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Morning Star In The Making

TRIBUNE PHOTO CANDACE C. MUNDY

On Wednesday morning Morning Star School celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Catholic school, which serves children with learning disabilities, with a special commemorative mass. Student Ethan White, 9, works on a memory activity during the school day.

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By COURTNEY CAIRNS PASTOR

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 24, 2008

FOREST HILLS - It began with four students 50 years ago. It turned into a place that established community traditions and showed possibilities to children who thought they were lazy or dumb.

Morning Star School of Tampa has grown in its physical size and enrollment during its five decades, adding a junior high in 1976 and eventually settling at about 70 students. But the school has not deviated from its mission to serve children who might get overlooked in traditional schools.

Tucked behind Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Church and its school, the private religious school focuses on learning-disabled children. Many arrive frustrated and lacking confidence. Teachers work with them, starting at their level, whether it is showing them how to properly hold a pencil or helping them trace their ABCs.

The teachers praise their students frequently and are rewarded by seeing their self-esteem grow along with their skills. They get a chance to shine in performances and physical education; they learn to navigate teachers' Web sites and take tests online. Most will graduate from high school, and some will complete college.

Morning Star marked these milestones as part of its anniversary with a special Mass last week. Bishop Robert Lynch of the St. Petersburg Diocese celebrated, assisted by Monsignor Laurence Higgins.

Retired Principal Jeanette Friedheim, who worked at Morning Star for 36 years, said the school was grateful for the decades of support it got from diocese leaders, school alumni and former staff members.

"You are all a part of the memories of these 50 years," she said.

She told the current students that the school existed to help them reach their God-given potential.

"This is your day to celebrate. Fifty years ago, you were thought of," Friedheim said. "This school was opened with you in mind."

Higgins, who attended the groundbreaking, called Morning Star a gem in the community. The school was named both for Mary, Higgins said, and for the first star that appears in the morning and dispels darkness.

Lynch urged students at the service to be a light in the world as well. They don't have to wait until they are adults, he said.

"We're not people of the darkness. We're people of the light," Lynch said. "Be good. Be honest. Be truthful."

Morning Star formed to provide a Catholic education for physically handicapped children. Changes in the community in the 1960s persuaded the school to move its concentration to retarded children. As the public school system began offering more services for those children, Morning Star found a niche educating learning-disabled students.

Staff members say the changes they see in students' confidence and abilities keep them coming back year after year.

Iliana Pino volunteered at Morning Star when she was a senior at Tampa Catholic. She returned as an intern and, 26 years later, continues to teach. Eileen Daly arrived in 1982 as a teacher, thought about retiring once and couldn't. Now she is the principal.

"It kind of gets under your skin," Daly said. "It's a family atmosphere."

She replaced Friedheim, who retired in 2006 but came back to Morning Star to work on the anniversary celebration. Mary Sid Twachtmann volunteered at the school when her daughter attended, then got hired as the physical education teacher. She retired in 1999 as assistant principal.

"Except it didn't quite take," Twachtmann said.

She now coordinates the school's special events, a connection to the community that Twachtmann says contributed to Morning Star's longevity.

Its golf classic has run 24 years. The school also hosts a tennis tournament and gala. The spring gala, which features students, will look back on the past half-century. The public events are well-attended, Twachtmann said, and raised more than $63,000 last year.

"I just think this speaks well about the support we get for families and the community itself," Twachtmann said.

Parents also commit to 20 volunteer service hours annually, which isn't a problem, Daly said.

"They are more than willing to be involved," she said.

In his homily last week, Lynch thanked current and past parents, teachers and administrators for helping Morning Star thrive.

"I ask God to continue to bless this very special light shining in Tampa, in the darkness of the world in which we live," he said.

Reporter Courtney Cairns Pastor can be reached at (813) 865-1503 or cpastor@tampatrib.com.

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