School traditions connect generations

Photo courtesy of Kearns-Saint Ann School

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Irene Mirabelli holds the doll that has been used in the Kearns-Saint Ann School Christmas program for 20 years. Mirabelli gave the doll to her granddaughter Chantel, who appeared as Mary in the school program, and the doll has been used each year since then. Also shown are the 8th-grade students who played Joseph and Mary in this year's program.

Generation after generation come to Catholic schools not only for the education, but also for the sense of family that comes from sharing faith and experience.

"Catholic schools have got what they call social capital," said Sr. Catherine Kamphaus, superintendent of Utah Catholic Schools. "When you get to know one another so well, you form that community. It’s the community that really keeps people together and keeps our alumni base large and involved."

One example of long-standing alumni involvement is Irene Mirabelli, who continues to be active at Kearns-Saint Ann School long after her children graduated. Now 89 years old, Mirabelli plays a key role each year in the Christmas pageant: she prepares and provides the doll that serves as the infant Jesus.

Mirabelli gave the doll to her granddaughter when the girl was chosen as Mary for the Christmas program. Each December since then, she bathes, powders and swaddles the doll before giving it to her children, who are on staff at Kearns-St. Ann, to take to the school for the pageant.

"I feel like I’m taking care of little Jesus," Mirabelli said. She attends the Christmas program each year; her great-grandchildren now are enrolled in the school. "I want to go see them, and of course see the other kids. I love children and I love to go see them. It gives me a real lift because when you get old, you kind of get real depression days and I think being around little children makes us feel young."

Having the doll is an important tradition at Kearns-St. Ann, said Principal Kathleen McMann, giving students in the play not only a connection to the school’s history but also demonstrating that "once somebody’s not here any longer, it doesn’t mean they’re not still involved in one way or another. It shows them how different people use the gifts they have or the things they have to benefit others."