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IHM sisters’ influence lives on as St. Thomas More Cathedral School marks 75th anniversary

Leslie Miller | Catholic Herald Staff Writer

St. Thomas More Cathedral School Principal Catherine Adams Davis presents the Sister Maria Angelica Distinguished Alumni Service Award to Nelda Thomas after the 75th anniversary Mass May 1. COURTESY

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The St. Thomas More Cathedral School is seen in the early 1990s. FILE

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Students are seen in a classroom at the Cathedral School in an undated file photo. FILE

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Sr. James Patrice, I.H.M. (center), was the newly appointed mother superior of St. Thomas More Convent in August 1987. She is flanked by Sr. Marie Aileen, I.H.M. (left), diocesan archivist, and Sr. Richard Mary, I.H.M., fifth grade teacher at the cathedral school. FILE

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The St. Thomas More church and rectory in Arlington are seen in this undated file photo. FILE

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At the end of a Mass in honor of the 75th anniversary of the St. Thomas More Cathedral School, Bishop Michael F. Burbidge stands before a statue of Mary and offers special prayers for all those affected by the pandemic. SCREENGRAB

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Sister Mary Sue Carwile represents the IHM sisters at a Mass May 1 marking the 75th anniversary of St. Thomas More Cathedral School. SCREENGRAB

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As St. Thomas More Cathedral School in Arlington celebrates its
75th anniversary this year, the influence of the religious order that ran the school
for much of its history still looms large. 

The Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary were
teachers and administrators at the cathedral school from 1944 until 1998 and
lived in the adjacent convent, now the Bishop’s residence.
“I have a great love for St. Thomas More; it formed me in many ways and has
been a very special place in my life,” said Sister Mary Sue Carwile, whose
grandparents were founding members of the parish. She graduated from the school
in 1969 and went on to become a member of the order, as well as a teacher and
school administrator. She is now principal at St. James School in Falls Church.

Even though the sisters have been gone from St. Thomas More for 22
years, “the teachers and leadership do a great job of carrying on the IHM
charism of love, creative hope and fidelity,” Sister Mary Sue said. “Our
community strives to live (those values) to the greatest degree, so we can give
joyful service and really work for God’s people.” 

Those values remain in the school’s DNA, and the staff of 50 works
to keep them active —  in continuing to recite
“the IHM morning prayer, in how we teach and in how we deliver our curriculum,”
said Principal Catherine Adams Davis, who is in her first year at St. Thomas
More after working with Sister Mary Sue as a teacher and assistant principal at
St. James. “All the IHM traditions have stayed.”

Davis said the school and its 408 current students have been
celebrating the 75th anniversary all year, with events such as spirit week and
“bring your pet to school day” —  a
virtual event made possible because students are connecting from home due to
the pandemic. 

Many of the live events that had been planned for this
culminating week of the anniversary celebration had to be canceled because of
the pandemic. “The celebration is much smaller, but we’re still celebrating,” Davis
said. 

To mark the anniversary, the school has created the Sister Maria
Angelica Distinguished Alumni Service Award, to honor the sister who taught
religion at the school and stayed on until 2007 as the cathedral’s director of
religious education. The first recipient of the award is Nelda Thomas, a
lifelong member of the cathedral community and assistant principal at the cathedral
school since 2014. 

A highlight of the week was a special Mass celebrated by Bishop
Michael F. Burbidge and livestreamed from the cathedral May 1, at which he
offered his “deep thanks, love and appreciation to all those who have served in
this school over the past 75 years.” 

“Please know of the affection and gratitude for your faithful
service throughout the years,” he said, noting that the IHM sisters “have a
special place in my heart” because he was educated by them —  at two different grade schools, high school
and college. 

Bishop Burbidge said that anniversaries such as this are a time
to do three things: “remember, rejoice and renew.”

He remembered “all the dedicated Catholic educators who have used
their gifts to assist parents” and form children to love and serve God. He
rejoiced in the many blessings the students and school community have
experienced over the years, and the commitment to excellence the school has
shown, even in the face of challenges like the current pandemic. “I am so proud
of you and your teachers for continuing your distance learning,” at home, he
said. 

He encouraged students to “renew your commitment today to grow in
your faith and holiness, do your very best in your studies, be the sons and
daughter and family members and friends that God needs you to be,” and
encouraged teachers to renew their commitment to the “privileged vocation” of
Catholic education. “We are so thankful to you and your vocation,” he said.

Because limitation on in-person gatherings are still in effect as
the pandemic continues, only 10 people could attend the Mass in person, and many
of those who had planned to be there could not be present, including some
sisters now living at the order’s motherhouse, retirement and nursing home at
Immaculata University in Malvern, Pa. Sister Mary Sue participated in the Mass
as a lector, representing the community. Others planned to watch the livestream
from Immaculata.

“I loved every minute of my ministry there,” said Sister John
Evelyn, who served at the cathedral school from 1975 to 1977. “It was very
special to have the school an integral part of the cathedral parish,” she wrote
in an email.

Sister Pat Micklos served at St. Thomas More from 1993 to 1998,
as a teacher, vice principal and superior of the convent until it closed. When
she arrived in 1993, there was “a wonderful IHM spirit in the parish at large,
thanks to the founding sisters and early superiors. There was a great love for
the parish and a lot of support, everything was very lively. It as a sad day
when we had to leave,” she said in a phone interview.

Other former teachers and administrators now living at Immaculata
include Sister Christina Mary, who taught fifth grade, and Sister Carmel Regina
Shields, who was principal of the school from 1993 until 1998. “She laid the
foundation for a smooth transition to the school’s new lay leadership,” Sister
Pat said.

At the end of the Mass, Bishop Burbidge reminded the gathering
that it was “the first of May, and the month of May is dedicated to our Blessed
Mother. “Out of love, from the cross, Jesus gives us his mother to intercede
for us,” he said. 

In front of a statue of Mary, he offered special prayers asking
for protection for all those affected by the pandemic, including health care
workers serving on the front lines. 

He noted that later in the day Archbishop José Gómez, the
president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, would lead a ceremony to
“reconsecrate the nation to her care, especially in this time of pandemic.”

 

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