St. Joe’s celebrates 40 years of educating

TAYLOR WEAVER EDITOR

It was cause for celebration as St. Joseph Elementary School celebrated 40 years of Catholic education in Lloydminster with a winter carnival and a visit from the school’s opening principal last Thursday.

St. Joe’s first opened in 1982 under the direction of long-time Lloydminster Catholic School Division (LCSD) educator Dale Howland.

Howland served as principal for 19 years before being asked to open St. Mary’s Elementary School in 2001. In 2008, Howland was asked to open a career centre at Holy Rosary High School and retired this past June.

After 44 years as an educator, 40 of which with the LCSD, Howland was beaming as he returned to his old post to visit staff and students with the school’s current principal, Nicole Blais.

“It brought back such memories,” said Howland on Thursday.

“I was very privileged to have spent 19 years here as their principal. We opened the doors with Kindergarten to Grade 6 and had 78 students at the time, it was very small, and there wasn’t even a road in front of the school.

“Coming back here and seeing some of the old pictures and meeting some of my fellow teachers has been amazing,” he added.

“Also, four of the students I taught when I was principal here are now teachers here at St. Joe’s, which is just amazing.”

As the City of Lloydminster grew, so did the LCSD, and St. Joe’s went from a population of 78 students to its current 287.

Currently in her first year as principal at St. Joe’s, Blais thought a winter carnival was a great way to celebrate the milestone.

“This is our 40th anniversary, so we wanted to celebrate with something the kids could be interactive with and have fun, so we decided to do a winter carnival,” she said.

“The kids get to move throughout the stations, will get a cookie and hot chocolate inside, they have bannock around the fire as well as some street hockey, sledding, and Indigenous games to keep them busy.”

Blais also noted the students were really looking forward to the day’s celebration, which began with a prayer chain.

“We had a prayer chain this morning with father Arun Rodriquez and we prayed together as a group, but this afternoon is all about fun,” she said.

“They’re super excited to be outside. The weather is beautiful, it couldn’t have been a better day for this, so they’re excited to share in the festivities.”

For Blais, it was also nice to have former St. Joe’s staff visiting throughout the day.

“It’s great to have Dale here today, and we have multiple principals come from the past and it’s great to have them all together,” she said.

“It’s neat for him to share stories with us about how it’s changed and grown over the 40 years, as well as how much our community has grown.”

For Howland, the stroll down memory lane was one he won’t soon forget.

“I’ve been very blessed to have spent 40 years working with the LCSD,” he said. “I look back and it’s just wonderful. I look back with great and special memories. I’ve met a lot of great people, met a lot of great parents, school board members, and central office personnel … I have nothing but positive things to say about the LCSD, but also, the LPSD is also a great school division in itself.

“We are truly blessed in Lloydminster to have two outstanding school divisions with great personnel, great teachers, and great students.”