By EmmaLee Italia | Correspondent

The kick-off celebration Mass of St. Paul School’s 135th anniversary couldn’t have come at a better time.

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Coinciding with the Sisters of Mercy’s annual Sept. 24 Mercy Day – the opening of the first House of Mercy in 1827 and the beginnings of the Sisters of Mercy – the Princeton school also shared its commemoration with Mercy Sister Terena Gentili, SPS teacher since 1992, who marked her 60th anniversary of religious life that same day.

Adding to the celebratory spirit was Pope Francis’ historic visit to the U.S., as well as the anticipation of the extraordinary jubilee Year of Mercy, declared by the Pope to begin Dec. 8, 2015.

The opening of the school year Mass was celebrated by parochial vicar Father Juan G. Rojas Hernandez, assisted by Msgr. Joseph N. Rosie, St. Paul’s pastor, and parochial vicar Father Miguel Valle. In attendance were SPS faculty, students, parents and alumni, as well as Sister Terena and her fellow Mercy Sister Jane Higgins. Also present were Mercy Sister Catherine Darcy – one of five leaders of the Mercy Sisters Mid-Atlantic region; school administrators; superintendent of Catholic Schools JoAnn Tier; SPS board members and other invited guests. Sister Martha Harcar, another member of the order affiliated with the parish, celebrated with sisters at McAuley Hall convent, the Sisters of Mercy nursing home.

Standing in front of a cardboard replica of Pope Francis, two SPS students began the Mass by reading historic dates of note in SPS history as the school classes and teachers processed in, carrying photographs to represent the school’s progression through the years. School principal Ryan Killeen welcomed the congregation, announcing the celebration of Mercy Day and the sisters’ 135-year presence at SPS as a reminder to live out the Catholic faith in “ministry, advocacy and prayer.”

“Who wants to play a game?” asked Father Rojas-Hernandez during his homily. He asked the students to “do what I say, not what I do,” then led them in a series of arm movements and standing or sitting, the children struggling to follow his words while his gestures demonstrated the opposite.

“Difficult, right? You see, some people say things but don’t do them,” he explained. “The whole year we’re going to talk about mercy, but we want our words and our actions to match each other.”

“Do you want to belong to a school of mercy?” he asked, which was followed by a resounding “yes” from the students. He replied, “Welcome to St. Paul’s!”

Following Mass, with the candle Sister Terena received from the Sisters of Mercy on the day she entered the convent 60 years ago burning steadily on the altar, Msgr. Rosie offered his thoughts on the day’s celebration, welcoming the new students and old alike back to a new school year.

“Sometimes we think what we’re all about doesn’t matter, that people don’t take a moment to look and see,” he said, referencing a recent article that named Princeton as the top snobbiest city in New Jersey. Msgr. Rosie said that a radio news reporter from Princeton refuted the finding, saying that he knows of a Catholic school right on Nassau Street, that has very good, friendly kids, that the parish is full of good people.

“We have to continue to be that wonderful person of Mercy,” he said. “We can show people just how good God is, that we have a good and gracious God in our midst.”

Msgr. Rosie credited the Sisters of Mercy for their influence at SPS, calling them “women of faith who are courageous, living the Gospel, showing in a very wonderful way the gift of mercy. And mercy isn’t just about forgiveness – it’s about real, genuine care, and helping those who are down and out.”

Visibly moved by the effusive praise of Msgr. Rosie and Killeen, Sister Terena received gifts and exchanged embraces with SPS students and faculty.

“This is one of the happiest days of my life – I hope I don’t cry!” she quipped. “Thank you very much… for your time, the most precious gift. I love you, I love you! Pope Francis would say, ‘don’t forget to laugh, don’t forget to smile at each other!’”

Humble Beginnings

St. Paul’s Parish was established in 1850 at 182 Nassau Street. Its first pastor, Father John Scollard, wanted to provide Catholic education for children of the parish, and opened the first Catholic school of Princeton in the church’s basement. Later the church and school site was moved to its current address, 214 and 218 Nassau Street, and in 1880 St. Paul School was officially founded – now recognized as the oldest Mercy school, and the oldest remaining Catholic school in New Jersey.

Employing the talents of the Sisters of Mercy, who had been invited by then pastor Msgr. Thomas R. Moran in 1878 to administer the school and religious education programs as well as minister to the sick and indigent of the parish, the school began with seven sisters – all natives of Ireland – and they have had a presence at the school and adjacent convent ever since. 

