A Legacy of Learning, a Lifetime of Faith: SJS Celebrates 70th Anniversary During the Year of Saint Joseph

Preparing for the start of a new school year is typically a time of excitement, anticipation, and hope. I can only imagine how much deeper those emotions must have been running for Fr. Joseph Gremillion and the Sisters of the Order of Divine Providence 70 years ago, when they were just weeks away from opening the doors of Saint Joseph Catholic School for the very first time. Even the name “Divine Providence” plays a beautiful part in our history today, as we prepare to celebrate our 70th anniversary during the Year of St. Joseph.

These first 70 years have seen growth from five classrooms to over 30, and from a faculty of four to a faculty of 27. Our celebration of the Year of Saint Joseph will continue in the coming months through numerous events and celebrations, including some for our alumni, many of whom have returned to SJS as faculty, council members, coaches, or as parents who sought the same quality Catholic education for their own children that their parents did for them.

Today’s SJS community is thankful for the countless hours of work that went into the first day of school in 1951, and for the fortitude, prudence, and love shown by Fr. Gremillion and our first principal, Sister Theonilla, by ensuring that the first year was only the beginning. We are eternally grateful to our Divine Teacher for the many blessings He has bestowed on us in these first 70 years that have allowed us to carry out our mission to provide an authentically Catholic education directed towards academic excellence and the formation of each child in the virtues of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Thousands of students have walked these hallways and been formed in the faith; with His grace, we will continue to do so for many years to come, for Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” (Mt 19:14)