The first bell rang in our CSFN school in Kalisz on September 2, 1918. Sisters together with lay co-workers and 191 students that enrolled in the new high school were to form a caring and loving community that aspired to high standards and ideals. The 90 years that followed were marked with joyous growth and numerous educational achievements as well as dramatic periods, including those of World War II and the closing of the school by the communist government (1962 – 1990).

Today, Nazareth Educational Center consists of kindergarten, elementary school, junior and senior high schools and an after-school center for neglected children. Altogether we serve about five hundred children and their families.

The jubilee celebrations were planned to be inter-generational unifying experiences: to give the opportunity to the young to draw on the experience of previous generations, and to the older - to enjoy the dynamic present of the school. The first day of the celebrations was more official in character while the second was meant to be good fun for everyone: students and their families, former students, teachers and friends of our school. We also invited a number of special guests with our General Superior Sister Janice Fulmer as well as members of local authorities and educational institutions.

We started with solemn Mass celebrated by Bishop Stanislaw Napierala in Kalisz's St. Joseph Basilica. In his homily, Bishop stressed that care for the family should be the main focus of the school ministry. He also noticed that the beginnings of the ministry were strongly connected with the shrine, where St Joseph is particularly revered: "St Joseph wanted Holy Family Sisters in this town". At the end of Mass, I had the privilege to entrust our school to St Joseph's protection in front of the miraculous Holy Family icon. Urszula Janowska, a 1962 graduate, and Oskar Grabowski, a 3rd year student of the junior high school, accompanied me in this special prayer, which ended with a familiar phrase Jesus, Mary, Joseph – protect us. One of sisters commented later, "St Joseph had waited for this moment for 90 years…".

Rejoice, Mother Poland - this solemn song performed by the school choir opened the second part of celebration, which was held in a conference hall of State Professional High School. The program was a collage of artistic activities prepared by students and teachers. The history of the ministry was presented by S. Alma Pachuta with the help of a PowerPoint presentation based on archival pictures and materials. We all had a chance to appreciate the enthusiasm, self-sacrifice and faith with which our Sisters led the school through hardships and trials. Then there were songs, dances, skits presented by students of all ages, as well as a film about the school: The Source That Never Dries Out. This was a project of the final year students.

It was a time to reflect, to smile and even to sing together with the young artists: It is so good there is Nazareth…

I must admit that I thank God not only for the ninety years but also for these two beautiful days of celebration that helped me realize how many graces God has given us!

Saturday was a day of great fun. Parents in collaboration with teachers and students organized a gig fete. Majority of amusements, like booths, a lottery, a merry-go-round, a stage for performers, were located in the schoolyard. The weather, though cloudy, cooperated, bearing in mind that it rained in the rest of Poland. Like at a real birthday party, we lit candles on a big birthday cake donated by a student's parents. 90 balloons were set free in the sky to announce to the world we were having a Jubilee. Then a number of attractions followed: concerts, karaoke, dance shows, sports competitions and a soccer match between our students' parents and priests – friends of Nazareth. You may be interested to know that the priests won 3:0. Parents are looking forward to the return match!

The school building was open all day to the public, especially to former students who took tours, visited an historical exhibition, and met in classrooms to chat.

One of our eight-year-old pupils, so happy with all the amusements, exclaimed, "I can't wait for the one hundredth anniversary!". If this Jubilee had been such a beautiful experience, what would the next be? It depends on the years that will come. One thing is certain: we will do our best to carry on the ministry as fulfillment of our CSFN mission. May God help us to be a real sign of his kingdom of love.
 

Sister Amata Nowaszewska, Director of School