When St. Paul School opened, Nassau Street (Rt. 27) was still a dirt road. Princeton homes and streets were illuminated by gas lamps, and Princeton University was called the College of New Jersey. In 1880, Pope Leo XIII was the pontiff and Rutherford B. Hayes was the U.S. president. And despite the school’s strong history with basketball, SPS students didn’t play it then – the sport wasn’t invented till 11 years later.

The Sisters of Mercy order, however, had already been performing the ministries adopted by their foundress Catherine McAuley for 53 years by then, chiefly serving the poor and uneducated, and were ready to carry on their work in the Princeton school.

The school was integrated in the 1920s – most notably before any of the Princeton public schools, which did not integrate until 1948. In 1930 construction of a new school began on the original 1880 building’s foundation. Fast-forward to 2015, and the school has grown to a present enrollment of over 400 students in Pre-K3 through eighth grades. Recent additions have included additional office space, new kindergarten classrooms and library, computer lab and science lab. In 2014 the Little Lions Preschool was established, enrolling 3-and-4-year-olds in the renovated Sisters of Mercy Early Learning Center.

Mercy at St. Paul’s

The school’s academic achievement led to its receiving recognition in 2012 as a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. Killeen believes that two key areas the program looks for – academic excellence and a strong sense of mission and purpose as a school – are “two things St. Paul School does very well.”

“Part of it is our overall feeling of community,” he continued. “We know it's our mandate to bring out all the gifts and talents of our students, and because of the size of our community, we can really adapt to meet the needs of all the students and help them achieve their best.”

Killeen gathered with the Sisters Terena, Jane and Martha before the anniversary Mass to visit about SPS. And their favorite aspect of the school?

“The principal!” Sister Jane said, eliciting a laugh from Killeen and the others.

They all expressed a fondness for the pupils they taught and teachers with whom they interacted across their many years serving both the school and the parish.

“I think the students here are very friendly, as well as the teachers,” Sister Jane remarked. “They’re always willing to give of themselves.”

Sister Jane grew up in Palmyra, and attended Camden Catholic High School – not coincidentally, staffed by the Sisters of Mercy. She attended college at Villanova University, Pa., and joined the Sisters of Mercy in 1941. Having taught fifth and sixth grades at SPS for nearly 33 years, Sister Jane is now semi-retired and embraces a missionary role, working with students on outreach projects to foreign missions, particularly Africa.

“The spirit of SPS is great – even with the new teachers, whom I don't know as well, they're ready to give of themselves,” she said. “And they’re always very respectful of the sisters.”

What Killeen finds especially encouraging is the fact that several alumni of the school are now parents of SPS students.

“They will often share stories of their memories of being a student here, and especially fondly their experiences working with the Sisters of Mercy,” he explained. “There’s probably no better compliment to pay a school than wanting your children to have that same experience.”

Killeen, who joined SPS in 2006 as its first male principal, is also an SPS parent with two children in the school. He believes the involvement of the Sisters of Mercy inspires the school’s character.

“When I first learned about St. Paul’s and the service (of the sisters) and the community that they have created here, I was very impressed,” he noted. “We are who we are because of the traditions the sisters have established here at St. Paul’s … It’s the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy.”

Sister Terena highlighted the joyful spirit that is woven into the thread of SPS, including how they rejoice as a community.

“When we celebrate, we really celebrate here – it's with our whole self,” she said. “We always kid around about how we ‘meet and eat!’ That's what Jesus did: he met with people and ate with them.”

Sister Terena, who taught primarily second grade for most of her tenure, is now a reading enrichment teacher for small groups in kindergarten through second grade, and helps with sacramental preparation for First Communion. She believes the school is embodying the direction of Pope Francis to focus on community, and the teachers operate in a “beautiful teamwork.”

“There’s such a spiritual presence that emanates throughout the school,” she said. “To me it just makes for the community… The Holy Father is asking us to zero in on unity… he said in his apostolic letter, we must create that with our presence.”

Having witnessed so many years of SPS students come and go, she particularly enjoys when alumni return and share their memories.

“It’s a beautiful, hundredfold experience, to have them come back and visit with you,” she said. “They remember the smallest incident that perhaps we had forgotten – and they’re so grateful. That to me is a plus from Jesus,” she said, smiling broadly.

Sister Terena, as she blithely put it, “was born in the holy city of Trenton” to Dante and Clara Gentili, and attended St. Joachim Elementary School and Cathedral High School there – also auspiciously employed by Sisters of Mercy.

