St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School and Church have been making a positive impact on the community for 70 years.
“It’s the name and what it has stood for over the years,” said Dianne Jones, a parishioner who attended the school as a child. “The community as a whole over the years has supported the school.”
In honor of the founding of the school and church, a 70th anniversary celebration will be held at noon on Oct. 10 at the Leflore County Civic Center.
The event will start with Mass, and Bishop Joseph Kopacz of the Catholic Diocese of Jackson will be the celebrant. A banquet will follow.
The program speaker will be former student Wilburn Williams, and live music will be performed by Tony McQueen, a former member of the school and church who now resides in San Francisco.
The church and school’s former priests, nuns, lay teachers, students and friends have all been invited to attend. Two St. Francis Center Pax Christi Franciscans will also attend, Genevieve Feyen and her sister, Kathleen Feyen.
“We are just so excited,” said Edith Spells, a parishioner and member of the 70th anniversary committee.
The public is invited to attend, and the theme will be “Guided by God’s Wisdom for Seventy Years 1951-2021.”
“The legacy is a living legacy,” said the Rev. Joachim Studwell, pastor of St. Francis of Assisi parish. “This is something that is continuing. So we celebrate 70 years of what has been accomplished, and we look forward to continuing, whatever that’s going to look like.”
Spells became a student at St. Francis School in 1955. She attended the school from first grade through 11th grade. The high school closed after her 11th grade year.
“We continue to be blessed,” she said. “That mustard seed faith is still carrying on even today.”
Today, the parish doesn’t have a large membership, but it has a devoted group of members.
“We continue to strive and to survive, and that’s God’s grace,” said Spells.
The school was established in 1951 by Franciscan men and women — friars and sisters — to give economically disadvantaged children another educational option during the Jim Crow era in the South.
When the school and church were founded, Jones said that there were not many African American Catholics in Greenwood.
“All of us who attended school here, we were not Catholics at the beginning. Our families were Baptists and Methodists, but they sent us here, and we became Catholics,” she said.
Jones, who is also a member of the 70th anniversary committee, said many of the school children became Catholic and some are still parishioners at St. Francis today.
Jones attended St. Francis School from first grade through eighth grade. Prior to that, she attended kindergarten at St. Francis Center — now the Greenwood Community Center on Avenue I — which was led by the Pax Christi Franciscans, a group of lay women affiliated with the Franciscan friars who made vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.
“And I can remember what grade I was in when I became Catholic. I was in fourth grade,” Jones said.
What Glara Martin remembers most about her time as a student at St. Francis was the kindness shown to her and her classmates.
“We didn’t have much, but when you left St. Francis School, you felt like you had a lot because you were getting love out here,” said Martin, who remains a parishioner at St. Francis and is a member of the 70th anniversary committee. “It was just that uplifting feeling that they gave you when they came here and that kindness that they gave. The brothers and sisters, even though we were not their color of skin, they always had that kindness of heart for all the children.”
Spells said the students always stood out in the community.
“People took notice of you if you were a student at this school,” said Spells. “They took notice of you, and they expected you to really stand out.”
Jones said the school offered an excellent education, which it continues to do today.
“Once we left here and went to the public school, we excelled,” she said. “We just had good teachers. The nuns were great teachers. ... Our vocabulary and handwriting had to be perfect. At the time, we thought that was so hard but it paid off.”
Many of the students became politicians, educators, health care providers and lawyers, among other professions.
“There was a demand for excellence. The sisters, the Pax Christi ladies and the friars saw a potential within the children and young people and called that forth,” said Studwell.
Spells added, “Because of that, our parents had that same attitude.”
Spells said the church and school have been a blessing
“A blessing all the way through for all of the Franciscans who have been here,” she said. “They’ve given so much. We’ve received so much, and I pray that we in turn have given back some of what we have gotten from them to other people.”
The Rev. Camillus Janas, who is a priest at the church, first heard about the St. Francis mission long before he arrived in Greenwood in 2017.
“I had just graduated high school and I joined the Franciscans, and it was at that time that they were talking about establishing a mission here in Greenwood, Mississippi, in 1951,” Janas said. “I would never have imagined that I would have been here to celebrate the 70th anniversary. ... So it’s a great privilege for me.”
The church has grown and become more diverse over the years. Its English speaking community is mostly African American, and it also has a large Hispanic community.
“I pray someone will be sitting here 70 years from now telling the story from 70 years later,” said Spells.
Jones added, “That’s why our theme is so real.”
Janas came up with the theme, “Guided by God’s Wisdom for Seventy Years,” for the anniversary.
“I would say that God’s wisdom is still guiding us, that is the church as well as the school,” he said.
“We live by faith, and we live by hope. We can’t see all of the successes nor do we need all of those successes because the only success that we can rely upon is Jesus Christ, who suffered, died and resurrected, and from him all other successes come forth, whether we see them or not ... . Even though we know some things and God has given us some blessing to know some successes that have happened and we can point to them, but can you imagine all of those that are unseen, successes that have come forth guided by God’s wisdom.”
Although there is no fee to attend the celebration, for those who would like to make a donation, the committee is asking for $70 in honor of the 70 years.
The proceeds will go toward the church’s new roof and to provide tuition assistance for students at St. Francis School.
Those who are interested in attending the event should RSVP as soon as possible by calling the parish office at 662-453-0623.
- Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7235 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
