Photo by Alan M. Dumoff, more photos ccdphotolibrary.smugmug.com
Victor Fabietti stands by the wall dedicated to the crew teams of Holy Spirit High School, Absecon.
ABSECON — Victor Fabietti Jr., president of the 50-year-old Fathers’ Club at Holy Spirit High School, had an idea to bring the walls of the school to “life” with plaques and photos commemorating the history and achievements of the school’s crew programs.
“Last summer I went upstairs in the school to meet with the art teacher about a mural I wanted her students to design,” he said. A 1981 graduate of Holy Spirit, Fabietti said this was the first time he’d been upstairs in the school in 30 years. He noticed that many plaques on the wall by the library seemed to blend into the paneling.
“When I saw these plaques I thought it would be prudent to relocate them downstairs to allow the community to see the history and achievements of the school’s crew programs.”
Fabietti said he spoke to Father Perry Cherubini, president of Holy Spirit, to determine where to relocate all the plaques.
“Father suggested a place on the first floor because of the daily foot traffic,” Fabietti said. “We at Holy Spirit need to recognize the amazing history of this institution and be proud of it and use that history to give us the strength to continue its excellence now and forever, honoring past, present and future Spartans.”
Members of the Fathers’ Club, many with handyman and craft experience, designed and constructed the wall for the crew project. The six-week project began in January. The Stotesbury and National awards — now located in the foyer of the school — are expected to be transferred to the wall in the summer.
“We then talked with both crew programs, boys and girls,” Fabietti said, “and at the Fathers’ Club expense decided to identify the Henley World Championship rowers on new plaques the Fathers’ Club created from the existing plaques’ information in the foyer and hang them accordingly. We felt it was imperative these feats were recognized at the time of the dedication in March for both of the programs.”
Also Hall of Fame coaches Stanley Bergman and Joe Welsh were honored with their pictures on the wall as the coaches of these world champion teams.
During the summer The Fathers’ Club is expected to hang a crew boat in the same area, Fabietti noted. “We have additional plaques that were located at the two programs’ boat houses which have been forwarded to us to complete the other side of the existing crew wall.”
Also on tap for the summer in the other corridor of the school, Fabietti said, is a wall for all the other sports at Holy Spirit that will be set aside to recognize their accomplishments.
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