“May each of you know that God is with you as you go into an unknown future. Go with faith in the God who loves you.”
With these words, Bishop Dennis J. Sullivan sent high school graduates off into the world with prayers and blessings during Baccalaureate Masses and commencement exercises in early June for Holy Spirit, Absecon; Camden Catholic, Cherry Hill; Gloucester Catholic, Gloucester City; Paul VI, Haddonfield, and Wildwood Catholic Academy, North Wildwood.
In front of students and supportive school teachers and administrators, parents, and families, he congratulated the graduates on their achievements, and reminded them that “God is never hidden from us … never far from us. God holds us in every breath we take. The mystery is accessible.”
“Ask the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to bless you … and keep you always in God’s love,” Bishop Sullivan said.
He gave them one last bit of homework, too.
“John 3:16 says, ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.’ Learn it. It’s worth memorizing and repeating. … God initiated a loving, personal relationship with each of us. His love can deliver us safely through this life.”
Bishop Sullivan also recognized the role parents and school staff have had in the lives of the graduates, saying their sacrifices “are an expression of their great love, because they want to give [students] the best”: a Catholic education that encourages them to have a relationship with God.
After Mass, Bishop Sullivan, with Dr. Bill Watson, diocesan superintendent of Catholic Schools, and school administrators and faculty conferred on students their diplomas.
Outside Our Lady of Hope Parish in Blackwood on June 1, the site of Gloucester Catholic’s Baccalaureate Mass and commencement ceremony, both graduates and parents reflected on the special day, and the impact of a Catholic education.
Graduate Ryan Tucker, who will attend Camden County College in the fall, said, “I’m grateful for growing in my faith and the relationships I’ve built.”
His mother said sending her son to Gloucester Catholic “was the best thing we could have done for him,” adding that her son has “gotten so much more outgoing and grown in confidence.”
Adrianna Green, who will attend Central Connecticut State University in the fall, says that the Rams community “has brought me a lot of joy” since she transferred there as a freshman, a transition she said was difficult at first.
“Everyone made me feel welcome and part of the family, and I’m grateful for the friends I’ve made and the teachers by my side.”
After receiving her diploma, she wasn’t quite looking ahead to college just yet; she had one bit of Rams business to wrap up 24 hours later, as the starting pitcher for her softball team’s Varsity NJSIAA sectional final against Saint Joseph Academy.
Dyheim Watson Sr. and Jr., father and son, expressed pride, excitement and thanks to God for what was and what is yet to come.
“The grace of God led [my son], and his spirituality has grown and his character has developed,” Watson Sr. said.
Watson Jr., who will attend Rutgers-University Camden in a few months, agreed, saying that during his Catholic school years, he’s grown closer to God. “I have a stronger bond now. … I’m excited for the future.”
Similarly, Eliana Labroli of Holy Spirit High School said she felt prepared for the future, too. Looking ahead to attending the University of Delaware, she said graduating from a Catholic school “gave me good morals. I feel like I am more kind to people now. It helped set me up to make connections in the real world.”
Amelia Orzechowski of Paul VI will be heading off to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. She said her Catholic education “helped me look inward and also outward. I have a better understanding of myself and the world around me.”
Michael Bress, Communications and Marketing Manager for the Office of Catholic Schools, contributed to this report.
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