'Not just classmates': A 50-year reunion celebrates and mourns a closed Catholic school

NORWOOD, Ohio ‒ Their school closed 40 years ago.

It was torn down 11 years ago.

But this year, the Sts. Peter and Paul School class of 1974 gathered to celebrate 50 years since their grade school graduation.

As each classmate approached the pavilion at Bechtold Park in this Cincinnati suburb, they were greeted one by one with immediate hugs and squeals of joy.

For the 17 who came from as far away as Canada, the reunion was more than just a chance to see the people they spent second through eighth grade with. In some ways, it was a chance to grieve that vanished world: a close-knit, homogeneous neighborhood Catholic school where everyone spent school days and weekends together.

Catholic schools in Cincinnati and other cities have been merging or closing for years as enrollments decline . But at the class's 50-year reunion, it was evident friendships have continued beyond the school walls, which are no longer standing.

"Catholic school was our world," said Kathy Kroell, a 1974 graduate.

What happened to Sts. Peter and Paul School

Sts. Peter and Paul School was built in 1921. It closed in 1984, a decade after Larry Bernhard and his peers graduated.

The school sent its students to Gressle School, another Catholic school supported by the Sts. Peter and Paul parish, among others.

The building was demolished in 2013 .

The original three Catholic parishes in Norwood, Sts. Peter and Paul, St. Elizabeth and St. Matthew, merged in 1994 to form Holy Trinity Parish. It is now one of five parishes in Crescent Parishes, a family of congregations created under the Archdiocese of Cincinnati's Beacons of Light program that combined parishes into groups that share priests and resources.

Holy Trinity operates out of the former Sts. Peter and Paul church, which could soon close, too.

"It's a reality," said Rita Most, a member of the Sts. Peter and Paul class of 1974 and a current congregant of Holy Trinity Parish.

This would leave Norwood, once a Catholic stronghold, without a Cincinnati archdiocese parish.

The last remnants of the Sts. Peter and Paul parish, one of the places where the 27 members of the class of 1974 found their community, would be gone.

"That church for me is like my whole life. I've always been connected to it," Most said. "It's very special."

'Not just classmates'

Sts. Peter and Paul was a Catholic school where everyone knew everyone. Mike Cartuyvelles recalled that, beyond the time spent together in the classroom, his class also spent most weekends together, playing sports, hanging out or grabbing a meal at Gribble's, now Quatman's Cafe.

Many of their parents were also friends within the parish.

In what they referred to as their "bubble," they spent time at a campus composed of Regina High School, the Archbishop's house and a seminary, all within a two-block radius. All are now closed; the seminary site is now Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Center .

"These are all brothers and sisters, not just classmates," Cartuyvelles said.

After their eighth-grade graduation, the class dispersed to high schools around the area, predominantly private Catholic schools like Regina, Purcell and St. Xavier.

Though Cartuyvelles said they got more disconnected after their school years, the classmates would grab drinks to catch up and were in each other's weddings.

Bernhard said the group reconnected when Sts. Peter and Paul was torn down. Technology helped the class keep in touch through the years, mostly through Facebook and WhatsApp.

Of the 27 classmates, 23 remain in contact via text group chats and email.

"If it was when we were growing up and you only had use of telephones and snail mail, I don't think this would have ever happened," Bernhard said.

Celebrating 50 years ... and beyond

One class member died in 2022. Dave Gajus knows that the class's time together is limited.

"It's more precious now," Gajus said.

Rita Most echoed his sentiment. A few years ago, she fought and won her battle with stomach cancer.

"Once you've had it, it's always in the back of your mind," Most said. "So, you start to look at life a little differently. I feel so blessed."

This year's reunion is not the first and won't be the last for the class of 1974. Classmates Amy Fitzpatrick and Kroell said they feel hopeful the group will continue to meet.

"It's better than a high school reunion," Kroell said. "These are the people you always gravitate back to."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'Not just classmates': A 50-year reunion celebrates and mourns a closed Catholic school