The St. John Community Plants a Tree in Honor of Carl J. Spellacy’s Legacy
By: Kate Droege
On September 16, 2009, St. John the Evangelist lost a vibrant member of its community, Carl J. Spellacy. Carl was a tireless volunteer in the St. John Parish and school. Two of his daughters are graduates of SJE School and his son, Shawn, is currently in the 7th grade. Carl was always willing to lend a hand, be it chaperoning field trips, coaching CYO sports, volunteering with the Knights of Columbus or his specialty, grilling the food for many parish functions. For these reasons and countless more, the SJE community will mourn the loss of Carl for many years to come. It is fitting then that a tree was planted on the school grounds in honor of Carl’s memory.
The tree, a seven-year old Dawn Redwood seedling, was donated by parishioner/school parent, Brian Barr, Director of Horticulture at Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, Marjorie Merriweather Post's estate in Washington, DC. On September 25th, the seventh grade class, led by teacher Mrs. Emily Hunn and Father Michael Briese, held a special liturgy and tree dedication ceremony in memory of Carl. The tree was planted on the “little playground” used by SJE pre-K and Kindergarten students.
SJE Principal Sr. Kathleen Lannak, I.H.M., who plays an important role in everything that happens at SJE, said “It was an especially moving celebration of our faith, with the tree offering the promise of new life in the Resurrection and the children representing our hope for the future.”
Said Mr. Barr, “I believe the location of the tree is just perfect because there is so much life around it on a daily basis with the children laughing and running on the playground. Carl also gave several hours in service to St. John's grilling not far from the tree's present location, which is really special.”
According to Mr. Barr, the Dawn Redwood is an ideal legacy tree because it will outlive most of us all. It will grow to be more than 100 feet tall and in 10-15 years time, it should be visible from the front of the school.
This tree is significant to the SJE community for many reasons. But just like
the tree from the famous children’s book The Giving Tree, this new tree on our
playground will serve as a constant reminder of Carl’s generous spirit and
loving nature.
