Reverend Bishop Kevin Rhoades celebrated mass and prayer services on the Feast of St. Joseph on Friday, March 19. The service was live streamed from the Chapel of St. Joseph.

Given that Saint Joseph is the school’s patron saint, this was a very special feast day for the community. The bishop celebrated mass with all Juniors and Seniors in attendance, while the rest of the students watched from their classrooms. The Bishop also celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation for 9 Saint Joe Students, who were able to receive the sacrament at mass. Congratulations to Christopher Cruz, Jatziry Cruz, Anderson Davis, Karina Espinoza, Gwyneth Gangwer, Charles Haigh, Ainsley Hennel, Genevieve Lake, and Meredith Palmer on being confirmed!

The Quiz Bowl and Swimming teams were recognized after mass for their State Championship performances. 51 Saint Joe Scholars were also personally congratulated by the Bishop. These senior scholars maintained an overall grade point average of over 4.0 throughout their four years, an incredible achievement. The class Valedictorian Jonathan Liu and Salutatorian Joseph Maffetone were also personally congratulated at mass.

These recognitions were very outstanding, but their announcement on this year’s feast of Saint Joe made things even more special. This particular feast day was especially important, as it marked the 150th anniversary of Blessed Pope Pius IX declaring Saint Joseph the patron of the Universal Church.

Prayer services were also offered in both English and Spanish in the Chapel so that all students could participate. It was broadcast to all 43 schools in the Diocese of Fort-Wayne South Bend, and it was very special for the entire Diocese to be able to pray together on this special feast day.   In the prayer service, Bishop Rhoades said, “Saint Joseph always loved, guarded and protected the holy family, and so it’s very appropriate that he is the guardian, the protector, and the patron of Catholic Church.” 

The mass and services offered a great chance for the Saint Joe community to pray and celebrate. This feast day is always special to this school, and it serves as a great reminder of how wonderful it is to have Saint Joseph as our patron.