The best of times…and the worst of times

Family members crowded around the exit of the Pavilion at Villanova University on Saturday like eager fans at the end of a football game, waiting in earnest to greet the final graduating class of St. John Neumann High School with smiles, hoots, hollers and popping flashbulbs.

But the first to reach the graduates as they crossed the bridge from their past into their future were chilly winds and light rain.

It was an imperfect ending, fittingly enough, to what has been an imperfect and often trying year for the Neumann family.

Already grieving over the loss of their building and the many time-honored traditions that inherently came with it, the students also suffered the loss of three of its family members — one current student and two recent alumni, all of whom were murdered within the past eight months.

For all of these reasons and more, Saturday was a day unlike any other in Neumann’s history, filled with constantly conflicting emotions.

Many of the 131 graduates were simply grateful to have graduated before Neumann went through with its planned merger with St. Maria Goretti High School, enjoying, for the last time, the dynamic of an all-male student body.

"We would have been upset if we had to do this next year," said Chris Meccariello, a graduate from the 1000 block of Winton Street. "After all the classes we had, after all the memories we made in that building, I’m glad I got to enjoy one last year with my friends. It makes it easier to move on."

Other parents and graduates spoke of the pride that came with being in the final graduating class.

"My son was ecstatic to be a part of this," Angela Hill said of her son Antwaine, of the 2100 block of South 19th Street. "There were a lot of father figures and guiding lights that he really benefited from at this school."

"You can’t help but feel proud to be in the last class," said Steve Hague, a graduate from 13th Street and Snyder Avenue. "We’re kind of sad, too, but overall just happy that we got out this year."

Hague’s brother Joe, a 2001 graduate, said the end came too soon for Neumann.

"I’m happy for my brother, but really, it’s pretty upsetting that the school is closing already. I thought they would last a lot longer than this," he said.

As deeply affecting as it may be, the loss of Neumann and its building pales in comparison to the loss being felt by the families of Joseph Briglia, Luckily Ky and Alvin Dill Jr., all of whom were murdered during the current school year.

The Rev. Michael Olivere, Neumann president, held a moment of silence at the beginning of the ceremony to honor Dill, whose funeral services also were being held Saturday.

A gold medal for loyalty, donated in Briglia’s name, was awarded to one of the graduates, prompting Luis DeVelasco, Neumann’s assistant principal for student affairs, to choke up.

"I didn’t rehearse the speech ahead of time, so when I got to Joey’s name, I just stopped. I couldn’t get through it," DeVelasco said, his eyes welling up.

The graduation process as a whole was hard for administrators and students to get through, with even Father Olivere admitting to "bawling my eyes out" during Friday’s Baccalaureate Mass at St. Gabriel’s Church, 2917 Dickinson St.

"You saw a lot of guys tearing up, getting glassy-eyed," Meccariello said. "We tried not to think about how sad it was, but you couldn’t avoid it. It was the last time for a lot of things."

Indeed, it was the last time Neumann’s Baccalaureate would be held at St. Gabriel, and the last time a class would graduate at Villanova, where the school had been holding its commencement ceremonies for 14 years.

Next year, the first graduates of Ss. John Neumann and Maria Goretti High School will have their Baccalaureate Mass at the Cathedral, and will graduate at Temple University’s Liacouras Center — the venue for Goretti’s graduations.

That change hasn’t gone over well with members of Neumann’s current junior class.

"Some guys feel like we’re being gypped," said Joseph Bruno, a junior from Glassboro, N.J., who participated in the past two graduations as an usher. "It’s probably more practical to have [a venue] that’s closer to us, but we all would’ve liked to have had a traditional Neumann graduation."

Similar sentiments were expressed as graduates mingled with teachers outside the Pavilion, taking pictures and bidding fond farewells.

"It’s natural that there’s some resentment there. That’s human nature," remarked Dominic D’Orazio, a biology teacher at Neumann for the past 39 years.

"We’ve had two years to prepare for this, but it still doesn’t seem real," said English teacher Michael Sheehan. "There’ll be new traditions to embrace at the new school, of course, but we’re all very close to what we have here."

Meanwhile, students continued to grumble about the loss of Neumann’s building, for which there has been few acceptable explanations.

Meccariello, who was involved as a student on one of the consolidation committees, said he believed like many of his classmates that Goretti would be moving into Neumann’s building.

"They never said anything to make us believe otherwise," he said. "We just thought because of our field, the parking lot and the size of the building, it made more sense for them to come here. But I guess on Goretti’s side, there were a lot of reasons for us to go there."

Olivere said he sympathizes with his students’ grievances, but still has his eyes focused firmly on the future.

"More than anybody, I’ve preached that this is a beginning, not an end, and that many of our traditions will carry on," the president said.

Still, he conceded that the school building is as much a part of Neumann’s identity as anything else.

"We remind the students that it’s just a building, and that their spirit matters more, but it’s unavoidable; it’s a very real part of us," said Olivere.

Classes will let out on June 17 — a little later than usual, Olivere said, because of the teachers’ strike last fall.

Moving vans will transport all of Neumann’s effects to Goretti beginning on July 6, with the doors officially closing July 9.

"It’s going to be very hard," Olivere said on Saturday, his eyes drifting to the remaining graduates mingling about in the Villanova parking lot. "But I’m sure by October, we’ll be back to worrying about all of the usual things."