Members of the SMS Class of 2024 recently returned from their class trip to Washington DC! The 8th grade homeroom teachers - Miss Reeves & Mr. Dolan, as well as numerous parents served as chaperones for our soon-to-be alums on their trip. Their tour bus departed from the St. Mary School parking lot and they were off, making memories together that will hopefully last them a lifetime.
On the way to Washington DC they made a stop in Gettysburg, PA, which is of course known for Gettysburg National Battlefield, the site of a turning point in the Civil War & part of Gettysburg National Military Park. The park also includes the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center, displaying Civil War artifacts, and Gettysburg National Cemetery, where a memorial marks the site of Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Gettysburg Address.
Once in Virginia, the students visited the Martin Luther King, Thomas Jefferson, & FDR Memorials. They then enjoyed a tour of the White House, as well as a visit to the United States Capitol, and went on a guided, illuminated night tour of the monuments.
Their trip also included a visit to the US Supreme Court, where the students were lucky enough to have a meet and greet with the 17th Chief Justice John Roberts! Chief Justice Roberts spent 30 minutes with the students in the courtroom, speaking with them about the history of the court, as well as answering questions. Chief Justice Roberts was born in Buffalo, NY, and so the 8th grade students presented him with a Buffalo Bills jersey with his last name and the #17, which they all signed! This was truly an unbelievable experience for our students, and Chief Justice Roberts was very generous with his time and seemed to love the opportunity to interact with the students.
Next they toured the Smithsonian area and visited the Museum of American History, then enjoyed dinner at Hard Rock Café. After dinner the group toured the Air Force Memorial, 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, & US Marine Corps War Memorial. After an eventful day it was back to the hotel early in time for a pick up game of kickball!
The next day our students visited the St. John Paul II National Shrine, and attended Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. Two of our students even had the honor of bringing up the gifts during Mass.
Lastly, a visit to "Chocolate World" at a rest stop along the way home provided a sweet ending to a memorable experience!
Thank you to all of our chaperones, especially Mr. Urbanski for all of the great photos of the trip, and to Mr. Colaiacovo for arranging some of the students' once in a lifetime experiences! Thank you as well to our many generous parishioners who supported the Class of 2024 throughout the past year in their fundraising efforts for their trip! Between the doughnut sales after Masses and the dining out nights at local restaurants, every little bit of money raised and donated helped the class to make this memorable trip a reality!