Students gather in the new quad before Bishop Michael Burbidge’s blessing of the new building on Dedication Day. Volume 13, Issue 1 September 27, 2013
Cardinal Gibbons High School - 1401 Edwards Mill Rd Raleigh, N.C. 27607
Dedication Day blessing fulfills Vision
Photo by Maryanne Fisher/Landmark yearbook
Bishop Michael Burbidge offficially blesses and dedicates the final installment of the Building the Vision project before the whole student body in the new quad on Dedication Day. The ceremony occurred in the same place as the groundbreakig in February 2012, and both ceremonies were accompanied by an all-school Mass to celebrate the events.
By Stephanie Todd News Editor Alumni who graduated from Gibbons prior to 1999 recall the Western Boulevard campus with fondness, partially because of its unique charms. Tennis courts flooded when it rained, classrooms in outdoor trailers, Saturday morning maintenance sessions organized by groups of parents, custodial needs not always met were just some of the unique aspects of “old Gibbons”. “We called it the ‘Wild West.’ Even though we would come into class caked in mud when it rained, we loved it because of the teachers and the charm of the place. Now we have the facilities to match the charm,” said Mike Rogosich ‘90, Assistant Principal of Student Activities, during Dedication Day on August 29. Dedication Day celebrated all the aspects of the Gibbons legacy and also
signified the Building the Vision construction and expansion project’s grand finale. Like the flourish at the end of a signature, Dedication Day celebrated the completion of the many paths that led Cardinal Gibbons High School to this Edwards Mill campus and now to the expanded facility. Students would typically be preoccupied by their 3rd period classes, but on this special Dedication Day the whole school was called to the new learning commons and quad for the official blessing of the new building by Bishop Michael F. Burbidge, Bishop of Raleigh. The students filtered into the newest additions of Gibbons, the interior learning commons with natural light provided by the “window-wall” facing the quad. “I thought that it was important for the Bishop to bless the buildings and show the school respect,” said junior
Nicole Knapp, who just transferred to Gibbons from Ravenscroft. “There have been so many great events in Gibbons history but this one marks such a new beginning. It is certainly my most joyful of days as Bishop,” said Bishop Burbidge during an interview on Dedication Day. The Bishop spent the day on campus experiencing all the activities during the carnival-like occasion. This blessing was followed by Bishop Burbidge’s eight opening all-Mass for Cardinal Gibbons High School with over 25 priests visiting from various parishes in the Diocese. Alumni of varying decades also visited, some for the first time since their own graduation. These long lost members of the Gibbons family were given the opportunity to go on tours offered by National Honor Society (NHS) members. As the band played in the new Photo by Mike Koppinger/Landmark yearbook lobby, many visitors searched the MisOver 20 Diocesan priests joined the sion Wall photos for familiar faces. “It was important to share the celebration of Mass on Dedication Day. new wing with [alumni] in order to prevent the gap between themselves and Gibbons from widening,” said junior Maggie Dever, second vice president of NHS. There are many reminders of the Western Boulevard campus thanks to the integration of the actual wooden flooring from the Fr. Price Gymnasium at Western Boulevard into the new Crusader Room, the baselines mounted in the lobby and the Crusader Room and the wooden roof supports of the gym being used to create the new pavilion by the athletics fields. “We integrated the new with [items from the] old location, it ties in the history of the place with the newness of going forward,” said visitor Tim Breslin. “Witnessing the move here has been simply tremendous. This [facility] is a dream we never dreamt,” said Monsignor Gerald L. Lewis of the changes Gibbons has undergone. Monsignor Lewis, who first came to Gibbons in 1962 as a religion teacher, last saw the school during the transition from the old campus on Western Photo by Maryanne Fisher/Landmark Yearbook Boulevard to the current one. Continued on page 2
Bishop Michael Burbidge officially blesses the new academic wing before Mass, assisted by sophomore altar server Marc Todd.
New pavilion marks beginning and end of an era
Pavilion offers students a way to connect, collaborate, and create By Anthony Palumbo News Editor
Most Gibbons students who stepped foot into the old Father Price Gymnasium on the old Gibbons campus has a memory there. Whether they were a student, a drama kid, or just a regular high school jock, the gym probably meant a lot for you. Now these memories are here in the new pavilion. “I remember my senior night, which was the last game played there, when we beat Durham Academy and after the game the school announced that my jersey would be retired,” said social studies teacher and alumna Jessica Lowe ‘99. Lowe graduated from Gibbons as the all-time leading scorer in Gibbons basketball history. Lowe’s senior night
was the last game ever played at the old Father Price Gymnasium. Her last season was marked by an array of memories, and capped off with the retiring of her jersey. With the new building project, Gibbons has taken a step in trying to preserve as much history as they could as a reminder to the future students. In doing so they were able to come up with the idea to preserve the beams of the old Father Price Gymnasium and reuse them as part of the construction of a pavilion on campus. “It was one of those things where if we were able to do it, we were going to,” said Joey Hoying ‘99, Gibbons Alumni Coordinator. The pavilion is located between the stadium field and the baseball field and behind the softball field. The location allows a spectator to sit in the pavilion
and maintain a level of visibility to all three of the athletic fields at the same time. Gibbons publicly announced the project on August 1 through the Alumni twitter account @alumni_cghsnc and then showcased it for the first time on Dedication Day on August 29. Due to the beginning of the construction of the new Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral on the site of the old Gibbons campus on Western Boulevard, they were going to have to tear the old gym down. The idea of the pavilion turned out to be an idea not only by the administration but also the alumni. “In different meetings, different alumni reached out to us, then we decided to go to the Western Boulevard campus to see what we could preserve and then we brought this idea [the pa-
vilion] back,” said Hoying. “The way they’ve recaptured the beams is incredible. How they’ve captured the history and translating it into the future is even better,” said Tim Breslin, Executive Director of Stewardship and Advancement for the Diocese or Raleigh, as he walked into the pavilion for the first time on Dedication Day. The old Father Price gym was constructed in 1959 and was used for athletic events and just about any allschool event the school held. Gibbons hoped to create the pavilion on this campus as a reminder of the old gym and as something that would benefit all parts of the school. “The outdoor pavilion is a wonderful gathering space for all aspects of our school community. All aspects of our school will benefit from this beautiful addition to campus,” said Hoying.
Check us out online at www.cghsnc.org/newspaper and follow us on Twitter @newspapercghsnc Cover Photo by Darsey Williams/Gibbons Media
Page design by Managing Editor Sean Feick