MONROE - An institution in Monroe that former students said fostered self-respect and moral lessons has reached 100 years of existence and has plans to celebrate the century with special events this weekend.
St. Victor School: 100 years of Faith, Knowledge, and Service will be celebrated first on Saturday with a 5K color run and a 1-mile walk/run beginning at the Stateline Ice and Community Expo at 1 p.m. followed by a social hour at Friendly Inn. On Sunday, an open house and picnic will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the school.
Principal Joe Peters said the celebration is an opportunity to reflect on the last 100 years of St. Victor School and the number of students who have been influenced by teaching there.
"The goal for the weekend is to hear those attending and have people willing to share their stories," Peters said. "We hope when people gather even 100 years from now they will look back on how their experiences shaped them."
Peters has been principal of the school since 2001 and noted the number of changes he has seen at the school in less than a quarter of its existence. St. Victor has Spanish lessons from 4K through fifth grade, an art program and music, which Peters said were top quality. In his time with the school he has also seen the inclusion of a 4K class.
A number of individuals have passed through the system and returned, either to teach or to enroll their own children as a way to continue on the tradition.
Dolly Schluesche, who attended St. Victor School in the 1970s, took classes from first to sixth grades and enjoyed the time she went to mass. The involvement of singing, reading aloud and interacting with one another was character building, she said. Not only did she return to work as a teacher's aide for second- and third-graders, but she elected to send her own three children to the school about a decade ago.
"It's a family tradition," Schluesche said. "My father, Skip Brennan, attended the school and his family. Ten out of 11 grandchildren went there. And there are a lot of families like that, where if you look back, they're gone down the family tree."
Schluesche said her daughter Madeline, now 19, still looks back fondly on her time at St. Victor. The reason for sending her children to the school was not just family duty, Schluesche said, but also the wish to pass down her own experiences.
"You were like on a giant family," Schluesche said. "And it's like that now. Everybody gets along. It's a great place, and it's been a great place for our family. Hopefully one day our own grandchildren will go there."
Kari Rosenstiel went to St. Victor around 1980 in first to third grades before her family moved to the Milwaukee area. When she returned to Monroe, though her husband had reservations, she knew she wanted to send her son, currently in fifth grade, to St. Victor. After attending an open house where the parents met and spoke with Peters, Rosenstiel said she won out.
"It was like walking in to your home," Rosenstiel said. "I thought, "This is where Ethan needs to go.' I knew it was the best choice, I just had to convince my husband."
Rosenstiel credited the school with instilling good behavior and fostering a closer relationship with God without focusing solely on the doctrine. She credited her first- and second-grade teachers, two sisters, who focused on good behavior, self-respect and the respect of one another.
"We get caught up in the actual religion," Rosenstiel said. "At St. Victor, although it is a Catholic school, there are children who attend who aren't Catholic. It's actually about teaching solid values."
Brittany Klitzke began teaching fifth grade at St. Victor School in 2013. At 27, she remembered the halls of her elementary school when she stepped back into the building to begin her career.
"It has the same smell," Klitzke said. "It felt the same as it always did. I feel like the skills and value learned here have shaped me throughout my life."
Klitzke said programs have been changed since she attended, with the addition of Spanish taught in each grade and the inclusion of technology being taught to students. She plans to send her daughter to the school when she is old enough.
"It would allow her to grow up with the values and morals I learned while I was at this school," Klitze said.
Peters credited the community surrounding St. Victor for its continued support of the students and the institution. He looks forward to sharing memories and hearing stories of the school this weekend.
"Thousands of people over the years believe in what we're doing," Peters said. "It brings a smile to my face to know so many people support what we're doing."
St. Victor School: 100 years of Faith, Knowledge, and Service will be celebrated first on Saturday with a 5K color run and a 1-mile walk/run beginning at the Stateline Ice and Community Expo at 1 p.m. followed by a social hour at Friendly Inn. On Sunday, an open house and picnic will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the school.
Principal Joe Peters said the celebration is an opportunity to reflect on the last 100 years of St. Victor School and the number of students who have been influenced by teaching there.
"The goal for the weekend is to hear those attending and have people willing to share their stories," Peters said. "We hope when people gather even 100 years from now they will look back on how their experiences shaped them."
Peters has been principal of the school since 2001 and noted the number of changes he has seen at the school in less than a quarter of its existence. St. Victor has Spanish lessons from 4K through fifth grade, an art program and music, which Peters said were top quality. In his time with the school he has also seen the inclusion of a 4K class.
A number of individuals have passed through the system and returned, either to teach or to enroll their own children as a way to continue on the tradition.
Dolly Schluesche, who attended St. Victor School in the 1970s, took classes from first to sixth grades and enjoyed the time she went to mass. The involvement of singing, reading aloud and interacting with one another was character building, she said. Not only did she return to work as a teacher's aide for second- and third-graders, but she elected to send her own three children to the school about a decade ago.
"It's a family tradition," Schluesche said. "My father, Skip Brennan, attended the school and his family. Ten out of 11 grandchildren went there. And there are a lot of families like that, where if you look back, they're gone down the family tree."
Schluesche said her daughter Madeline, now 19, still looks back fondly on her time at St. Victor. The reason for sending her children to the school was not just family duty, Schluesche said, but also the wish to pass down her own experiences.
"You were like on a giant family," Schluesche said. "And it's like that now. Everybody gets along. It's a great place, and it's been a great place for our family. Hopefully one day our own grandchildren will go there."
Kari Rosenstiel went to St. Victor around 1980 in first to third grades before her family moved to the Milwaukee area. When she returned to Monroe, though her husband had reservations, she knew she wanted to send her son, currently in fifth grade, to St. Victor. After attending an open house where the parents met and spoke with Peters, Rosenstiel said she won out.
"It was like walking in to your home," Rosenstiel said. "I thought, "This is where Ethan needs to go.' I knew it was the best choice, I just had to convince my husband."
Rosenstiel credited the school with instilling good behavior and fostering a closer relationship with God without focusing solely on the doctrine. She credited her first- and second-grade teachers, two sisters, who focused on good behavior, self-respect and the respect of one another.
"We get caught up in the actual religion," Rosenstiel said. "At St. Victor, although it is a Catholic school, there are children who attend who aren't Catholic. It's actually about teaching solid values."
Brittany Klitzke began teaching fifth grade at St. Victor School in 2013. At 27, she remembered the halls of her elementary school when she stepped back into the building to begin her career.
"It has the same smell," Klitzke said. "It felt the same as it always did. I feel like the skills and value learned here have shaped me throughout my life."
Klitzke said programs have been changed since she attended, with the addition of Spanish taught in each grade and the inclusion of technology being taught to students. She plans to send her daughter to the school when she is old enough.
"It would allow her to grow up with the values and morals I learned while I was at this school," Klitze said.
Peters credited the community surrounding St. Victor for its continued support of the students and the institution. He looks forward to sharing memories and hearing stories of the school this weekend.
"Thousands of people over the years believe in what we're doing," Peters said. "It brings a smile to my face to know so many people support what we're doing."