There was one word people kept using as members of the St. Joseph Catholic School said goodbye to the educational institution on Saturday with a gathering and parade past the Summit school.
“It’s bittersweet,” said Lawrence Manetti, who served as the school’s principal from 1996-2020. “I’m very happy to be here, sharing this time with them, but then on the other hand it’s a sad occasion that we’re saying goodbye to St. Joseph forever.”
Miriam Caccavallo, a parent and volunteer, agreed.
“It’s bittersweet.” she said. “It’s so good to see them all and their families, but the situation’s sad.”
Aleco Julius Jr., who graduated from the school in 1994 and had two children there at the time of the closure, said the event was a chance to celebrate the legacy of the school and be together as a community one more time. He dressed as a knight, the school’s mascot, for the occasion.
“I think it is bittersweet, obviously,” Julius said. “But I think right now everyone is in good spirits. The news of the school closing is already several months behind us. So I think a lot of us have already negotiated those feelings. We went through the process. I think we are trying to celebrate the school today. It’s more festive.”
The news came in January that St. Joseph would be one of three Southland school closures announced by the Archdiocese of Chicago. St. Joseph School was founded in 1913, and expanded in the ’40s and ’50s to accommodate a growing parish. The archdiocese in a news release called the closure decisions difficult but said they were based on “low and steadily declining enrollment levels and large financial deficits.” St. Joseph School saw a 33% enrollment decline over the past four years, with a financial deficit of $345,000 this past school year, according to the archdiocese.
But on Saturday, it was less about numbers and more about memories, connections made over the years and generational stories of Catholic education.
“My wife and I both graduated in Class of ’94, and now we have our kids there,” Julius said.
“It’s a gem. The school has been part of the community for a very long time. It has a very family feel there. A lot of the teachers are passionate there. A lot of the parents are close. It’s almost like breaking up a family.”
Julius’ daughters just finished fourth grade and kindergarten there, and he said they will be attending St. Symphorosa in Chicago’s Garfield Ridge neighborhood next year. His hope is that they will continue to see some of their friends.
“I think a few other classmates of theirs might be going there,” Julius said. “But a lot of families are having that discussion right now and making that decision if they haven’t already.”
Caccavallo had second- and third-graders at St. Joseph who will be moving over to St. Leonard in Berwyn next year. But she wishes they could continue to attend St. Joseph.
“It’s tragic,” Caccavallo said. “Such a shame. It’s a disservice to the community. It was a great little school. I actually live next to another Catholic school, but we love St. Joseph so much we crossed the border to take them to school there. It was wonderful. Everybody was so nice. It was like a family.”
Caccavallo said it was nice to get together once again with that family, especially after the pandemic made that difficult over the past year. Manetti agreed.
“It’s fun to be with the community, people that I haven’t really connected with all year,” he said.
For Manetti, the news of the closure hit particularly hard. Despite leaving his principal post last school year, he stayed involved with the chess team he coached.
“It was a shock to me,” he said. “Half of my career, really, was at St. Joseph. It was sad. I have such fond memories of the community. I remember when I first got there how welcoming they were to me. …. I think of the children that are being displaced and the families. It was a great community.”
On Saturday, people gathered starting at 10 a.m. at Summit Park to decorate vehicles and share stories. Among them were Maria Cortez, of Summit, and her family, who have been involved with St. Joseph for the past three years. Her children, Lucia, Ana and Gabriel, were all Knights at the time of the closure.
“We were very sad,” Cortez said. “We wanted them to do the whole elementary and grade school.”
Instead, they will be heading to St. Odilo in Berwyn in the fall. Cortez said they came out to the event to spend time with the St. Joseph families. They also used the occasion to recognize the work staff did while the school was open.
“We celebrate their effort that they put into the school year,” Cortez said. “We’re happy to see their principal and teachers and staff and everybody again.”
Jose Esparza, of Summit, lived right across the street from St. Joseph and had two children there. His son just finished eighth grade with the school’s last graduating class and is headed to Argo Community High School, but Esparza also has a daughter who may attend St. Cletus in La Grange next school year. That is where he said “a lot” of families from St. Joseph are going, but obviously not all of them. That is tough on children who have been together since pre-kindergarten.
“Now they’re going to be separated, going to different schools,” Esparza said.
Esparza said those tough decisions are all about the children, but the families formed bonds through St. Joseph, too.
“It was heartbreaking,” he said of the closure. “Over 100 years of service. … It’s emotional. I just hope we get to see each other and hang out again, because we’re one big family.”
Around 12:30 p.m., the cars lined up and passed by the school on 73rd Avenue, waving to teachers and staff near the front door. Then they pulled into the parking lot for a few guest speakers. Among them was Claudia Mendez, who served as principal for the last year of the school’s run.
“We can’t thank our teachers and staff enough for their years of dedication to these wonderful programs that we had here at St. Joseph,” Mendez said. “We thank our students, first and foremost, our future and our hope, and their parents for choosing Catholic education from this wonderful institution.”
Mendez said St. Joseph distributed trophies to the current student body, as well as teachers or individuals who requested them. They also contacted families that had other memorabilia in the trophy case to return those items. Photos, the principal’s book and registers from the Sisters of St. Joseph will be preserved by the archdiocese, she said.
Mendez said many of St. Joseph’s teachers have already gotten placement at other schools, some Catholic and some public. And everyone has been able to slow down the past few days and take some time to deal with the end of St. Joseph School.
“They’re going to be OK,” she said. “Little by little, we’ve been able to get some closure.”
Bill Jones is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
