; even more importantly, the presence of each family adds to the blessings of the Circle of Mercy here at WMA. We’d like to introduce you to a few of our families...
Mendoza
The Mendozas have been a wonderful addition to our Waldron Mercy family since they joined us in the fall of 2019. They were drawn in by our missions of Mercy, study, social responsibility, and faith. They have seen their boys thrive within our walls.
“Ian and Max have both grown tremendously during their years at Waldron. Max has discovered that he enjoys the endurance and discipline required for cross country. Ian has developed the curiosity to dig deeper as well as an affinity for math and science, ” relayed Jennifer.
Ian will continue his education this fall at St. Joe’s Prep. We are happy to have Max and his contagious smile on campus for a few more years!
Dr. Jennifer Tioseco and Dr. Jose Mendoza, Ian ’21, rising seventh grader Max, and daughter Isabelle.
Dr. Mark and Kate Reed, rising fifth grader Laney, and rising seventh grader Maggie.
Reed
The Reeds chose Waldron Mercy for the strong academics and small class sizes. “While our girls do really benefit from that, we found that the community of families and staff are why we love WMA so much, ” added Kate.
The Reed family’s favorite outreach program at WMA is serving dinners at St. Columba shelter through Project H.O.M.E to men experiencing homelessness. The family says this program has opened their eyes and hearts to the ongoing need for service in our local community.
Many readers will recognize the family from their presence at our on-campus events! Kate is always a big part of our Tigerfest Planning Committee because, she says, “It’s great to be a part of an event that both benefits WMA and brings the community together to have fun!”
Waldron
VENERABLE CATHERINE MCAULEY
Although their last child graduated in 2016, the Marchese family continues to give back to our school! Lou is a member of the Board of Trustees, Lisa has continued to be a face painter at the end of year Montessori picnic, and they are both constant fixtures at Tigerfest and our fall fundraisers. “The kids carry respect and kindness that we believe was a consistent attribute taught at Waldron Mercy, every day, every year. We are proud of our children, ” wrote Lisa.
Nicole ’10 is a counselor who works with clients with eating disorders and children with learning disabilities. She attended Merion Mercy Academy and St. Joseph’s University, and is currently working towards a masters degree at Northwestern University.
Dominique ’11 also graduated from Merion Mercy. She then went on to receive a degree in business from West Chester University where she was recruited to play on the varsity golf team. Dominique works at Enterprise Rent-a-Car, where she has steadily grown in the management division.
Michael ’16 graduated from LaSalle College High School in June. He will begin studying communications at West Chester University in the fall. Michael is also a SAG actor -- you might recognize him from some national commercials!
Marchese
Lou and Lisa, Nicole ’10, Dominique ’11, and Michael ’16
Pio The Pios because it joined Waldron Mercy for was exactly what they were Philip’s kindergarten education looking for -- a school that was not only going to give him a great education, but teach him morals and values.
“When we were taking the tour, a student walked up and held the door open for us as we entered the stairwell. This simple act reflected so much of what the students learned on a daily basis at Waldron Mercy Academy, ” remembered Staci.
Philip has thrived at WMA - and so have his parents! They love volunteering in the classrooms (we can’t wait to have them back soon) and joining various parent committees that help make our school a success.
Staci, Philip, and rising fourth grader Philip Andah
You may remember Nile from his standout performances on our stages! His mother, Sena, said Nile’s experiences at WMA and the support he felt from our community gave him the confidence he needed to perform in high school at St. Joe’s Prep. We are happy that Nile will continue to bless the world with his talents as he enters the musical theatre department of the University of Michigan! He was one of just 24 students accepted into the program for the fall.
Nile was heavily involved at the Prep all four years; in addition to the Mission and Ministry Leadership Board, the school newspaper, Black and Latino Culture Club, and Prep Democrat, he co-founded the “For All” initiative and created school wide programming discussing the importance of diversity and investigating how bias, privilege, and oppression manifest in various forms. He also earned the Excellence in Performing Arts Award at the Prep’s 31st Annual Bakari Awards.
We are so lucky to count Nile, Sena, and Kwame as members of our Waldron Mercy family and we can’t wait to see Nile continue performing!
Sena Owereko, Nile ’17, and his younger sibilings.
Nile ’17 and Kwame
BOLD VISIONS, BRIGHT FUTURES:
February 2020: a group of dedicated Waldron Mercy staff, trustees, parents, alumni, parents of alumni, Sisters of Mercy, and some of our extended Mercy colleagues gathered together, led by the consulting firm Partners in Mission, to excitedly embark on the process of developing a strategic plan to bring Waldron Mercy into the future.
