BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge Helen Shores Lee challenged the 38 graduates of Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School to pursue their dreams and remember the sacrifices of others in the past in an inspiring keynote address Saturday.
Judge Lee’s speech referenced sacrifices by Birmingham Foot Soldiers in the 1960s and her late father, legendary civil rights attorney Arthur Shores, who defended Black civil rights protesters in the 1960s and took part in the historic 1954 Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education case that outlawed segregated schools.
“Don’t let anybody deter you from pursuing your dreams,” Lee said. “Find a cause to get behind. Do not ever forget your heritage. Embracing the future means very little if you don’t know about your past.”
Lee commended the academic success at Holy Family Cristo Rey in Ensley, where two of her grandsons attend. The graduation took place at Cathedral of Saint Paul, 2120 3rd Avenue North in downtown Birmingham.
Four Holy Family Cristo Rey seniors received more than $241,000 in scholarship offers, led by Brianna Todd with $498,460 in offers from multiple colleges and Valedictorian Khayla Jones $424,584 in college scholarship offers.
In third and fourth place, respectively, were Co-Salutatorians Elijah Brown with $374,944 in college scholarship offers, and Carlton Hicks with $241,079 in college scholarship offers.
The 38 seniors received a combined school record $3.16 million in scholarship offers, and 100 percent of the graduates have been accepted into 57 colleges across the country, according to school college counselor Pamela Cowan. The scholarship total does not include honors and awards from private organizations, nonprofits and businesses.
Located at 2001 19th St. Ensley, Holy Family Cristo Rey’s unique work-study program allows students aged 14 and up to offset much of their tuition by working in more than 90 businesses across metro Birmingham one day a week. Since the school became affiliated with the Chicago-based Cristo Rey Network in 2007, 100 percent of its seniors have graduated and been accepted into college.
Holy Family Cristo Rey is currently accepting applications for the 2014-15 school year. For details, call Beverly Dixon, Director of Admissions, at (205) 263-0133, email bdixon@hfcristorey.org, or go to www.hfcristorey.org. Follow the school on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
