From the Principal's Desk 4.20

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK

Dear Friends,

Lent is upon us! The great season of prayer and self-denial starts tomorrow! Hurrah! It is time to fast and abstain, to attend church and to pray and to love our neighbors.

Lent is boot camp for the soul; it is a time where we reorient our lives to that which really counts.  In the final analysis, the fineness of my food, the amount of TV I watch, the extra time I have to do nothing, will all count for little, but the time I pray, the time I seek God, the charity I give to others, the attention lavished on family and friends, the physical discipline I put my body through and the sacrifices I offer to God both in reparation for my sins and for the perfection of my soul; these will count enormously. 

Ultimately, following Christ consists of doing what He wants you to do.  That often means you have to do mundane tasks; homework, papers, studying, chores and the like are the very stuff of sainthood.  It matters most of all how you do it.  So this lent, when you have time to curb your appetites, to train your will and to show charity to others, don't hold back, but embrace it.  Daily mass, attend it, when studies are hard, offer them up, when your friend needs help, help them and when someone forgets their lunch, share.  The opportunities are all around us, use them.  You will be glad you did.

Timothy Gallic

Principal, Holy Family High School

From the Principal's Desk 4.19

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK

Dear Friends,

It is evident that we all want to see clearly. For this reason, I and many others wear corrective lenses, we clean windshields of debris and ice, and we polish camera lenses.  From instinct and personal experience we all recognize that the failure to see clearly can result in a very dangerous situation.  For this reason the church teaches us the value of humility.

Humility consists of seeing yourself and others correctly, not inflated or deflated, not as we wish they or we were, but rather exactly as we are.  Humility can be found by embracing the truth.  For example, consider a bride on her wedding day, she is dressed in a magnificent gown, her groom is ready for her, the church stands as she enters.  She is clearly the most important person (with her fiancé) in the room, and she knows it...humbly.  It would be wrong for her to think she was unimportant for this is her special day.  The valedictorian on graduation day might smile with humility recalling they are the best student in school.  Both would err if they thought they were any better than anyone else for we are all sinners in need of salvation.  Simply put, it is humble to take joy in your circumstances as long as you don't forget you are the recipient of a great gift. 

Humility, as opposed to pride, is also a great strength for no one can humiliate a humble man.  Humility enables the student who doesn't understand to raise their hand and ask for help.  It enables the teacher who does understand to aid them.  Humility allows a player to take advice from a coach and allows the coach to admit error and improve.   It is the one absolutely essential character trait for success in life and in study.

So who are we? We are children of God, so special, so awesome, so loved that when we were in need the God of all Creation Himself, paid our debt.  We are also so wretched that the debt could only be paid by God.  Best of all, we are redeemed and made to someday sit at God's side and enter into His joy.  To see myself as anything else is pure folly and pride, and to see myself and others, pure wisdom and humility.

Pax et Bonum,

Timothy Gallic

Principal, Holy Family High School

From the Principal's Desk 4.18

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK

Dear Friends,

When a young person first encounters the idea of living a Christian life they often find the idea of it exciting but are worried about the rules.  Perhaps you may have noticed this attitude elsewhere.  Rules and regulation, assignments and tests, all seem to constrict our freedom and cut us off from endless opportunity.   Actually the opposite proves true.

Rules can best be likened to the banks of a river; they constrict the path of water forcing it not to dissipate but to flow.  Only by directing the power of the river can the ability of the river be fully utilized.

The rules we ask ourselves and our students to live under give order to our life, they allow great actions to take place.  Only by allowing ourselves to be directed can we achieve great things.  The Olympics demonstrate this wonderfully. No Olympian gets to the game without subjecting themselves to the rigors of training, of voluntarily giving up mornings, nights, weekends often time for years, to have a shot at Olympian glory.  Only by channeling their ability can they achieve greatness.  The same goes for us.  We can follow God's law and if we do we are promised a great life of peace and joy, of love and fulfillment.  It may seem like loss of freedom but it is in fact the gaining of life to the full.  Failure to follow God's plan may at first promise freedom but it will in the end leave us with nothing, we will find ourselves unfulfilled, lacking in peace and joy.   This applies not simply to spiritual matters but to all aspects of our life.  We all know that if a young person applies themselves early in life they have a much greater chance of being a success and that if they wait until later the chance diminishes sharply. Of course a young person does not always want to apply themselves; this is why they have us, their parents and guardians.  So by encouraging our students to do their work, sometimes rather strongly, we are helping insure their success and in many ways, ours as well.

