St. Joseph School, Webster, marks 125 years

By William T. Clew and Tanya Connor
The Catholic Free Press
WEBSTER - When St. Joseph School first opened, in September 1892, three Felician Sisters welcomed students – 90 of them – to the school.
Now, 125 years later, the school has 235 pupils in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. And the staff includes three Felician Sisters.
Msgr. Anthony S. Czarnecki, pastor of St. Joseph Basilica and school headmaster, welcomed Bishop McManus and priests to an anniversary Mass Sunday, and paid tribute to the Felician Sisters.
Msgr. Czarnecki said the focus of the celebration was thanking God for all the graces received over 125 years.
“This morning we gather with profound gratitude, and, I might say, justifiable pride,” Bishop McManus said.
He said authentically Catholic schools must be Christ-centered, and that for 125 years, St. Joseph’s has taught that Jesus is the way, truth and life.
“In a Catholic school you can meet Jesus and fall in love with him,” he said.
He said Catholic schools educate the mind, touch the heart and form the conscience and that “we must teach our students … to pursue what is true … good … beautiful.”
Offertory gifts included pictures of Our Lady of Czestochowa, patroness of the Polish, and Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska, the Felician Sisters’ foundress.
Student council leaders also presented Bishop McManus a gift. Council members joined the entrance procession with St. Joseph Basilica Knights of Columbus, Scouts, Children of Mary, Felician Sisters, school administration, faculty and staff, and Superintendent David Perda, clergy and altar servers. The St. Joseph School Children’s Choir sang.
Speaking after Mass at a 125th anniversary banquet in the Auburn/Webster Elks Lodge in Auburn, Msgr. Czarnecki said that the Sisters have shown that “Catholic teaching is indeed a transforming force for a happy and successful life of the students.  
“Felician Sisters made certain that every child lived up to his or her own God-given-potential,” he said in prepared remarks. “Through their presence they left a lasting mark on our school by teaching students that faith means friendship with Jesus, who is the source of all truth.”
He noted that teaching “is more than a job; it is a mission. ...” He praised the faculty at the school and especially noted the contribution of Mary Ann Weaver and Donna Recko, who joined the faculty more than 30 years ago.
He said that, from the beginning, the parishioners have recognized “that the school is an integral part of the mission of the parish and consequently provided unambiguous support.”
He acknowledged the school’s debt to the alumni who have left an impact on the town, the state and around the country.
“Such a distinguished alumnus and the most generous benefactor of the school is Mr. Richard Nowak,” he said. Mr. Novak is a major contributor to the construction of the school gymnasium and parish center.
He thanked the school’s first lay principal Donald Cushing; current principal, Michael Hackenson, who set high standards in education; Richard Skrocki, dean of studies, science teacher and “technology trouble shooter;” Ewa Mamro, business manger and a marketing and technology specialist; and Beth Boudreau, director of advancement and social media expert.
When enrollment fell, the school did not close, thanks to the parish council, under the leadership of Tony Kusek and the secretary, Silvia Kitka, and the help of many others, he said. This made it possible to “celebrate today the school’s 125th anniversary.”
“In conclusion,” he said, “I would like to thank all of you who share with us the joy of this significant moment. Each one of you supports the school in a different way and therefore you should be proud for being a part of the great story of St. Joseph School.”

SCHOOL HISTORY

 When Polish immigrants first came to Webster in the 1860s to work in the Slater Mills, they worshipped at St. Louis Church and were served by the clergy there, Father John J. McCoy wrote in his “History of the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Springfield,” published in 1900. Occasionally, Polish-speaking priests from New York came to celebrate Mass.
“In 1886 the Polish people counted 400 souls,” Father McCoy wrote. They sought, and got, permission from Bishop Patrick T. O’Reilly to build their own church, formed a committee and raised money.
“That fall they bought three-quarters of an acre of land on Whitcomb Street, and each evening after working hours the men gathered to dig the foundations and lay the basement walls,” Father McCoy wrote.
The basement was completed and the cornerstone was laid in 1887. The church was completed in 1888, according to Father McCoy.
The first pastor, Father Francis Chalupka, was ordained on Pentecost Monday and was named pastor that same day. He heard the confessions of his parishioners until Thursday, went to New York to buy altar furniture and returned to celebrate Mass on Trinity Sunday, according to Father McCoy. It was the first Mass celebrated in the new parish and Father Chalupka’s first Mass.
He bought land next to the church for the parish school. Construction began in 1891 and the school opened in September 1892.
According to information provided by the school, in 1895, Father Chalupka undertook the organization of St. Stanislaus Parish and school in Chicopee, leaving administration of the Webster parish to the Conventual Franciscan Fathers and the charge of the school from 1901 to 1902 to the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph of Hamburg, N.Y.
Father Chalupka returned to Webster in 1902 and the Felician Sisters resumed teaching in St. Joseph School.
Under the leadership of Father Anthony A. Cyran, who was pastor from 1910  to 1933, the parish expanded to include a three-story convent built in 1910, a church of Gothic architecture erected in 1914, and a 20-room school built in 1925, all of brick construction.     
In 1924, a fire destroyed the school, leaving 1,100 children without classrooms. The local public schools – Filmer, Castle and Thompson – permitted the use of their facilities for three months, until the completion of the new St. Joseph School in 1925. The student enrollment rose steadily, reaching its peak in 1928 with 1,105 pupils and 18 teachers.
According to the school history, over the years, 16 former students of St. Joseph School became priests and more than 80 young ladies entered religious life. Of these, 68 became Felician Sisters and the remaining joined either the Sisters of the Holy Family or the Franciscan Sisters of Hamburg, N.Y.  The school now has modern, computer-served classrooms. The student-teacher ratio averages 13 to one, according to the school’s website.