Wed, Jan 16, 2013
Marla Novo
Artifact of the Month: Happy 150th Birthday Holy Cross School
Many tell you the best years of your life are your high school years. I don’t necessarily agree. In fact, I’d say some of my fondest years were the ones I spent in elementary school. From learning to read to navigating playground politics, grade school still holds a big part of my collective memory.
I went to Holy Cross School in the 1970s; it has been around a lot longer than that. This month marks the School’s sesquicentennial. That’s 150 years of education on the hill that overlooks downtown Santa Cruz.
Founded in 1862 by the Daughters of Charity, the school was also an orphanage. A group of five nuns, led by Sister Corsina (who would become the first principal) journeyed to Santa Cruz and set up the campus.
The original Holy Cross School. Note how you entered the building on Mission St.
I found this photo in the MAH’s archives. The three story building with the Mission St. entrance seems so majestic compared to the school now, which was built in 1958 with the middle school structure built in 1977. My son agrees, saying the building in this photo looks “so grand” compared to the one he has attended for 8 years.
Holy Cross School circa 2013.
Even though some things about Holy Cross School have changed, many remain the same. The colonnade that connects k-8th grade still lines the breezeway where I knocked my head on one of its metal poles in 1st grade (and where my son did the same in kindergarten). Sister Barbara has overseen the annual Christmas performances for 40 years and is still going strong. Pride in yourself, reverence, and service to others is encouraged. Even the boy’s bathroom continues to emit a certain smell (I’m not saying bad, just distinct) as it did decades ago.
After attending the sesquicentennial celebration and connecting with old classmates and new friends, I am comforted that a sense of community still exists for the students, alum, parents, and teachers. In a world where things change, people move on or go in and out of our lives, it’s reassuring that some things stay the same. It may look different, but Holy Cross School still stands on the same hill. This spring my son joins the ranks of the graduated. There are many things to celebrate, many new memories to be made.
Happy Birthday, Holy Cross. Go Panthers.