Three weeks later, the building - and the world - shut down as COVID-19 exploded into a pandemic.
But that dedicated group of individuals didn ’t stop. They worked diligently at home over the past year, continuing the process set before them. Now, as the pandemic loosens its grip and the world begins to return to “ normal, ” Waldron Mercy is ready to take the next steps.
“In the midst of unsettling times, focusing on a way forward gives a sense of purpose and commitment to what Waldron is about, ” explained Marie Michele Donnelly, RSM, a member of the Board of Trustees.
“As an alum, a current and past parent, and the Chair of the Board and this committee, I am so awed by the participants ' commitment that allowed us to keep this effort going during a
A 5 YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN
FOR WALDRON MERCY ACADEMY pandemic, ” remarked Jim McGovern ’85. The still-ongoing process engaged numerous WMA constituents. First, Waldron staff compiled current and historical information/data about Waldron Mercy in seven domains: Academics/Technology, Advancement/ Communication, Mercy/Catholic Identity, Enrollment/Marketing, Facilities/Tech Infrastructure, Finance, and Student Life. Leaders of each area (called Domain Chairs) used this information to write a narrative report about the current state of each area. All 50 individuals involved in the strategic plan read the in-depth reports to fill out a series of surveys that formed the basis of two strategic planning virtual retreats in the spring of this year.
It almost seemed like perfect timing to be tasked with creating a new strategic plan now; many issues that may not have been on the forefront, including lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic and the movements regarding racial justice, were taken into consideration.
“In light of all the ways in which the world has changed, it was refreshing to know that WMA is thinking strategically about the future, ” reflected Ellyn Jo Waller, Ed.D., mother of Morgan Waller ’05 and Eryka Waller ’06, and a newly appointed member of the Board of Trustees. “I was excited to see the openness in discussing ways to make sure we are purposefully and intentionally thinking about diversity, equity, and inclusion, and thinking about ways to continue to grow people who are grounded in Mercy and are thoughtful about the world around them in a number of ways. ”
Algernong Allen, a current parent who is also a member of the Class of 1986, agreed. “Considerations, conversations, and issues in a COVID tinted world created perspectives that enabled a potentially more durable vision for the future. ”
COVID-19 also changed the format of the planning experience, as events were held over Zoom instead of in person. Even so, participants welcomed the opportunity for teamwork.
“COVID makes it hard to collaborate with people, but getting to work with dedicated stakeholders, bounce ideas off them, and talk with people I don ’t normally work with was exciting, ” explained Mrs. Alex Kramer, the sixth grade language arts teacher at WMA.
“Even though this was all on Zoom, I really felt as though I was connected to the people who gave the time and energy to it, ” said Sr. Marie Michele. “It was very clear to me that there ’ s a great love of and investment in Waldron. ”
Because of that, and because of the review and surveys done in advance of the retreat, a strategic plan draft came together quickly. “It worked, that we could condense what would’ ve been a weekend into six hours. The ideas and what was important were still flowing, ” explained Catherine Glatts, Vice President at Mercy Career & Technical High School, and the aunt of James ’04, Ian ’06, and Owen ’08 Glatts. “You walked in with your own thoughts and ideas, but then heard the thoughts and ideas of six or seven other people. That allowed us to come up with the best outcomes and solutions, ” reflected Barkley Sample ’77.
Through it all, the Mercy mission was at the heart of every decision.
“It was a great opportunity to focus on how to bring Mercy and the mission to future students at WMA, ” said Emily Multari, a current Waldron Mercy parent who works in the admissions office at her alma mater, Merion Mercy.
“I really thought each group did an outstanding job, ” remembered Sr. Marie Michele. “I think that within the Strategic Plan, there are building blocks for a financially secure, academically challenging, Catholic Mercy school that can and will endure into the future. ”
“We ’ re off to a great start -- a great restart - and WMA will continue forming amazing individuals, ” concluded Ellyn Jo. In May, the Waldron Mercy Board of Trustees approved the draft goals and objectives that came out of the Strategic Planning retreats. At the time of publication, Waldron Mercy plans to make the draft of the Plan available to the WMA community for commentary and input shortly. We look forward to embarking on the steps to finalize our Bold Visions so that we can continue to create Bright Futures for our students!
