Loreene Zeno Koskey

I didn’t know any of the graduates in Escanaba this year. Yet I was compelled to attend a graduation ceremony in that town. Why? Holy Name High School (HNHS) held its first graduation event in 53 years on May 31, and I was a member of the last class of Crusaders to graduate from there in 1971. I went partly from nostalgia and partly to support these pioneer graduates, but mostly because I felt the Lord was calling me to be there.

Granted, the number of graduates was different, 138 in my day and six in 2024, but it’s a start, and it’s something that I thought would never happen again. As one of the graduates of Holy Name High School – A Chesterton Academy, Katelyn Rexford, told the undergraduates, “This school is an incredible gift.” Then turning to the community gathered in St. Anne Church, she noted, “This school is possible because of you.”

HNHS offers a classical curriculum where Catholic truths, values and virtues are taught and practiced. Resurrecting the school wasn’t easy, but as the schools’ Alumni/Development Director, Michelle Bink, stated, “…we continued to pray and God continued to show us the way.”

There is currently an effort underway exploring the feasibility of bringing a Catholic high school back to Marquette. Bishop Baraga High School closed in 1969. I participated in the feasibility study, and the results are expected soon. We’ll have to see if Marquette will be able to follow Escanaba’s lead.

Another HNHS 2024 graduate, Piper Burrows, said, “It’s more than just a school; it’s a way of life.” We need more schools that will teach and reflect the life that Jesus wants us to live.

Teenagers are exposed to so many alternative ways of life in our culture that run counter to the Catholic faith. They need to hear that the truth can only be found in Christ.

In the Gospel of John, Chapter 14, Verse 7 (John 14:7), Jesus states, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” The world tells us that everyone can have their own truth, that truth is subjective, but according to Christ, He is the truth.

We need to tell our children that following Christ may not always be the most popular thing to do, and they may be criticized and ridiculed for it, but it is what we are called to do. After all, do we expect to be treated differently than Jesus was? Christ says, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first” (John 15:18).

Father Tim Ferguson, pastoral delegate to Holy Name, emphasized at the graduation ceremony, “The world is so in need of Christ.” Bink wished the graduates well and challenged them to “Go and make the world a better place, and God bless you.”

Three of the HNHS graduates plan to attend Bay College: Nicholas Mitchell of Escanaba and Lindsay Maloney and Katelyn Rexford, both of Gladstone. Roman Zeise of Escanaba plans to attend Northern Michigan University, Piper Burrows of Escanaba will be attending the University of Notre Dame, and Helen McBroom of Waucedah is pursuing a degree at St. Norbert College.

Go, fellow Crusaders, and bring the light of Christ to all you meet!

EDITOR’S NOTE: Loreene Zeno Koskey is a member of St. Michael Catholic Church and a proud graduate of Holy Name High School.