Dear Friends of CAW,
What an incredible year it has been! On June 4th, our school family came together at the Basilica for our sixth annual commencement ceremony. We proudly graduated 25 outstanding scholar-athletes, who will be attending St. Paul, Holy Cross, Westover, Waterbury Career Academy, Kaynor Tech, Kennedy, Wilby, Crosby, Naugatuck, and Torrington High Schools. Our children will be carrying the torch of their foundation in Catholic education to all parts of the community-at-large, and that is because of your invaluable support.
Throughout the school year, we celebrated many accomplishments, highlighting our students as well-rounded scholars, athletes, and citizens. Nine children won the Silas Bronson Library Poetry Contest this year, with CAW sweeping almost every grade! Multiple students placed first or second in the Elks Club Americanism Essay and the Drug Awareness Essay Contests. We also began a new weekly student Rosary Society, where a group of ten children pray the Rosary with Christa every Tuesday, exhibiting their devotion and love for our Blessed Mother. Nothing could be more beautiful than this! To top off all of these incredible milestones, both our Girls and Boys Varsity Basketball Teams played undefeated seasons, winning the titles of Greater Waterbury League Champions! Pictured below are the boys, coached by Eric Parks (SMS Class of ‘97; CAW Dad), Bruce Surrey-Tomlin (CAW Dad), and Carl Parks (30+ year SMS/CAW coach; recipient of this year’s St. Therese the Little Flower Award!). The girls’ team is coached by Oliver Macklin (CAW Dad, UCONN basketball star, and School Council Member) and Ray Johnson (CAW Dad). We are so thankful for our coaches’ indelible marks on our children as they infuse self-discipline, self-motivation, and a prioritization of academics into the lives of our student-athletes.
This year, I invite you to prayerfully consider making a gift and carrying the torch of Catholic education along with our students. You are an integral part of our story, our Mission, our fiber. A $50 donation places a new reading textbook into the hands of a vibrant third-grader. A $100 donation feeds a child school lunch for over a month. With tuition rates frozen at $5,975 this year, many families still need significant tuition assistance to defray that cost. At least half of our students live at or below the poverty level. Fr. Sullivan and I pray to offer an esteemed Catholic education to as many children and families who desire it; with your support, we know that we can continue our journey toward making that a reality. We ask for your generosity in helping us to continue the story of love that makes the Brass City’s Catholic STREAM Academy a beacon of light. No gift is too small, and all make a lifelong mark on the life of a child both now and for eternity.
With our love and gratitude,
Father Jim Sullivan, Pastor
Mrs. Christa Chodkowski (SMS '97), Principal
