Paying Forward the Gift of Teaching

After viewing a gallery of photos from our 2023 Welcome Home event — an all-class reunion of Mount Assisi Academy alumnae — 1965 grad Phyllis Balkovitz Fassio was inspired to share her own Sister Story and tell us about an unexpected virtual reunion that reconnected her with her former students, who also happen to be 1978 MAA grads.

HOW IT WAS FOR PHYLLIS THEN

I am so grateful for the wonderful education I received at Mount Assisi Academy from September 1961 to May 1965 and, most especially, for the wonderful Sisters who were my role models.

I was in awe of how Sister Therese (Sedlock) could coax the most beautiful harmony from our Glee Club and how she opened our hearts to the beauty and power of Holy Mass. She was my inspiration to become a teacher and my inspiration when I was assigned to teach music at the junior high level. 

Sister Magdalene (Lovrich), who was always serene, opened my mind to geometry, which became the subject I most loved to teach as a high school math teacher. 

Sister Bonaventure (Melichar) convinced me to join Speech and Debate, which gave me the confidence I needed later in life. 

And it was Sister Agnes’ dynamic personality that Sunday afternoon of Open House that made me know this was the high school for me. Sister Agnes (Chvala) was the most amazing English teacher, and through Mrs. Macy’s suggestion my freshman year, Sister Agnes took me under her wing as reporter all four years, and then, as editor of our school newspaper my senior year. 

In order to meet the ever-looming deadlines, she and I would work after school mocking up the galley. Because of her guidance, I majored in English literature, hoping to get my master’s in journalism. But, along the way, I fell in love with teaching.

HOW IT IS FOR PHYLLIS now

Before attending Mount Assisi Academy, I attended St. Cyril of Alexandria in Brighton Heights for K-8. While finishing my degree at Mt. Mercy College (now Carlow University), I taught third grade at St. Cyril for two years (1967-1969). Upon graduating in May 1969 and marrying my husband, Ernie Fassio, in June 1969, it was off to White Oak, Pa. There, I taught at St. Angela Merici until we relocated to sunny Tucson, Ariz., in 1985. There, I taught high school math and was the district math specialist until retiring in 2014. That’s a lot of wonderful years in education.

Now, for the neat story which involves the Welcome Home event photos and my third-graders at St. Cyril …

Mrs. Margie Pusateri, also a third-grade teacher at St. Cyril, suggested I invite my students to walk in procession ahead of our bridal party, wearing their First Holy Communion attire. I still treasure this beautiful memory. So, when viewing the very first photo Welcome Home photo, you can’t imagine how surprised and thrilled I was to see my dear former third-grade students — Margie Fleisner Squiller, Mary Theresa Graziano Dunn, Mary Frances Donatelli Kahn and Diane Schmitt Doyle. I immediately recognized another photo, taken in the chapel, of Rosemary Gubser, my neighbor and big sister to Terry, who was my third-grade student. She looks just as beautiful, but all grown up! You also can’t imagine the joy it gave me to know that my former students at St. Cyril (the same elementary school I attended) chose MAA (the same high school I chose) and cherish the memories associated with “The Mount,” just as I do.

After receiving Phyllis’ story, the Sisters were able to reconnect her with her former students and fellow MAA alums. They worked together to identify almost everyone in their 1968-1969 St. Cyril class photo and, along the way, did quite a bit of reminiscing. Phyllis further explains:

I was absolutely delighted to hear from Margie Fleisner Squiller and Mary Theresa Graziano Dunn! They recruited an amazing team to identify the third-graders in the two class photos I sent them. They even reached out to five of the guys and two of the gals who didn’t attend MAA. I never dreamed that they would be so successful in identifying 85 of their 87 classmates from over five decades ago. While Margie said they had a good time hearing back with names for the faces, my heart was touched that they pitched in to do this — and that they still keep in contact. 

Margie also identified 10 St. Cyril students who were 1978 MAA alumnae and included a recent reunion photo of them at North Park — all grown up. 

We had the best time reconnecting and trading memories. I sent Margie a picture of the Kitchen Gadget Wedding Shower her class threw for me (gifts had to be under 50 cents). Margie sent a photo of a signed and dated St. Francis of Assisi prayer card with the Peace Prayer on the back, which each student received as a memento for being part of the wedding procession. They were all dressed in their First Communion attire and walking just ahead of my bridesmaids and ushers on June 21, 1969. I am touched and amazed that this little card was kept and survived 56 years!

We reminisced about former teachers, students who lived on Brandon Road where I had lived, and shared stories about classmates, their lives and even their beautiful wedding photos. 

I had one more request of Margie — to identify the 1977 MAA graduates who had attended St. Cyril. These students would have been members of the first class I taught. I thought this would be an easy task since seniors in the Chimes yearbook from 1962 to 1965 were identified by their parish. But, apparently, that custom died, so, Margie has a bit more work cut out for her. 

We agreed this was a wonderful walk down memory lane. I rarely get to know how my former students are doing once they leave my classroom, so I hold them in prayer each morning. I was overjoyed to know that this group of former students is well, happy and making a positive difference in the world.