St. Paul School’s “50/50” on Oct. 17 had nothing at all to do with a raffle drawing or game of chance.

But “fifty-fifty” was the winning title of the dual celebration which marked the 50th anniversary of the “new St. Paul School” on James Street in Burlington City and that of the principal, Mercy Sister Peter Damian Mitchell, who celebrates her golden jubilee as a Sister of Mercy this year.

A throng of 375, including current students and school families, faculty – present and former – friends and alumni, turned out for the Mass of Thanksgiving that was celebrated in St. Paul Church by Father Michael Dunn, pastor of St. Katharine Drexel Parish, which sponsors the school.

Concelebrating the Mass were Father Cesar Anson, parochial vicar, and Msgr. James H. Dubell, former pastor of St. Paul Parish, who was the homilist.

For those with long histories with St. Paul School, the day’s celebration triggered a host of fond memories.

Helen Costello, a school parent in the 1960s and a former PTA president, recalled the enthusiasm and support parents had for the newly-opened school.

The school was “our home,” Costello said of the families. “We were here for everything” whether it was for playground and kitchen duty or assisting teachers in the classroom.

Current students, like eighth graders Madison Glassman and Alex Palenca, were fascinated by their school’s 50th anniversary and the mere idea that life had actually existed in their school for so many years before they became students.

“I didn’t know our school had so much history,” said Glassman, adding how “cool” she thought it was to see photos from the very first day of the school’s opening in 1959.

Palenca said he enjoyed meeting alumni and hearing stories about what school was like “back then.”

One obvious revelation in the past 50 years that Palenca was quick to point out as he looked at the huge display of historical pictures was in the advancement of technology.

“There were no laptops back then,” he mused.

Beyond 50 years
In his homily, Msgr. Dubell recapped highlights of the school’s history. Though the celebration focused on the 50th anniversary of the opening of the “new St. Paul School,” the school actually had its origins in 1870 when Father Michael Kirwan, who was pastor of St. Paul Parish from 1868-1876, renovated the basement of what was then St. Paul Church in a building that was formerly a barrack for British troops in the French and Indian War.

“Today, that building still stands” on East Broad Street and is now the present hall for the Burlington Council, Knights of Columbus, he said.

The students who attended classes there were taught by four lay teachers until 1873 when the Franciscan Sisters of Syracuse assumed leadership of the school. Then in the early 1900s, the Sisters of Mercy from North Plainfield, of which Sister Peter Damian is a member, succeeded the Franciscan Sisters.

In 1904, Father Henri Russi, St. Paul’s pastor form 1899-1934, built a more suitable school, also on East Broad Street, in front of the old St. Paul cemetery. In 1925, the present St. Paul Church, convent and rectory were built on nearby East Union St.

As the years progressed, St. Paul School proceeded to flourish. The enrollment tripled and grade levels continued to be added.

By the mid-1950s when it became apparent that a bigger school facility was needed, Father Joseph Miller, pastor from 1956-1987, purchased a 20-acre site from the city of Burlington on James Street, which was about a mile away from the church, to build the “new” St. Paul School. The school was dedicated and the cornerstone was laid by Bishop George W. Ahr Dec. 20, 1959.

“The present school building stands today as a testimony to all of the many parents, teachers, staff, students and parishioners who have participated since St. Paul School first began,” said Msgr. Dubell, who was pastor from 1987 until 2002 when he was appointed to his current pastorate of St. Mary of the Lakes Parish, Medford.

Proud Legacy
A native of the Diocese of Camden, Sister Peter Damian first served in the Trenton Diocese as a teacher and then as principal in St. Mary School, Bordentown, before she joined the faculty of St. Paul School, Burlington, 33 years ago.

Highlights that Sister Peter Damian could have shared about her time at St. Paul School were numerous, but she focused on a couple that she regarded as “outstanding.”

She told of how this past spring when three 2005 graduates – Vincent Garcia, Mary Thompson and Mariah Measey – all graduated from their respective high schools with top honors. Garcia was valedictorian at Holy Cross, Delran; Thompson was valedictorian at Burlington City High School, and Mariah Measey was salutatorian at Burlington Township High School.

“We know we’re doing a good job here,” she said. “Our kids are doing wonderful things.”

Another accomplishment she recalled was from 10 years ago when the new school wing was built to house the science and computer lab.

Msgr. Dubell was pastor at the time and initially, Sister Peter Damian said she had asked him for a mobile unit that could serve as the computer room.

“But he built this beautiful school wing instead,” she said. “Msgr. Dubell is a lot like my father. If I asked for a dime, he gave me a quarter. I never asked for more than I needed.

"Many times I asked for less, but people always gave me more.”

Of the “biggest changes” she has witnessed over the years, surprisingly technology did not top the list.

“I think it’s the needs of children that have changed. That’s the biggest change because there are more academically needy children. They present more challenges,” she said.

Also high on the list is the impact experienced by the economic crisis.

From last year, the school enrollment dropped from 470 to 385 due to families who have lost jobs and as a result some had lost their homes.

“They just cannot afford to continue to send their children here,” she said. “I wish I could hit the lottery and help those families to come back.”

Sister Peter Damian quieted and tears welled when she talked about the most important thing she has learned in her years of ministry in religious life and education.

“The most important thing that I have learned is how important people are. I’ve experienced such wonderful support through everyone I meet,” she said.

Looking around the school building, with colorful decorations displayed in the foyer and cafeteria and scores of photos, newspaper clippings and student art projects hanging in the long hallway corridors, Sister Peter Damian shied away from accepting too much of the credit for her creativity and ingenuity.

“People tend to think that everything (that happens here at the school) is because of me and that’s not true,” she said.

“I might have the idea and the vision, but it’s the people who have the know-how and they are the ones who make things happen. It’s a matter of all of us working together.”