[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 66 (Tuesday, April 24, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E839-E840]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING THE 95TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDING OF ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST 
                      CATHOLIC SCHOOL IN NAPA, CA

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                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 24, 2007

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
the 95th anniversary of St. John the Baptist Catholic School in Napa, 
California. This school, and the associated Catholic Church, has been a

[[Page E840]]

prominent fixture in the community for many years, and many students 
have benefited from the excellent education and outstanding guidance it 
has offered.
  In the fall of 1911 Father Joseph Byrne took the first steps to open 
a Catholic school in Napa when he invited the Dominican Sisters of San 
Rafael to staff a new school to be founded in Napa. When the school was 
opened the next spring, it served 120 students from the location on 
Franklin Street. Today that same building is used by the Napa Community 
Thrifts Project. That building remained in use for 15 years until the 
school moved to the current location on Main and Napa Streets in 
January, 1927. It has remained in its current location for more than 80 
years.
  St. John the Baptist School currently enrolls almost 300 students, 
and is well served by its current pastor Father Gordon Kalil, and 
Principal Nancy Jordan. The school now enrolls students from pre-
kindergarten through 8th grade, and this has allowed the school to 
develop programs for children of many different ages. The school has 
also taken the important step of involving parents in children's 
education, and indeed has made this one of the core missions. By making 
parents into educators and encouraging children to reach out and 
participate in their greater community, St. John's and Father Kalil 
have reinforced that civic-mindedness is one of the key characteristics 
of a well-rounded young person.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in acknowledging the 
95th anniversary of St. John the Baptist Catholic School in Napa, 
California. St. John's has been an important fixture in the education 
of young men and women in Napa, and has laid an important intellectual 
and spiritual foundation for generations of young people. In the years 
to come, this excellent tradition will continue to be of the greatest 
benefit to the Napa community and a credit to the parish of the St. 
John's Catholic Church.

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