[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 79 (Monday, May 8, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E615]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          IN RECOGNITION OF ST. ROSE-McCARTHY CATHOLIC SCHOOL

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                         HON. DAVID G. VALADAO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 8, 2017

  Mr. VALADAO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate my alma mater, 
St. Rose-McCarthy Catholic School on its 100th anniversary.
  In 1911, the school's founder, Father Philip Scher, became pastor of 
St. Brigid Church, with hopes of eventually expanding to build a 
hospital and a Catholic parochial school near the church. The hospital 
was established two years later in 1913 and was staffed by Dominican 
Sisters of Kenosha. Four years later, on August 31, 1917, St. Rose 
Catholic School, named after St. Rose of Lima, the first American 
Dominican saint, was established and was staffed by three teaching 
sisters.
  The first location of the school was in a Holy Names Society hall 
behind the church. The school consisted of three classrooms, separated 
by folding partitions where seventy-five eager students came to learn. 
By 1919, the teaching staff increased to five sisters and a porch was 
enclosed to create more classrooms and a garage was used as a 
kindergarten. In 1921, Father Peter H. McNellis improved the school 
aesthetically, added two more class rooms, and added a kitchen. 
Enrollment then doubled and in the following years more improvements 
were made to the school.
  In 1941, Thomas McCarthy, a parishioner, donated a generous gift to 
the parish in his will with the purpose of constructing a new parochial 
school. The new school was constructed and renamed Thomas McCarthy 
School in his honor. Enrollment continued to increase to 450 students, 
leaving the teaching sisters with their hands full.
  In 1997 the school was renamed from Thomas McCarthy School to a 
combination of its former name and its current name to create St. Rose-
McCarthy Catholic School. Currently, there are 135 students in grades 
preschool through 8th grade. The school remains an excellent 
educational institution in the Central Valley; it was built by, and 
continues to be successful due to, faithful volunteers, generous 
donors, and the Dominican Sisters of Kenosha.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues in the United States House of 
Representatives to join me in congratulating St. Rose-McCarthy Catholic 
School on their 100th anniversary, and wish them continued success for 
many years to come.

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