This is a tale of two schools.
They threw open the doors to St. Charles Borromeo in Drexel Hill Tuesday morning.
Only it's not called St. Charles Borromeo anymore.
And the students who walked in the doors were not wearing the familiar parochial school uniforms.
St. Charles Borromeo School doesn't exist anymore, except in the minds
and hearts of those who went there and mourn its demise.
St. Charles closed its doors for the last time last spring, a victim of
the declining enrollment and financial difficulties facing many
parochial schools in Delaware County.
The decision was not a popular one with many parishioners and parents of students attending St. Charles.
But the building is still being used to educate students. It is being
leased by the Upper Darby School District and is now home to 272
students who formerly attended Highland Park and Stonehurst Hills
Elementary Schools. They are now being bused to their new digs, the
Charles Kelly School, where they were welcomed yesterday by Principal
Lyn Berenato.
It's not the first time such an arrangement has occurred in Delaware
County. It's not even the first time it's happened in Upper Darby. A few
years back, when St. George School fell victim to much the same
predicament in Glenolden, Upper Darby also utilized that space. They
bused 200 kids from Bywood Elementary to what is now the Walter Senkow Elementary School.
Contrast that with what will happen today at St. Cyril of Alexandria
School in East Lansdowne.
A few years ago, they were given a similar prognosis by the archdiocese.
Attendance was down; red ink was rising. The school likely would be
forced to close its doors.
Then a very special young man named Tommy Geromichalos got involved.
Tommy, who suffers from cystic fibrosis, wrote a letter to the
Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants the desires of ailing kids.
Tommy's wish was simple. He wanted St. Cyril's to stay open so he could graduate with his class. It was a daunting task, one even outside the realm of the charitable organization. The school needed to raise $200,000. Then this newspaper, specifically columnist Gil Spencer, got involved. We got wind of Tommy's wish. We ran his letter in the newspaper.
The rest is history. Tommy's desire galvanized the school and community.
Not only did they rally around a battle cry of "I Believe," they raised
more than $400,000 for the school.
Today Tommy Geromichalos will start his final year at St. Cyril's. He
will graduate in June.
But his legacy will live on, hopefully for many years to come, as St.
Cyril's continues the very difficult mission that is eluding so many
parochial schools in the county.
They threw open the doors to St. Charles Borromeo in Drexel Hill Tuesday morning.
Only it's not called St. Charles Borromeo anymore.
And the students who walked in the doors were not wearing the familiar parochial school uniforms.
St. Charles Borromeo School doesn't exist anymore, except in the minds
and hearts of those who went there and mourn its demise.
St. Charles closed its doors for the last time last spring, a victim of
the declining enrollment and financial difficulties facing many
parochial schools in Delaware County.
The decision was not a popular one with many parishioners and parents of students attending St. Charles.
But the building is still being used to educate students. It is being
leased by the Upper Darby School District and is now home to 272
students who formerly attended Highland Park and Stonehurst Hills
Elementary Schools. They are now being bused to their new digs, the
Charles Kelly School, where they were welcomed yesterday by Principal
Lyn Berenato.
It's not the first time such an arrangement has occurred in Delaware
County. It's not even the first time it's happened in Upper Darby. A few
years back, when St. George School fell victim to much the same
predicament in Glenolden, Upper Darby also utilized that space. They
bused 200 kids from Bywood Elementary to what is now the Walter Senkow Elementary School.
Contrast that with what will happen today at St. Cyril of Alexandria
School in East Lansdowne.
A few years ago, they were given a similar prognosis by the archdiocese.
Attendance was down; red ink was rising. The school likely would be
forced to close its doors.
Then a very special young man named Tommy Geromichalos got involved.
Tommy, who suffers from cystic fibrosis, wrote a letter to the
Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants the desires of ailing kids.
Tommy's wish was simple. He wanted St. Cyril's to stay open so he could graduate with his class. It was a daunting task, one even outside the realm of the charitable organization. The school needed to raise $200,000. Then this newspaper, specifically columnist Gil Spencer, got involved. We got wind of Tommy's wish. We ran his letter in the newspaper.
The rest is history. Tommy's desire galvanized the school and community.
Not only did they rally around a battle cry of "I Believe," they raised
more than $400,000 for the school.
Today Tommy Geromichalos will start his final year at St. Cyril's. He
will graduate in June.
But his legacy will live on, hopefully for many years to come, as St.
Cyril's continues the very difficult mission that is eluding so many
parochial schools in the county.
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