School recognizes service of law enforcement, makes contribution to Tunnel to Towers Foundation

SOMERVILLE – Students and their families, together with the faculty and staff of Immaculate Conception School, recognized the service and sacrifice of law enforcement at its annual Blue Mass, celebrated this year on April 21 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Somerville.

“The will to serve, to sacrifice in loving defense of family and nation, is a powerful motive and witness,” said Fr. Joseph Illés, parochial vicar, who celebrated the Mass.

Recalling in his homily the members of his own family who served in law enforcement - his grandfather a lieutenant in the State Police, his great uncle a judge, and his father and stepfather both, respectively, local patrolmen - Fr. Illés said service and sacrifice are part of who he is, pointing to his service to the priesthood and his own brother’s service in the Army.

“As I grew in my faith, as I came to understand the nature of the love and sacrifice of Jesus, I came to understand that call to service, that call to devoted self-sacrifice, a duty of love; I came to understand that the vocation of law enforcement is the preeminent model of Christian virtue,” he said.

“Chief among these virtues is service and sacrifice. These two characterize the whole life, ministry, and mission of Jesus as He willingly, lovingly, obediently gave of Himself in humble care for His people, even to the Cross. They characterize, too, so much of the mission of law enforcement to protect and serve the people entrusted to their care,” he added. “When we look to the model of so many upstanding members of law enforcement, we see the humble expression of these Christian virtues of service and sacrifice in action.”

Named for the blue uniforms worn by law enforcement, the school’s Blue Mass annually recognizes and remembers the service and sacrifice of those in law enforcement and that of their families.

In keeping the sentiments of service and sacrifice at the forefront, the school began a long-term initiative last year on Veterans Day, when students, faculty and staff of the school began raising funds for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. The Foundation helps to provide mortgage-free homes, and other financial supports, to Gold Star and fallen first responder families with young children, and helps to build custom-designed smart homes for catastrophically injured veterans and first responders.

“What a gift it has been to our school to come together in support of this mission,” said Victoria Proctor, dean of students, who also sang a self-composed song titled, “What a Hero Means to Me,” together with her kindergartener, in remembrance of fallen officers, among them her late husband and alumnus of the school Summit Police Detective Matthew Tarantino ICS ’02 and IHS ’06.

Citing the words of St. Teresa of Calcutta, Proctor said the school “began this initiative as a tangible way of showing that ‘if we do small things with great love,’ that if we each give a little with the greater mission in mind, we can do great things.”

Each week, the school recognized the “star homeroom” that raised the most money, cheering over the loudspeaker as they met their first milestone of $100, then $500, then $1,000, then $2,000. In total, the school raised $3,955 for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. To mark their contribution and in a show of his gratitude, Frank Siller, chairman and CEO of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, who lost his brother, Stephen, a firefighter with the Fire Department of the City of New York, in the attack on the World Trade Centers on Sept. 11, 2001, attended the Mass and accepted the check on behalf of the Foundation.

Thanking Siller for his presence at the Mass, Proctor said, “You at the Tunnel to Towers Foundation are doing great things, and much like the members of law enforcement that we honor here today, you are a selfless example for our students to follow.”

“When tragedy strikes, the support of others is invaluable. Today, our school community’s gift to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation is given in honor of the law enforcement members and families present here today. In their name, in honor of their sacrifices, we humbly present a gift today that reflects the great love of our Immaculate Conception School community.”
 
Immaculate Conception School, a parochial grade school serving students in grades Pre-K through 8, helps to foster in each student a personal relationship with God. In partnership with students and their families, Immaculate Conception School is committed to developing the spiritual, academic and emotional dimensions of all students, enabling them to live responsibly and creatively in the world. For more information, visit: icsschool.org.