School News
College Decision Day – May 1, 2024
As has become a tradition for graduating classes throughout the country, May 1st is College Decision Day, where the majority of our students announce their commitments to attend some of the best universities in the country. Check out just some of the schools members of our senior class were accepted to this year, and stay tuned to St. Mary’s social media accounts tomorrow for all of the fun!
Seniors Head Off on Retreat
Last week, the Class of 2024 went on their retreat to Cradle Beach. They spent the day as an entire class for one of the final times before graduation festivities kick off in a couple of weeks. May really is the month to celebrate our graduates, so we’re excited for all of things to come in the next few weeks!
It’s All in the DNA!
Mrs. Walh-Henshaw’s AP Biology class had fun mastering DNA transcription and translation. The class worked on the encoding and decoding of nucleic acids to form biochemical molecules. Making science fun is what Mrs. Walh-Henshaw does best!
Support the Junik Family
As you may know, Mrs. Emily Junik, a Social Studies teacher here at St. Mary’s, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. After already courageously battling – and defeating – cancer a few years ago, Mrs. Junik will power through once again, but of course, she and her family face a long road ahead.
To help support Mrs. Junik in her fight, St. Mary‘s is selling breast cancer awareness t-shirts with a St. Mary‘s touch. You can check out the design below (shout out to Mrs. Leah Tytka for the design).
The online store will close this Friday, May 3rd, and orders can be shipped directly to your home. If you choose “pickup order” when checking out, the shirts will be shipped to St. Mary‘s for you to pickup here.
We know the St. Mary‘s family rallies to support their own like no other, so we’re asking you all to again answer that call. Mrs. Junik is, without question, one of the most beloved people in this building. In addition to being an amazing teacher to her students past and present, she brings light and joy to everyone she interacts with. The Junik Family is so appreciative of your prayers and support!
Athletics
Spring Sports Are in Full Swing
Despite the soggy start to the spring, many of our Lancer teams are off to great starts. Baseball, softball, lacrosse, and track and field are all in action. Their schedules can be found at smhlancers.org if you’d like to come out to support the teams!
Teddie Osinski ’24 Scores 100th Goal
The century mark! Senior and captain of the Women’s Lacrosse Team, Teddie Osinski, scored her 100th career goal against Nichols. Congratulations, Teddie! Teddie will be attending St. John Fisher University this fall to study Health & Exercise Science.
Sarah Barnum ’24 Signs with Mercyhurst
St. Mary’s senior volleyball player, Sarah Barnum, will be taking her talents to Mercyhurst University this fall to continue her academy and volleyball career. Sarah has been a huge piece in the Women’s Volleyball Team’s success, including winning a couple of State Titles. Congratulations, Sarah!
Performing Arts
Beauty and the Beast Nominated for Four Shea’s High School Musical Theatre Awards
The Shea’s High School Musical Theatre Awards (formerly known as the Kenny Awards), celebrate the best of the best in Western New York high school theatre. St. Mary’s spring musical, Beauty and the Beast, participated in this year’s awards. Several judicators came to judge each performance of the show based on certain criteria to be eligible for different award categories.
The nominations were announced just last week, and St. Mary’s received four nominations, including:
Outstanding Hair & Make-Up Design & Execution
The Showstopper Award for “Be Our Guest”
STAGE Semifinalists: Nick Cox ’24 and Liam Dunne ‘25
The STAGE semifinalists represent the best male and female performers in lead roles. Only 10 male and 10 female actors were chosen across all of the shows in Western New York. The male and female winners of this award will then go onto New York City for a week of intensive workshops to compete in the Jimmy Awards, bringing together the best high school performers in the country.
Congratulations to all!
Evening of Fine Arts Recap
The St. Mary’s High School performing arts season came to a close this past week with the Evening of Fine Arts. This showcase of talents in the fine and performing arts featured an art gallery with some of the most beautiful works from our students in all different forms of media – paintings, photography, sculpture, drawings, and more. The night then concluded with performances from our students, including Varsity Chorus, Glee Club, Modern Band, Bell Choir, and some talented soloists.
Our seniors were also able to bid farewell to the St. Mary’s stage. Congratulations to Nick Cox ’24 who has been a standout in our Performing Arts Department for the past four years, landing lead role after lead role, including the Beast in this year’s production of Beauty and the Beast as well as the Lion in last year’s musical, The Wizard of Oz. Nick will continue to study acting at Slippery Rock University this fall. Evan Garbo ’24 has graced us with his skills as a drummer for the past couple of years, which has added so much to Modern Band and our Christmas shows. Evan will be heading to D’Youville University this fall to study Health & Exercise Management.
Alumni Updates/Events
Giving Day Recap
If you are reading this newsletter, then there is no doubt that you were also aware of our Giving Day on April 25th. On a day that celebrated all of the things that makes St. Mary’s such a special place to be, our Lancers came together to support St. Mary‘s like never before – raising over $50,000 and counting.
We know it can be a lot all in one day with so many emails, social media posts, and text messages, but it truly is all for the best cause – to continue the storied tradition of this great school and give our current and future students all of the resources they need to succeed at St. Mary’s and beyond.
Thank you to everyone who donated and helped make this Giving Day the best one yet! Can’t wait to do it all again next year!
Chris Griswold Memorial Lancer 5K
Now that it finally looks like we’re getting a break in the spring weather, come run or walk with us on Friday, May 10th at the Chris Griswold Memorial Lancer 5K!
The Griswold Run has been a part of the Lancaster community for the past 30 years, so come celebrate this milestone with us! We’ve moved the race to a Friday night run/walk, so please pay special attention to that.
Take a run or stroll through Como Park on a beautiful spring evening, and then, join us for some post-race refreshments in the gazebo. We’ll also keep the party going at Fattey Beer Co. in the Village of Lancaster as well, so you know it will be a fun time!
It’s just $30 to register before May 8th, and you can do so below. Hope to see you at the starting line!
LANCERFEST Is Coming Up Quickly!
June is right around the corner! That means it’s almost time for LANCERFEST!
Come back home where “everybody knows your name!” Whether you graduated five or fifty years ago, we want to see you on Saturday, June 29th back at St. Mary’s. There will be food, drinks, activities for the kids, and live music featuring some of the best alumni performers we’ve got. We will be sending out some LANCERFEST-specific emails in the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned for more info.
St. Mary’s Golf Tournament – July 1st
Ready to hit the course? The kickoff-to-summer tradition is back! Join us on Monday, July 1st for the annual St. Mary’s Golf Tournament.
You can register yourself or a foursome and ask about sponsorship opportunities by contacting Beck O’Connor at [email protected] or visit smhlancers.org.
Athletics and Arts Hall of Fames Induct Newest Members
As we announced in the last edition of “The St. Mary‘s Monthly,” congratulations to the 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2008 Women’s Volleyball Teams and the offensive line and running game from the undefeated championship-winning 1983 Football Team – Mike Catalano ’84, Jim Kieffer ’84, Tim Labenski ’84, Eric Ozolins ’84, Bob Prindiville ’84, Tom Skalski ’84, Jim Szrama ’84, Craig Hirsch ’85, and Ken Schaefer ’85.
These men and women will be inducted in a ceremony at 4pm on Saturday, June 29th to kick off LANCERFEST.
Congratulations also go out to Pete Herr, Heather Ruhland ’01, and Brian Bernys ’99, as they will be inducted into the St. Mary’s Performing Arts Hall of Fame in a ceremony at 6 pm also on Saturday, June 29th during LANCERFEST.
If you have any questions or would like to RSVP to join us for one of, or both, of the induction ceremonies, please contact Lindsey Fattey ‘02 at [email protected].