In the spring of 2020, Maggie Smith’s daughter was in kindergarten at St. Louis School in Pittsford when COVID-19 forced schools throughout the nation to cancel in-person classes and switch to remote learning.
Her daughter’s teacher, Amy Sanderson, went above and beyond the call of duty, frequently emailing videos to her students’ families, sending materials in the mail and even making house calls, Smith recalled.
“It was such a crazy chaotic time, and (Sanderson created) that sense of community when there was no community,” Smith said. “For me, that was reassurance that we’re in the right spot for sure.”
“It’s just been a great place for them to grow and thrive,” fellow parent Kara Pederzolli said of the school, which this year marked its 75th anniversary.
Parent volunteers support the school, model service
The school opened in a historic building on the campus of St. Louis Church in September 1950 and moved into its current building on Rand Place six years later. Today, the school’s classrooms are buzzing with as much energy and excitement as ever, according to fourth-grade teacher Lisa Lippa.
“This is a dynamic place to be. It’s amazing here. I’m attached to the school emotionally,” remarked Lippa, who sent her own children to St. Louis before joining the school’s faculty.
Among Lippa’s favorite things about the school is the high level of parent involvement, she said. Many St. Louis parents regularly volunteer their time to help out during the school day or serve on planning or advisory committees. By doing so, they send a powerful message to the children about the value of serving their communities, she said.
“It helps our children learn to give back,” Lippa added.
Themany opportunities for parent involvement were appealing to Smith and her family back when they were looking for a preschool for their daughter, who graduated from St. Louis last year and currently is a sixth-grader at Our Lady of Mercy School for Young Women in Brighton. Over the years, Smith has served in a variety of capacities, most recently as a member of the Student Activities Committee and coordinator of the annual fall fundraiser.
Students, parents alike look forward to annual traditions
For the past several years, the fall fundraiser has been a 5K race, providing a way to involve the students in St. Louis’ Run Club as well as members of the wider community. Other traditions include an annual prayer service for Veterans Day, a Christmas pageant and Living Stations of the Cross.
“I think something that makes a Catholic school so special is just all of the traditions,” remarked Margo Fox, mother of three current St. Louis students.
An alumna of the Pittsford school herself, Fox said many of her favorite memories from her own school days center around the school’s traditions, some of which still continue today.
Many of the school’s beloved annual traditions encourage the students to engage in community service, Smith noted. For example, each month a different grade takes a turn facilitating a charitable drive for the school’s Mission of the Month, she said. During November, the fourth-grade class led a schoolwide collection of Thanksgiving food items for the Villa of Hope.
School events help build a tight-knit community
Many of St. Louis School’s cherished traditions are aimed at building community, Pederzolli added. During the annual Slam Jam, for example, alumni, faculty and students compete in a pair of basketball games. Teachers, administrators and parents work together to ensure that even fundraising events also help build relationships, she said.
Pederzolli kept that principle in mind last year when she and Smith cochaired the committee responsible for planning St. Louis’ biennial fundraising gala. The gala’s theme was “Honoring the past, celebrating the future,” and Pederzolli and Smith made a concerted effort to involve St. Louis alumni in the event.
“It truly was a multigenerational community event,” Smith remarked.
The sense of community that characterizes St. Louis School does not happen by accident, according to Fox, who also belongs to the Student Activities Committee. The first events of each school year actually take place during the summer in order to welcome new students and their parents into the school community, she said.
“I know coming into a new school can be very intimidating, for parents too,” Fox said, noting that such opportunities help parents and students feel included in the tight-knit community. “Everyone knows everyone. … Everyone has each other’s back.”
Tags: Catholic Schools, Monroe County East
