Cougar community finishes final school year with positive spirit
For the past 70 years, life at Christ the King School, Norfolk, has been filled with quiet moments and tender triumphs.
It’s been planting a butterfly garden with your own, small hands. The crunch of carrot sticks, the sound of basketballs in the gym, and walking out into the sunshine to cross the street for Wednesday Mass.
It’s been your best friend waiting on the playground for you in matching purple and gold.
Christ the King School (CTK) welcomed its first class in 1954, under the direction of the first resident pastor of the parish, Father Conrad Hoffner, and the Franciscan Sisters of Baltimore.
At the end of this academic year, the school closed its doors for the final time. And yet, CTK will not lose its place in its families’ hearts.
“It’s been a very special place,” CTK parent Stephanie Hudson said. “It’s the place where we’ve made lifelong friends.”
‘Bittersweet’
On Jan. 7, Father Augustine Lukenge, pastor of Christ the King parish, wrote a letter addressed to the school families.
“I write today with a heavy heart,” Father Lukenge wrote. “It is my solemn duty to share that, after nearly 70 years of service to the Norfolk community, Christ the King School will cease operations at the end of the current 2024-25 school year.”
Despite an outpouring of love and support, the school’s financial challenges were simply too great to overcome, he wrote.
“It’s bittersweet,” said Bonnie Johnson, interim principal and former CTK teacher. “We had a lifelong vision of creating an outdoor classroom, and we had finally achieved that. It’s a great outdoor space. We got to enjoy it for one year.”
Since news of the school’s closing, CTK held a number of open houses, inviting nearby schools to attend so that families of current students could explore their options.
“We did the best that we could so they could make informed decisions for their students,” Johnson said.
Until the last day of classes, the faculty and staff were determined to keep the CTK Cougar spirit going, Johnson said, and to end the year in a joyful manner.
“We are still going on all of our end-of-the year field trips,” she said. “Last week, our first graders went to the zoo. It was a beautiful day.”
Last Bash
Hudson has been part of the CTK family since 2009. Together, she and her husband have six children, all of whom have attended Christ the King.
Hudson recalled her first visit to the school, when her oldest children were still prospective students.
“We toured Christ the King, and we just loved it. It had a great family atmosphere,” she said.
Her years at CTK have given her a wealth of memories, she said.
“Connor, my oldest, was the youngest kid to run for student office. In third grade, he got up and spoke in front of the entire school,” she said.
Her son, Ryan, was the valedictorian of his eighth-grade class, ran track, and played basketball for the Cougars.
Fifth grader Blake – because there were too few fourth and fifth graders to form a basketball team of their own – “played up” this year, joining the eighth-grade team.
“It was so fun! He was fearless. He played against people a foot taller than he is. Growing up with older siblings prepares you,” Hudson said, laughing.
To show her gratitude for all that CTK has given her family, Hudson organized a “Last Bash” carnival, held at the school Saturday, May 17. A caterer and carnival ride company were brought in for the event.
“All of our CTK parents have volunteered for so long and have given so much,” Hudson said. “I wanted them to have the day off to enjoy themselves.”
At the event, former teachers and students returned to the school to reunite and reminisce.
Hudson’s fifth grader brought home a stack of handwritten notes from his class, thanking her and her husband for the carnival.
“It was so, so sweet,” she said. “I’m glad they all had so much fun. That is what we intended for everyone – to have one last bash, celebrating friendships that will last forever.”
Close-knit community
Tim Bishton attended CTK from kindergarten through eighth grade, from 1962 to 1971.
“I was fairly active in the parish,” Bishton said, explaining that he served as an altar boy and played football and basketball for the Cougars.
“I started cantoring there, and I’m still in the choir now at St. Michael in Richmond. That started me on my musical journey, so to speak,” he said.
Bishton recalled the CTK of his childhood as a labor of love, of multiple generations working together.
“We had a volunteer crew of people who kept the lights on and the building running,” he said. “That was how we did things. My grandparents were very involved. My dad was in heating and air-conditioning, Mr. [Lee] Eyler was the electrician.” Both volunteered their services to the school, he said.
Bishton recalled having bingo in the cafeteria for a school fundraiser. Among his favorite memories, however, were the end-of-the-year bazaars in the school parking lot.
“We would pull out all of the wooden beams and reassemble the booths and bring in some carnival rides. Everyone just chipped in and made it happen. There was a cake bake-off and musical chairs. It was a wonderful community event,” he said.
“We were a small, tight-knit community,” he said. “Mostly, we were just kids growing up and having fun with our friends.”
His years at the school have had a lasting influence on his life, he said.
“I’m still a practicing Catholic,” he said. “I still try to live my faith as much as I can. It guided me to have a good life. You don’t have to be special to treat people with respect and love.”
Purple and gold
“Christ the King – when we went to school there – was your family, your community, it was a part of your life,” said Sandy Kanter, Bishton’s sister and a graduate of CTK’s eighth grade class of 1973.
“You went to church there, you knew your sibling’s friends, you had your afternoon activities there. It’s like the whole place was one big support system,” she said.
Kanter credits the parents and grandparents for working to make Christ the King such a loving community.
“Everyone helped. My grandmother ran one of the booths there during the summer bazaar,” she said.
Two of her lifelong friends, in fact, are friends she made at Christ the King, Kanter said.
“It’s sad that it’s closing, but that is a part of life,” she said. “You have to adapt and be positive. And I was always surrounded by positive people.”
“‘Purple and gold’ has a special place in my heart,” she said.