Important News for Next Week!

Holy Rosary Bilingual Academy

Father Wagner's Funeral - No School on Wednesday

The services have been finalized for Fr. Wagner's funeral next week. Please read through all of the information below. There is NO SCHOOL on Wednesday. All are welcome to the vigil, funeral, reception, and graveside services.


Vigil on May 8th - The Vigil will be held on Tuesday evening (5/8) at Visitation Church (3314 S 58th St, Tacoma, WA 98409) from 6 - 9 pm. This will include a rosary. There will be a small reception immediately following the Vigil in the Visitation Hall.


Funeral on May 9th - The funeral service will be celebrated by Archbishop Peter Sartain at Holy Rosary Church on Wednesday, May 9th at 10 am. The mass is expected to be about 2 hours long, with dozens of priests and an estimated 700 or more people in attendance. The church will likely be packed, so we are working on trying to broadcast the service to an overflow area in the school's auditorium (If you know anyone who specializes in this, please let me know). The reception will be immediately following the service in the Holy Rosary school auditorium on the 3rd floor. All are welcome to attend.


No School on Wed (5/9) - Because of the massive number of people on campus, the time of the funeral and reception, the desire for our staff to be a part of this, and the parking situation, we will NOT have school on Wednesday. I know this can be a burden on some working families and we hope you will understand that this is an extraordinary situation. We are doing our best to support the family and the many parishioners from all around the Puget Sound region who wish to come and pay their respects for the work that Father Wagner did in the Archdiocese of Seattle. The Superintendent for Catholic Schools is supportive of our decision to close the school that day. If you are having a difficult time finding childcare that day, please let us know and we will do our very best to put you into contact with other families who may be able to help out. Again, thank you for your understanding during this very difficult time for our community.


Thursday, May 10th - Graveside services will be held at Calvary Cemetery in Seattle. The time is still to be determined. The cemetery is located at: 5041 35th Ave NE, Seattle, WA 98105. More information to follow on this, but the family would like you to know that all are welcome.


Please let me know if you have any questions. We are getting this information out to you as soon as we confirmed everything, as we know that many of you will need time to make arrangements for next Wednesday. Please continue to pray for the family and for Fr. Wagner's soul.


Blessings,

Katie Dempsey

What Can I Do to Help?

In the past 3 weeks, many families have asked how they can help. We put out the link for people to bring meals and that has been amazing. Not only have many families stepped up to do this, but they have thanked us for including them. Many of you have also donated bedding and mattresses. This means so much to the family. A loss to one of us is a loss to all of us, as we are all a family. Here are a few other options, if you would like other ways to assist at this time:


  1. Weeding in front of the church and around the school. If you are available to help clean up the grounds, please come by between 10 am - 3 pm Friday (tomorrow) or Saturday. Bring gardening clothes, gloves and tools (if you have them). This counts for school service hours for each person who helps!
  2. If you would like to make a monetary donation to help cover the costs associated with the funeral and reception, please feel free to drop off a donation (even $5 can help) at the school or church offices. Just put the envelope/check attention to Holy Rosary Church.
  3. Bring your child to the funeral on Wednesday to show your support. Children are requested to be in their uniforms that day.

Flowers for Mass Tomorrow!

This is just a quick reminder...send your child with a flower for the May Crowning mass tomorrow at 9 am. Please join us, if you can. It will be a beautiful service.