Passing School Spirit

A ceremony held for the first time last fall and repeated this year is almost certain to become a beloved St. Joseph Catholic Academy tradition. At the “Passing of School Spirit” ceremony at half-time of the LeBlond Homecoming game in September, LeBlond seniors presented kindergarteners from the three Catholic elementary schools with a spirit medal.

For three families this year, the ceremony had special significance – they had both a senior and a kindergartener participating. Dan and Melissa Pfister’s senior and kindergartener are Trey and Charlie. Parents of senior Katie and kindergartener Millie Sego are Trevor ’98 and Maggie Sego and Don and Kerry ’98 Tolly, and Bryan and Beth Lukehart’s senior is Austin and their kindergartener is Kaybree. 

Melissa Pfister, Trey and Charlie’s mom, said the 2024 ceremony was so heartwarming it brought tears to her eyes. “And then it hit me that this year Trey would be giving his school spirit medal to his little brother and I knew it would be a special moment for them. I definitely teared up again this year!”

“Watching Katie give her medal to Millie was such a special moment,” said Maggie Sego, Katie’s stepmom. “This tradition is truly magical and captures the heart of Catholic education, the sense of community, faith, and family that makes our schools so special.”

Interestingly, Maggie said they also had the combination of a senior and kindergartener the year before the tradition started, as well – two years ago Maddie was a senior and TJ was a kindergartener. 

Natalie Newville, SJCA President, said they want the ceremony to serve as a visual reminder to the community about how all of the Catholic schools are connected. 

“For those of us who work in the buildings every day, we see the connections, but having something that showcases that to the broader community is great. Our hope is that the seniors embrace their role as leaders of our entire Catholic school community, and we want the kindergarteners to start off their school career thinking of Bishop LeBlond as their high school.”

She said after last year’s ceremony, so many people talked about how much they loved it. “We had multiple people tell us the ceremony was one of their favorite parts of last year.” 

The front of the school spirit medal features an embossed eagle and the back reads “Future Eagle, Class of ____”. (This year’s medals said 2038!) The medals, which are on a ribbon that the seniors placed over the heads of the kindergarteners, were blessed by Father Stephen Hansen, the SJCA Pastoral Coordinator; and Father Garrett King, Bishop LeBlond Chaplain. 

“The medals are something the students can keep forever or even put on their letter jacket when they are in high school,” Natalie said. 

For the ceremony this year, kindergarteners and seniors lined up on the football field about 20 yards apart. As the seniors began to make their way to the kindergarteners, the little ones began running toward the older students.    

“Seeing how little the kindergarten kids are and watching them run with so much joy to the seniors was hard to beat,” Melissa said. “It's also a great reminder for those seniors that these children are looking up to them, and they will probably remember this moment for the rest of their lives.”

Trey said he was happy to be able to give his medal to Charlie. “My favorite part was that I got to hand it off to my own brother because not many seniors will get to experience that and I was lucky enough to! I think my fellow classmates also felt proud to be out there and to be a part of making the kids happy.”

Katie agreed. “The best part for me was watching the kindergarteners’ faces light up as they sprinted across the field to get their medals from us seniors. Their excitement made the whole event even more meaningful,” she said. “It was especially memorable getting to give the medal to Millie. It felt like such a full-circle moment, knowing that our family will continue to be part of the Bishop LeBlond community for years to come. I know Millie will always remember that moment when it’s her turn to pass down the medal someday as a senior.”

“I loved running across the field with my friends!” Millie said. “It was so fun. I saw Katie in her pretty dress (Katie was crowned Homecoming queen that evening), and she gave me my medal. I’m going to keep it forever!”

Charlie said he liked going on the football field and was happy that his brother gave him his medal. The best part of the evening, he said, was “seeing Trey because I love him.” 

“Charlie came running back to the stands so excited to show me his medal,” Melissa said. “He kept it on the rest of the night.” 

“Our grade school students look up to our high school students in so many ways, and this is just one more touch point between the two groups,” Natalie said. “When we take the high

school students back to their grade schools, whether it’s for High Five Monday, Royalty visits, Drug-Free Superstars, or something else, the high school students always reminisce about when they were in grade school and high schoolers came to visit them.” 

“Eventually, it will be so fun for students in the stands to remember when they received school spirit on the football field,” Natalie said. “And can you imagine how awesome it will be when the first kindergarteners are seniors and they get to pass it on?”