Ursuline grads have grace under fire
YOUNGSTOWN
Seventy-six graduates of Ursuline High School are getting ready to go out into the world.
Each is going to follow his or her own path. Each is not, however, going to be without support in the decisions they will make along the way, they learned during commencement Saturday afternoon at Stambaugh Auditorium in Youngstown.
What they will have with them, said keynote speaker Sr. Mary McCormick, general superior of the Ursuline Sisters, is the solid Catholic education provided by Ursuline.
“I want to reflect on some things you learned at Ursuline that will help you begin the next phase of your lives,” she said.
First, she said, “We live in a world of grace. Everywhere we look, and in every person we meet, we find some manifestation of the presence of God.”
“We believe in the dignity of all human life,” she continued. “We’re made in the image of God,” she said, and Ursuline’s Catholic teachings stress a respectfulness for all life, especially that which is most vulnerable and at risk.”
Sr. McCormick explained that in the Catholic tradition, Jesus is imitated by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless and loving one’s enemies.
“All the other people around you supported and nurtured you,” she continued, and they’re willing to be with you in the next phase of your lives.”
“The relationships that are most significant are the people around you – those relationships you will begin to nurture the moment you start college.”
Life will be hard at times, Sr. McCormick pointed out. There will be accidents, disappointments, natural disasters and failures.
“Someone will break your heart,” she aid.
“You’re going to make mistakes,” she said. “You’re going to hurt people.” But we still live in a world of grace. If you can hold fast to the lessons Ursuline taught you, you will not only survive, but you will thrive.”
Some graduates seemed sure they would be making a difference and they would be thriving.
Mike Krause is going to Youngstown State University, where he’ll be majoring in special education.
It was during his work at the Purple Cat for a religious-education service class at Ursuline that he realized he wanted to make a difference in the lives of people with special needs.
Devin Matthews, a player on the Fighting Irish defensive line, is going to YSU to major in business management. He thinks he’d like to open his own business, but he isn’t sure yet what that business will do.
His teammate, Robbie Beardman, who was on the offensive and defensive lines, also is going to YSU.
“I’m going to study sports medicine and exercise science,” he said, adding it seems like a natural path to take because he’s been around football since the fourth grade. He’d like to be a trainer and a chiropractor “to help kids in sports.”
Paige Hall is going to the U.S. Air Force.
“I’d like to try something different,” she said, adding that she ran track for years at Ursuline. So discipline and physical fitness are not going to be hurdles for her at the start.
Tanqeray Williams wants to go to the police academy in Cleveland.
“At first I wanted to be a probation officer,” she said. “But I’ve loved the thought of being a police officer since I was a kid.”
“There’s a lot of problems going on nowadays,” she continued. “I want to help.”