Dear SCHS Family:
At SCHS, our commitment to teaching our students to value Christian service is very strong. In fact, Christian service benchmarks are integrated into our curriculum and graduation requirements. In this regard,SCHS is very similar to Catholic high schools throughout the Archdiocese and the country. Still in its infancy, our high school has started a number of very special traditions. To me, “Branch Out Day” would be at or near the top of the list.
On Friday, April 27, 134 SCHS students and nearly 30 staff and parent volunteers took part in our annual Branch Out Day. Branch Out Day featured the entire SCHS student body spending a school day performing meaningful Christian service out in the community. Once again this year, we were blessed to be able to partner with a number of terrific Richmond-area nature preserves, nursing homes, Richmond Civic Theater, Richmond Parks Department, Starr-Gennett Walk of Fame, as well as charitable and social outreach organizations to make this happen. Mayor Sally Hutton helped one team spruce up a neighborhood. Branch Out Day proved to be a profound experience for our students as they engaged in Christian service in a different way. Scripture tells us that when we give of ourselves in service to others, we receive more than what we give. This thought is at the core of Branch Out Day.
The month of May can be a very exciting, yet stressful, time for many of our students. There are so many extra activities going on at night and on weekends that the students can become overwhelmed about schoolwork. Please remind your sons and daughters that the end of the semester is near, and it is a very critical time academically for them. The final semester can mean the difference between an A or a B or whether or not a student passes or fails. Please help your child budget his/her time and remain focused. I pray daily for all of the students as I know that they are in a very challenging phase of their lives.
All are invited to the Baccalaureate Mass and Commencement Exercises for the Class of 2012. The Baccalaureate Mass will take place on Friday, June 1, at 6:00 p.m.in St. Andrew Catholic Church. The seventh annual Commencement Exercises will take place on Sunday, June 3, at 2:00 p.m.in the Chuck Mosey Memorial Gymnasium.
As our seniors approach graduation, I ask that you keep them in your prayers. In this time of celebration and joy, our school community wishes them well. We hope for their peace, happiness, success, and safety. The Class of 2012 has brought to our school many gifts. Our school community has been strengthened by their presence and we will miss them. Soon, they will join the ranks of the 73 alumni who have already graduated from Seton Catholic. We wish them well.
As this very special class of seniors graduate from Seton Catholic and take yet another bold step forward, I pray they do so with courage. In Paul’s letter to the Church atCorinthwe read, “Stand true to the Lord. Be courageous!” Courage today demands guts. Strong guts do not just happen overnight. They must be developed with day-to-day decisions that cause us to do the right thing. Then, when the big tests of courage present themselves to us, we are ready to stand up for what is right. Graduates, it is my hope and prayer that your SCHS education has prepared you to do just that. I wish you all the best and great success. Please remember that you continue to be part of the Seton Catholic family, and we warmly invite you back to the “Home of the Cardinals.”
With Easter’s reminder of the promise of the Risen Christ, we are right in the middle of the final quarter of the school year. Our faith unites us and makes us able to handle life’s adversity. I personally thank God each day for allowing me to be a part of the Seton Catholic High School family. Peace!
Sincerely Yours in Christ,
Rick J. Ruhl
Principal