Blessing of the New School Building

A new two story school building that was errected on the grounds of St. Theresa's Convent School and St. Joseph's School on Stainforth Road in Newtown, Basseterre was officially opened and blessed at the special ceremony held on Monday morning, February 15, 2010 at 9.30 a.m.

The official cutting of the ribbon was done by Mr & Mrs Daniel and Kathleen Mezzalingua, the sole sponsors of the new school project.

It is hoped that soon after blessing, a second two story building will be errected on the other side of the school yard. The buildings will house the new Immaculate Conception Catholic School which will come into being when the existing catholic schools, the St. Theresa’s Convent School and the St. Joseph’s Primary School officially merge later this year.

A special body; Board of Trustees has been formed to "re-create" the catholic school and to ensure that this new school, which will be named after the parish in which it is located, will seek, through an innovative curriculum, to engage its students in learning that is dynamic, interactive and creative in preparing them to become productive and responsible citizens. It will seek to make the students to grow and mature in a safe Christian environment. The Board is seeking also to preserve the herritage and history of the two former schools which existed here for the past 100 years.

The new school is coming into being through initative and very generous finacial help of Mezzalingua family who are the owners of the Kajola Kristada Ltd. in St. Kitts. It was an initiative of now late Laurie Mezzalingua who for numbers of years struggled with the breast cancer and her parents to help the children of St. Kitts by building a world class facility for learning for two of the oldest well known schools of St. Kitts. At the ground breaking ceremony for the new school in January 2008, the late Laurie Mezzalingua had explained that the philanthropic gesture was her family’’s way of giving back to the island of St. Kitts as it has given them a "special gift in the people we’’ve met." The philantropic gestures of the Mezzalingua family are well known not just in St. Kitts. Laurie also founded in USA the Saint Agatha Foundation, which is named for the patron saint for those battling breast diseases, to help directly women suffering from the breast cancer.

Prior to the blessing of the new building of the school the Immaculate Conception Co-Cathedral Parish organized a special Dinner "Tribute of Love" in the Royal St. Kitts Hotel at which the Mezzalingua family was specially honoured by the parish. On Sunday, February 14 at 9.00a.m. a special Memorial Mass for the late Laurie Mezzalingua was celebrated at the Immaculate Conception Co-Cathedral on East Independence Square, Basseterre.