St. Francis Academy in Bally continued its 275th anniversary observance recently with students attending Mass celebrated by a priest who is an alumnus of the school.
The Rev. Richard Brensinger, who graduated in 1978, celebrated Mass at Most Blessed Sacrament Church in Bally, just steps from the academy founded in 1743.
“It’s a great school,” he said. “It’s great to be back here.”
The Catholic academy has 160 students in prekindergarten through eighth-grade. Students made signs to commemorate the 275th anniversary and honor the 10 priests who either graduated from the school or were members of Most Blessed Sacrament parish.
First- and second-grade students participated in Friday’s Mass by reading from Scripture and participating in the offertory procession.
Deacon Thomas Murphy said that part of the school’s anniversary observance involves a project in which students perform 275 acts of kindness, which are documented on paper flowers and hung on the walls of the school.
“It’s important to love one another, and that’s what the random acts of kindness are all about,” Murphy said.
The paper flowers motif in is concert with the school’s “hedge fund,” which in this case is not an investment strategy but rather a fund named in a more literal sense. The school has received nearly $6,000 in donations from parishioners, parents and students as part of an effort to replace the landscaping in front of the school,” said second-grade teacher Joan Kelsch, who has been an instructor for 45 years.
“It’s been amazing. These people are amazing,” Kelsch said. “It’s all going to get ripped out in the fall, and we’re really excited about it.”
Brensinger, a chaplain at Albright College and Kutztown University, said that Kelsch is the only teacher who remains at the school from when he graduated.
“It’s so nice to see a familiar face,” Bensinger said. “I used to grade some of her papers when I was in the higher grades.”
Kelsch said that in her 45 years, some things have changed, but what has ultimately kept her coming back is the ability to work with the kids.
“They’re more knowledgeable in some areas, but not in others,” Kelsch said. “And that’s good. They’re kids. By the time we hit June, they come out of the nest and fly.”
According to the school history, it was founded by the Rev. Theodore Schneider and was the first Catholic school in the original 13 Colonies. The current building was opened in 1953.
Contact Matt Carey: 610-371-5038 or mcarey@readingeagle.com.