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May 1, 2025With summer rapidly approaching, the Irish community has been busy with end of year festivities along with the celebration of Easter and remembrances of Pope Francis.
Remembering the pope
Since Pope Francis’ passing Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School has worked to honor his life and legacy through prayer.
“He really was trying to be as accepting as possible and not try to be some really high and mighty figure,” said junior Andrew Benites. “He was really down to earth.”
Benites said his family is honoring Pope Francis through nightly prayer for his soul and through a Mass after his death.
Junior Gia-luc Nguyen said he remembers Pope Francis’s promotion of youth involvement in the church, especially for his support of the Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Movement. As a member, Nguyen said his group planned to pray a novena for the pope and attend a Mass at The Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in his honor.
“Kind of like Saint John Paul II, he was really open about the youth and bringing them into the fold,” Nguyen said.
Around the school building, the theology department has created different places for students to pray and remember the Pope’s influence.
“I think that's a way of sort of remembering him and for all that he did for us,” Nguyen said.
Appreciating Father Rick
This year, Father Rick Stansberry took on the role of school president, following the retirement of David Morton.
In his role, has also served the Irish community as school chaplain, allowing McGuinness students an opportunity to know Father Rick on a more personal level.
In recognition of Priest Appreciation Week, junior Britney Gamez said Father Rick has helped her feel more connected through his work at the school.
“He’s very strategic with what he does in the school and with Mass it makes it feel closer to God,” Gamez said.
Gamez added that she appreciated the Catholic traditions that Father Rick celebrated through the year.
Angela Basse, a junior theology teacher, said Father Stansberry has had a positive impact within the school.
“I think he's a great presence, and he understands what presence means and how effective presence is, especially in a community this size,” Basse said. “I also think that Father Rick really does well at bringing people together.”
BMCHS Olympics
The week of April 22, the school celebrated class Olympics with a throughout the decades theme, beginning with the black light assembly and concluding with an all-school field day.
The classes competed to claim the yearlong competition, with competition and dress-up days.
“Olympics week is just fun and outgoing,” said junior Jack Coyle, who opened the week dressed for the Y2K theme.
Student Council President Amy Le explained the importance of getting involved in Olympics week.
“In the moment it is so rewarding to see friendly competition from all grades unite to cheer for people you may not know, but still have the common goal of winning and having fun,” Le said.
Running for Christ
The track team hosted the Running for Christ track meet in celebration of Holy Week. The meet welcomed eight Christian schools from across Oklahoma and aimed to recognize the common mission of each.
"It's just a great example of schools coming together," Principal Andrew Worthington said. "We share some common missions in faith-based education that is around the path that Christ gave us and working in a world for others."
Freshman Franny Santos said she was inspired by a bible verse while competing.
Junior Luke Worthington also competed and said the team was feeling positive heading into regional and state and competitions.
“So today’s just kind of a day of remembrance,” Luke Worthington said. “Out here running for Christ, and it’s gonna be good.”
Shadow stations
Campus Minister Kelly Allen's Spiritual Leadership class celebrated the end of Lent with shadow stations the morning of Good Friday. The class began preparing for the celebration three weeks in advance by examining “the meaning of Jesus’ passion and the importance of each role.”
Allen said that the shadow station meditations resonated deeply with her and helped her to reflect on what actually happened during Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection.
“It's easy to feel like we know the story, and it's important to take time and really remember it all,” Allen said.
Baseball
The baseball team seems primed for the postseason amid a successful season.
“We’re winning a lot of district games,” senior Harrison Glover said. “Those are the games that are the most important, because that decides who will host the regionals.”
Sophomore Waite Swanson said the team aims to stay prepared.
“So the main preparation is the day of the games,” Swanson said. “We will get into the indoor facility about 30 minutes before we have to be on the field so we can get extra hits in, and then we work on fielding and all that stuff just before the game.”
With a busy schedule, sophomore Carson Byrnes notes the importance of team chemistry.
“We do have a lot of guys in our locker room that like to play a bunch of music,” Glover said. “We bring a lot of big speakers, and that’s kind of what we do before every game, to try to just get loose and have fun.”
Katherine Menz is a junior at Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School.
Photo: Students of Campus Minister Kelly Allen’s spiritual leadership class posed for shadow stations on Good Friday morning. Photo Heston Kostiuk.