It seems like just yesterday, we were introduced to the challenges of navigating social distancing, stay-at-home orders and distance learning. While some days, time seemed to stand still, the weeks have flown by and we now find ourselves at the end of a tumultuous, yet successful school year. We can all agree that the 2019-2020 school year wasn’t supposed to end like this, and even though it makes my heartache, I can’t depart without saying mahalo and expressing how much you have meant to me. I want you to know first, how very proud I am of your ability to take charge of the circumstances we have had to deal with while displaying courage and compassion along the way.
Heraclitus, an ancient Greek philosopher, once said, “The only constant in life is change.” The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our lives in unimaginable ways. Still, we have conquered the many challenges to bring order to a very chaotic and unsettling situation, keeping safety our top priority. The end of this school year has been very different and may well be the new normal for some time. I compliment you as parents, alumni, and members of our tight-knit community for managing the last few months of the year with grace and courage. I also appreciate and thank the Maryknoll administration, faculty, and staff for their efforts to ensure that distance learning standards were delivered with dedication and precision, exceeding our expectations. While none of us could have anticipated the circumstances with which we were forced to adapt, I am very proud of what we all have accomplished together.
Together, as a community, we have grown far more than we realize. We have held true to Noblesse Oblige understanding that service, kindness, and empathy can genuinely make the world a better place. We’ve learned together in a diverse population and culture, appreciating the differences that each of us has to offer for the greater good. We have prayed together as one voice, improved curriculum, facilities, won athletic championships, and championed programs that have stretched the young mind. We have made school communication very transparent and progressive. We have challenged every aspect of the local school norm and have advanced far beyond what other schools simply dream of.
None of this could be accomplished without leadership, teamwork, and collaboration. These attributes are the clear mantra of a Maryknoll education. As I depart, I know that this type of leadership will continue to exist and prevail, especially in the more than capable hands of Mrs. Shana Tong. Shana is an extraordinary leader and Maryknoll alumna who has my full support in guiding Maryknoll School through these uncertain times ahead. Please continue to provide her with the welcome, compassion and care that you have shown me during my time at Maryknoll.
Spreading happiness and dignity doesn’t have to cost money. Your kindness can reach strangers that you will never meet. The goodness inside of you is waiting to be shared with the entire world.
I want you to know that even though we are going our different directions, being apart doesn’t mean that I’m not thinking about you. You’ll always be in my heart and in my mind. Good friends are like stars in the sky, you don’t always see them, but you know they are there.
Mahalo for all the “prevailing winds” you have provided for the Maryknoll sails over the past twelve years. We have experienced a world ready for our students to use the skills they have learned to make the world a better place. Aloha, Maryknoll School.
Noblesse Oblige and Mahalo,
Perry Martin
Outgoing School President