The end of the school year is always bittersweet — and very busy. Because Memorial Day falls during our year-end Spring Revue, it gives us a meaningful opportunity to honor members of our military and those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country. This year, we also celebrated our nation’s 250th anniversary. Led by our music and drama teachers, with support from several talented parents, our faculty created a wonderful tribute to America’s founding.
The program introduction read:
“Liberty’s Lanterns,” a patriotic, faith-centered program, celebrates our nation’s 250th birthday, America’s founding ideals, and each generation’s responsibility to preserve liberty and speak God’s truth fearlessly.
After the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem, we traveled back in time to Philadelphia in 1776, where we encountered Benjamin Franklin — it was electric! We were reminded that America’s story is not merely written in history; it is written in moments when people, trusting God with their lives, chose faith over fear, truth over comfort and responsibility over silence.
We were then introduced to Samuel Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and George Washington, followed by a rousing rendition of “Yankee Doodle Dandy” performed by our first graders.
We were reminded of these words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
The program continued to Valley Forge in 1778 with George Washington, then to Gettysburg with Abraham Lincoln, accompanied by familiar and beloved songs such as “You’re a Grand Old Flag” and “America the Beautiful.”
In just one hour, students from kindergarten through 12th grade presented a memorable history lesson and a heartfelt tribute.
As Benjamin Franklin warned, “We have a republic, if we can keep it.” Pass the torch of liberty to the next generation, let our light and our lanterns shine brightly. It’s our responsibility to teach our children to love our country; if we don’t, who will?
As Ronald Reagan said, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
To conclude the year, we celebrated the graduation of three seniors who completed the rhetoric stage with the presentation of their senior thesis at Flagler College. Our Parati celebration was held at the Treasury in downtown St. Augustine and included students in grades six through 12, their parents and teachers.
Parati, “prepared in mind and resources,” is a formal event to honor students completing the next level of their classical training. The evening involves dinner, speeches by both students and faculty, presentation of the Dialectic pins and Rhetoric blazers. When the formal part of the evening has been completed, the music plays, dancing begins and a memorable time is had by all!
St. John’s Academy exists to fulfill its purpose and mission to pass on a Christian worldview to the next generation and generations to come.
Learn more at www.stjohnsacademy.com.
