Pioneers Come Home
Dear Hill-Murray Community,
We celebrated the Feast of the Immaculate Conception at an All-School Mass last week. It was a blessing to share this beautiful feast with our Hill-Murray community as we welcomed back alumni to join us in prayer and sacrament. As I looked around at our alumni, I thought to myself – they keep coming back – coming home – and, thankfully, want to continue to be a part of what is happening at school.
We have had so many significant “coming home” events lately. We hosted our annual faculty and staff Christmas breakfast, welcoming retired and former staff members back on campus for much-appreciated time to celebrate and reconnect. It was wonderful to see Brother Francis and Brother Arnold, and I loved the connections made between four English teachers spanning the decades. Theater alumni gathered for a weekend of Matilda: The Musical performances, sharing both the memories and the future of our performing arts. At the President’s Dinner, we welcomed former board members, parents, and grandparents of current students, and generations of alums to a beautiful evening. We gathered to show our support for Hill-Murray’s mission and honor Jim ’81 and Molly Jungbauer and the Autumn-Rieks Foundation as they were inducted into our Emerald Club for their philanthropic leadership to the school.
I believe PIONEERS keep coming back because we know that the teenage years are some of the most formative in an individual’s life. Generations of students have learned many lessons in our hallways and classrooms throughout the years. And not just academically – but also lessons about struggle, friendship, and faith as we all are on this journey to find our purpose.
As we prepare for Christmas, I would like to share words written by two Hill-Murray students, Uriel Gonzalez Barragan, who spoke at the President’s Dinner this past week, and Jillian Brown, who spoke after our Immaculate Conception Mass. I learn all of my best lessons from our students. I hope their words will not only remind you of the tremendous responsibility we have for the students entrusted to our care each day, but will inspire you to keep coming “home” to Hill-Murray.
Sincerely,
Melissa Dan
Hill-Murray School President