“That was the beginning of my experience of Mercy,” she affirmed. “I was very impressed with their Christian manner, with their community spirit. That’s what it’s all about: the relationships – and that came across to all of us (students). So that was the beginning of my vocation.”

Having seen something that intrigued her, she researched the order while working for a few years before deciding to enter as a postulant.

“I knew in my heart that what I really wanted was to follow the Sisters of Mercy,” Sister Terena explained, “because they just covered so much – their involvement with the poor and the sick and those who were uneducated – I was just so taken up with that. It was how I wanted to give myself completely to Jesus.”

After receiving her bachelor’s degree in elementary education at Georgian Court College (now University), Lakewood, Sister Terena taught in schools in both Trenton and Metuchen dioceses before joining the community at St. Paul’s in 1992.

“I love the children!” she exclaimed. “In the beginning I was assigned to the primary grades, but I loved them so much, I stayed with that age group.”

The sisters have undoubtedly left their indelible mark on SPS, giving students an early example of consecrated religious.

“I taught a boy in second grade, and now he's a Marist priest in Minnesota,” Sister Jane said proudly. “Now he’s praying for me!”

Sister Jane also recalled the understanding nature of her fellow sisters toward the students.

“I think that the Sisters of Mercy have always reached out to the children and are able to listen to their side of the story,” she said.

Sister Martha, who has been a Sister of Mercy 75 years, taught first through third grade in different schools in the Trenton and Camden dioceses before coming to St. Paul Parish. Looking for a change in her ministry, she opted to serve the sick of the parish and take Communion to them. Though not a teacher at SPS, Sister Martha still made occasional appearances in the school – even in disguise.

“I used to dress up as Santa Claus at Christmas and visit the kindergarten classes,” she recalled, her eyes sparkling. “One day a boy came up to me and he said, ‘You know what? I know who you are!’”

Praise and Gratitude

As Sister Terena and Killeen confirmed, alumni are not shy about complimenting SPS for its impact on their lives and those of the next generation.

“I had a positive experience at St. Paul’s, and so choosing SPS (for our children) … was easy,” said Krista Stefanisko, class of 1992, St. Paul’s parishioner and mother of three current SPS students. “We chose Catholic school because of the spiritual education in addition to the academics it has to offer. We love the small community at SPS and are comforted knowing that our children are being taught daily lessons that build a strong moral character.”

Stefanisko attended SPS from first through eighth grades, and had Sister Jane as her fifth grade teacher. “She was kind and I remember being comfortable asking her for help when I needed it,” she affirmed. Although Sister Terena came to SPS after Stefanisko graduated, her daughter has benefited from her assistance in reading, and has “enjoyed working together. She’s been both kind and complimentary.”

Retired SPS nurse Jane Chrnelich, herself an alumna of the school, watched her children and grandchildren benefit from the school’s “community spirit and long-lasting friendships.”

“It always feels like home,” she said. “The sisters were really instrumental in that. The faith and service are a wonderful part of SPS. And the reverence they show the sisters is really special.”

Joy Ann Lowry, class of 1989 and also a St. Paul’s parishioner, attended SPS from fourth through eighth grade following a move from Maryland.

“On my very first day at SPS, I got into line and the girl in front of me … said, ‘you’re going to love it here!’” Lowry recalled. “My fourth grade teacher, Sister Gloria – who also taught my father in seventh grade at Our Lady Star of the Sea – would bless each of us as we left her classroom every afternoon.”

Lowry’s three children now attend SPS. “When my husband and I came to the open house as our eldest was heading into kindergarten, it just felt like home,” she noted. “So many familiar faces, as if our daughter would be with family.”

Mercy for the Future

What’s in store for the next 135 years? Sister Terena had a suggestion.

“I love what Pope Francis says,” she reflected. “’Look to the past with gratitude’ – that’s the history of this school, ‘then to the present with passionate love’ – living the Gospel in our actions, ‘then to the future with the will of God.’”

To those who might find themselves on the path to religious life, Sister Terena encourages them to check out the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas website. She also had these words of wisdom.

“Pray, too. And you need to be joyful – that’s part of it,” she emphasized. “That’s what the Holy Father tells us: it’s not so much what you say but what you do, how you come across to people – by your actions and your smile.”

Joy is easily found in the halls of SPS. Sister Terena had an explanation for that as well.

“It’s Jesus being present, unity, and the ‘mercy spirit.’ And it’s catching.”