St. John the Evangelist Catholic School
Celebrating 150 Years of Catholic Education

By Kanobia Russell-Blackmon | The Catholic Compass | May/June 2024

As the oldest Catholic school in Northwest Florida and the second oldest Catholic school in the state, St. John the Evangelist kicked off its sesquicentennial with a concelebrated Mass of Thanksgiving on January 29 with Bishop William A. Wack, CSC of Pensacola-Tallahassee and Father John Licari, pastor of St. John Parish. Students, alumni, clergy, and guests filled the church to celebrate 150 years of Catholic education and evangelization.

History of St. John the Evangelist Catholic School
The history of the founding of the school began in 1825 with the establishment of the Navy Yard. The federal government developed the Warrington and Woolsey communities to accommodate about 500 workers and their families who worked on the Navy Yard. The Secretary of the Navy authorized the construction of St. John the Evangelist Church in 1850 by reason of the huge number of Catholics. As a consequence of the need for a school over the initial two decades of the parish, the Sisters of St. Joseph founded St. John’s Academy in 1874.

Linda Robinson, the current school’s director of institutional development, explained, “The nuns took this community of military families and those laborers into their hearts.” 
Unfortunately, when the yellow fever epidemic struck the community, schooling ceased as the sisters spent most of their time caring for the sick until many eventually succumbed to the disease. After the school reopened in 1878 under the guidance of the Sisters of Mercy, again tragedy struck when a fire destroyed the church, school, and convent in 1882. Even after a significant rebuild, the community faced the additional setbacks of another yellow fever epidemic and a major hurricane. Robinson explained that while it was not an easy road, the work of sisters and the community kept them going. Trusting in divine providence and grace, they found the will to continue because of their belief in God.

As wooden ships were no longer in demand, the Navy Yard closed in 1911. Subsequently, because more space was needed for the expansion of the Pensacola Aeronautical Station, the federal government authorized and reopened the Navy Yard. Unfortunately, this decision meant the parish and school would have to relocate. By 1931, a new school – known as St. John the Evangelist – and a parish and rectory were reestablished across the Bayou Grande on Navy Boulevard in the New Warrington area. Robinson explained that the perseverance of the Sisters of Mercy and the Catholic community is the very reason the school is celebrating 150 years of faithful service. She explained, “It was all about the Catholic faith and the children on the base and the families on the base and serving them.”

The Sisters of Mercy led the school for 130 years. Successful in teaching and advancing the faith within the community, the congregation of religious women cultivated a lasting relationship between the school and the military that is still present today. Sister Patricia Ann Pepitone, the last Sister of Mercy who served as principal (1993-2008) shared how the St. John school community was a family during her tenure and remains that way today.
“Somebody would come to my door and say that they were having a problem, and we could help them by coming together,” said Sister Pepitone. 
While for a brief period the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco staffed the school in 2008, the sisters were reassigned in 2010.

St. John Today
These days, a lay principal is leading St. John the Evangelist School, Raymond Concannon. Concannon said adhering to traditions is one of many things that is special about the school. Students receive a “traditional education” rooted in Catholic identity – weekly Mass, and regular opportunities for prayer, adoration, and spiritual retreats. The school annually hosts the Sunset 5k Run and Walk, a Lenten Walk, and an Our Lady of Guadalupe procession. A distinctive feature of the school is its Morning Star Program, which helps students exceed academically and developmentally. Now in its twelfth year, the program ensures support for students with special needs. 
In 2022, St. John was designated a Purple Star school – recognizing the school for supporting the unique needs of military children and their families. A staff member works with the families to make the transition to the school a straightforward process. The school enjoys an enrollment of about 280 students, which sometimes fluctuates throughout the school term because of the permanent change of station moves of military families.

School Anniversary Mass
During the concelebrated Mass commemorating the sesquicentennial, Bishop Wack commended the teachers, faculty, and staff, and the students – both past and present – explaining their roles as faithful followers of Christ. In expressing gratitude to the families who continue to send their children to St. John for a Catholic education, Bishop Wack stated, “We always want to say that it’s not just learning about math and science and the arts.” He went on to explain, “We educate minds, and we inform the hearts of students, the whole person.”

The liturgy concluded with a special presentation, led by a student, where symbols of the school were presented to the altar. The items included a Bible, crucifix, school bell, school textbook, a circle of hands and a candle. All served as “guides on our journey of faith and preparation to respond to the call to grace as children of God.” Father Licari also announced that the school received a Papal Blessing to honor St. John on its sesquicentennial.
More than forty alumni of the school participated in the celebration, reunited with old friends, and reminisced about their days of old. Alumni reviewed the photographs on display which inevitably brought back wonderful memories of their school days. Robby Youd (1965), Clancy Peterson O’Donnell (1963), Freddie Willis Thompson (1959), and Sarah Blake Weeks (2001) shared cherished memories as students.

Youd shared, “Sister Marietta, who was my first-grade teacher, taught me the value of obedience and doing what you’re told to do.” O’Donnell shared an embarrassing exchange while in the sixth grade when she passed a note to a boy. She revealed, “I passed a note to a boy and the note got confiscated [by Sister Giovanni]. She took me in the hallway and said, ‘Do you want me to read this note in front of everybody?’” O’Donnell remembers responding, “‘No, please don’t read it,’ I was already embarrassed enough.”

One of the reasons family is a common theme rests in the reality of the multiple familial generations within the alumni. Thompson explained that she was the first generation of her family to attend the school, an enormous sacrifice for her parents. Appreciating and enjoying her tenure in the school, she believed her parents “felt the value of a good Catholic education,” because “[St. John] was like family; You knew everybody, and they took good care of you.”

Weeks – a legacy member of the community so to speak – speaks from the perspective of a student, parent, and teacher. Weeks, whose parents and grandparents are alumni, conveyed that she not only received a solid education, but also grew in her faith. Today, her three children are students and she is a paying it forward as a Pre-K4 teacher in the school.

What’s New
St. John the Evangelist School will continue to celebrate its jubilee year at its annual Sunset 5k Run and Walk on May 11 and its fundraising gala on Oct. 25. Construction is already underway for its new sports pavilion. The pavilion, which is expected to be completed by the summer, will be used for volleyball, basketball, physical education classes, pickleball and school and parish events. With the growth in the area, Concannon and the community are looking forward to what lies ahead for the school community.