This article appeared in the St. Sebastian's School Magazine.
The Guilded Ladies of St. Sebastian's
The Guild of St. Irene began its service to St. Sebastian's School in 1949. Msgr. McInnis started both the Men's Association and the Guild as ways to promote fund raising for the struggling School.
Fr. Fitzgerald '49 says that the Guild was appropriately named after St. Irene, who ministered to St. Sebastian after he had been shot by arrows, just as the Guild has nurtured the School through its contributions of money, talent and time ever since. "That's the spirit of St. Sebastian's School," he says. Fr. Fitzgerald remembers being a white-coated waiter at teas given by the Guild. To this day, he still keeps a small statue of St. Sebastian and a silver medal the Guild gave as gifts to the alumni in the early years.
The Guild's Christmas Shoppe was open for business in 1950. Msgr. Shea, a faculty member from 1949-1956, remembers that the Christmas Shoppe was a real fund-raiser for the School. "One year, soon after Cardinal Cushing had become Archbishop of Boston, he called Fr. Flanigan and said, 'Charlie, do you have any room over there? I'm trying to make room here for my filing cabinets and this place is filled with junk. Send over a truck. You're having a White Elephant sale!'' recalls Msgr. Shea. "And, oh, the most wonderful stuff came over and it was all sold for the School at the ladies' Christmas Shoppe."
Former president of the Guild, Anne Mulroy, fondly remembers the helping hands of Father Jim Keating at Guild events. "He was our good friend, our welcoming host at McInnis Hall, our organist at Masses, and our entertainment at parties, as well as our carpenter and electrician for the Christmas Shoppe," she says.
Many helping hands made the work lighter and a lot more fun, according to Michele Cusack P'88. "It was a very nice social time, but we were also very productive,'"she recalls. "We'd all get together in the morning to set up for the bazaar and we'd have coffee and Danish and then just get to work. People would just show up for however much time they could spare and everything would get done and it was a great time," she says. Cusack remembers Guild members donating homemade dinners like lasagna to be raffled off, learning to make all kinds of craft items to sell and decorate with, and the kids having their pictures taken with Santa. "It was a big success and a lot of fun. It was just positive all the way,' she recalls.
Eventually, the auction replaced the bazaar as the primary fund raising event for the Guild, recalls Pat Simmons P'88. "There were all kinds of things that were donated and as the auction years went on, the auction got larger and livelier. I remember giving Fr. Riepe a check from the Guild for $50,000," she says. "Paul Saperstein, the auctioneer from Boston, donated his time. He got the most out of everybody at the auction and he was just a super guy. The Guild donated a trophy case to St. Sebastian's in the name of Paul because we wanted his efforts to be remembered," Simmons recalls. The auction has been a very successful fund raising event and a community building experience for the women of the Guild. "It was a great opportunity for parents to get involved in all kinds of ways," she says. "And everybody worked really hard and they were happy to do so because it's a great school."
Denise Mulroy P'02, '07 still remembers the auction that took place during her presidential year. "People register to enter the bidding process and they get a number so that we know who bid on what. I had to distribute the items to the winning bidders later, but the winning bidder on a kayak was not registered, so I had no idea who to call to come and pick it up," she recalls. "Poor Charlie (Lampman, Director of Maintenance) had to move that thing from closet to closet, waiting for its owner to come and get it," she says. "Finally, I asked Rich Arms and he knew exactly who had bought the kayak. I think the man turned out to be in charge at the New York Stock Exchange!"
The women of the Mulroy family have given much time and talent to the Guild over the years, but they feel fortunate to have been able to gain just as much in return. Anne Mulroy explains the impact of the Guild on the women's lives this way: "The Guild brought us closer to the life of the School and the lives of our sons so that we were enriched by the entire St. Sebastian's community. As we worked together, played together, and prayed together, we developed friendships that endure to this day. These friendships grew not only from our common goals but also from a wellspring of devotion to the School. We are proud of the accomplishments of St. Sebastian's today and wish it unparalleled success in the future."
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