MURRELLS INLET—St. Michael School families gathered together recently to witness their eighth-grade promotion ceremony. It is the last one for the school as St. Michael transitions to a K-3 through sixth grade curriculum in the new school year.
The class of 2020 was sent forth by Father Edward Fitzgerald as they move on to new adventures and studies, continuing their faith journey in high school. Four students will attend St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in the fall, one is attending St. James, and one is moving out of state but will attend a Catholic high school.
These students have been together since kindergarten and are well equipped for the future with academic prowess and Catholic virtues, said Patsy Foley, a teacher at St. Michael.
Foley wrote a tribute to the students, saying, “This special 2020 graduating class has weathered many storms together and have come out better young men and young women for their experiences,” adding that they “have been able to put into practice what it means to be children of God.”
She said they lived out Catholic social teachings and the works of mercy each day.
To name just a few of their accomplishments, they cleaned up the beach and school, weaved sleeping mats out of plastic bags for the homeless, planted and harvested vegetables and herbs for the St. Vincent de Paul Society pantry, contributed all sorts of items to Help 4 Kids and the St. Francis Animal Shelter, and visited and assisted the elderly.
They also led the school in prayers, served at Mass, and won many contests in athletics, the arts and academics.
Foley also praised the individual members of the class for sharing their “God-given talents and gifts.”
“They are an amazing group of young adults and we applaud their efforts, hard work and love for their school and classmates. We wish them well and our prayers will always be with them,” she stated.
It is a sentiment shared by other schools in the diocese, who also have eighth-grade classes moving on to high school.
They are Blessed Sacrament and Charleston Catholic in Charleston, Christ Our King-Stella Maris in Mount Pleasant, Divine Redeemer in Hanahan, Holy Trinity in North Myrtle Beach, Nativity on James Island, Our Lady of Peace in North Augusta, Our Lady of the Rosary in Greenville, Prince of Peace in Taylors, St. Andrew in Myrtle Beach, St. Anne in Rock Hill, Holy Angels (formally St. Anne & St. Jude) in Sumter, St. Anthony in Florence, St. Francis on Hilton Head Island, St. John in North Charleston, St. Joseph in Anderson, St. Mary Help of Christians in Aiken, St. Mary in Greenville, St. Paul the Apostle in Spartanburg, and Summerville Catholic.
School officials said they look forward to watching all of their students become model citizens and moral leaders of the Church and country.
