Celebrating 50 Years of Educational and Spiritual Excellence
With makeshift class space, limited resources and a small, dedicated
faculty, St. Thomas the Apostle School in Delmar, came into existence
with the first day of classes on September 17, 1956.
The Church basement and a neighboring home housed the first students
that day, grades 1 through 5, as the new school building was still
under construction across from the church. But despite the less than
stellar accommodations, the Holy Name Sisters who staffed the school
immediately instituted a sense of pride, faith, studiousness and
community among their new charges. It's a spirit that has never
dampened through 50 years and many changes.
The St. Thomas community will celebrate that historic first day and
the thousands that followed with a special 3 p.m. Mass on Sunday,
September 17, 2006, exactly 50 years to the day after the birth of
a Delmar educational institution. Albany Bishop Howard Hubbard will
be the principal celebrant of the Mass. All alumni, former and current
staff, administrators and pastors are invited to attend and be a part
of this special event.
The Mass will be the official launch of a year-long Golden Jubilee
celebration at St. Thomas. A reception will follow in the school
building, which is the original structure that first opened for
classes on January 28, 1957, the same day that the first kindergarteners
started.
"We'd like the Mass and reception afterward to be a homecoming of
sorts," said Thomas Kane, principal. "So many of our alumni have
remained a part of the school family, sending their children here
when the time came. But many others we've lost touch with, and we
need to repair and strengthen that bond. It's important for our
current students and our alumni to see that ongoing relationship,
to know that you are part of the family not just for your nine or
10 years as a student, but through high school, college and
throughout your life."
In conjunction with the anniversary, the school is seeking to
re-establish contact with alumni. Please visit the Alumni Page of
the school website for a list of lost alumni. We need your help in
tracking them down. Also, download the Alumni Information Form to
let us know what you've been up to. The Web address is
www.stthomas-school.org. Just click "Alumni Home".
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