“There is no place I’d rather be today than here celebrating with you,” Bishop Edward Malesic told the St. Sebastian Parish School community.
He cleared time on his schedule on Oct. 2 to visit St. Sebastian and celebrate a Mass to help recognize its National Blue Ribbon School designation. St. Sebastian is one of 19 schools in Ohio and one of the four Catholic schools from the Diocese of Cleveland to earn the designation this year. Incarnate Word Academy in Parma Heights, Lakewood Catholic Academy in Lakewood and St. Bernadette School in Westlake were the other honorees from the diocese.
(See photo gallery above.)
It was the feast of the holy guardian angels and the bishop reminded the faithful, especially the students, that each of them is assigned a guardian angel. “Your angel is always watching out for you. That should give you comfort,” he said. The bishop explained that each person is assigned an angel at birth and the angel remains with them until they get to heaven.
He recited the guardian angel prayer, which he said most people learn in childhood.
The bishop encouraged the students to enjoy their youth. “I need to learn to have fun again, to sit by Jesus and learn like you do … to have the qualities of a child of God. You have much you can teach me,” he said. “You can teach me things like how to be simple, to smile, to trust, believe, love and have faith and how to enjoy life, to follow Jesus as little children playing before the Lord.”
Concelebrating the Mass were Father John Valencheck, St. Sebastian pastor, and Father Jozef Bozek, parochial vicar.
Father Valencheck thanked Bishop Malesic for the gift of his time visiting with the school community. Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan planned to be on hand also, but had another commitment. However, he sent a proclamation from the mayor’s office and Akron City Council proclaiming Oct. 2 as St. Sebastian Parish School Day in Akron and congratulated them on the Blue Ribbon designation as well as earning a fifth consecutive STEM award from the state. The proclamation congratulated St. Sebastian School for serving with “pride, tradition and achievement since 1929.”
After Mass, the bishop greeted students, teachers, parents and others who attended the liturgy. He posed for photos with some, including Weller, the school’s therapy dog and family pet of Principal Anthony Rohr.
The bishop and his emcee, Deacon Ed Gardias, were guided by some student ambassadors as they visited classrooms in the school.
During the classroom visits, the bishop chatted with students about their favorite subjects, what they liked about school, prayer, the sacraments and other topics. He prayed with each classroom and offered a blessing before leaving.
St. Sebastian Parish School has 330 students, Father Valencheck said. He also offered his thanks to the many people, especially those behind the scenes, who helped make the Blue Ribbon School designation a reality.
“It took lots of people working very hard to make this happen,” he said.
“Thanks also to the parents, grandparents, benefactors and others who make Catholic education possible,” Bishop Malesic said. “Catholic schools are not just forming brains but also bodies and souls.”
He reminded the students not to act out of hate, but to remember what Jesus taught us, “to love one another. You’re walking together as a family of faith, as brothers and sisters in the Lord. The best anti-bullying program is the Gospel. Share that, walk with Jesus and remember to nourish your spirit and soul. And congratulations on being awarded the National Blue Ribbon School designation,” the bishop added.
Click here to view a short video on Weller, who was featured in the June Northeast Ohio Catholic Report. Weller, who is beloved throughout the school community, began visiting St. Sebastian School in 2022 as an 8-week-old puppy. Rohr credited Weller with helping to ease anxiety as the school worked toward its Blue Ribbon designation. The 2022-2023 school year was Weller’s first at the official school therapy dog.