Timothy Gallic

Principal, Holy Family High School

From the Principal's Desk 4.17

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK

Dear Friends,

When I was a young boy I received for Christmas a rock tumbler.  Eagerly gazing at the glossy pictures of wondrous jewels that could be formed from ordinary rock I rushed into my backyard and scooped up some likely looking small stones.  Placing them in the tumbler I added the polishing compound and started the process. (In truth, I first forgot the water, then failed to seal the container, then had to clean the mess up, then did it correctly.) The machine started with a very disturbing sound. Grinding and crushing emanated from it filling the kitchen with an undesirable noise.   After a very long time, in reality probably 30 minutes, I took the machine apart and saw nothing had changed.  Moving it to the garage I turned it back on and left it for the recommended time.   I noticed as I went through the various level grinding powders the sound got less distressing and finally after quite a long time the stones were done and they looked quite good. 

High school, indeed all of life, resembles a rock tumbler.  Placed in close proximity with others we jostle and bump into each other, our interactions not always being the smoothest.  Often we find irritation with others, our assignments, the weather etc., and while some of that can be avoided most cannot.  These events are not for naught, they can, if we let them, help smooth our rough edges turning us from crass stone to desirable jewels.  The tendency when we find such a challenge is to flee from it and while that is sometimes prudent policy, what to do if you cannot run from it?  If it is a test or project, or the student you see in math class, or the teacher who is making you work then you must address the situation.  This is where training and God's grace comes in.  When we err, in a comment to a colleague, or on an assignment, fixing that failing might be difficult but will help us in the long run.

Training is like the polishing compound, initially it can be a bit rough, but given time it becomes softer, if we learn our lessons well future challenges are very doable.  If we seek to never put ourselves or our children in difficult and challenging circumstances how will they ever be polished?  I know of several individuals who while in high school were very rough characters, not necessarily tough but definitely rough.  A few bruising years of life later I have met them and found to my amazement how they have changed.  

Sirach 2 states "For in fire Gold is tested and the worthy one in the crucible of humiliation."  When God sends us trials embrace them, they will make you a better person.

Quo Vadis?

Timothy Gallic

Principal, Holy Family High School

Sirach 2 entire https://www.ewtn.com/vbible/search.asp?abbr=Sir&ch=2&bv1=1&ev1=11

From the Principal's Desk 4.16

FROM THE PRINCIPAL'S DESK Dear Friends, By now you should have seen the new tuition rates and I would like to take a moment to explain how we arrived at that amount.  Tuition is determined by setting our operating budget. This is the money we spend each year keeping the school in good repair, paying our teachers, heating and cooling the building, paying our insurance and other items like this.  We subtract from the budget what money we can raise through fund raising and gifts, (this generally averages about $2,000 per student) and then we take the number left and divide it by our expected student population.  This sets our tuition.   Tuition does not pay for sports, that is separately fund raised; it does not pay for material improvements such as scoreboards or theater renovation or ball fields.  All of these are separately fundraised which is why they are sometimes built and sometimes we have to wait. We are fortunate in that we have also been able to offer financial aid and I urge you to look into it if you feel you need it.  While quite large, the fund is not limitless, so don't delay! Catholic education may be a cost; it is also a great investment.  This school teaches much more than just the subjects; we help you develop the character of your child. By seeing each child as God does we teach mutual respect and demand from them the responsibility that will make them successful.   High School years are exciting times. I thank you for sharing your child's years with us. God bless, Timothy Gallic Principal, Holy Family High School