St. Mary’s High School: Celebrating An Impressive Milestone

Photos by St. Mary’s high school and Sydney Spurgeon

A year-long calendar of special events will mark the 150th anniversary of the fourth-oldest business in San Joaquin County. St. Mary’s High School has a long tradition of excellence in academics, athletics, spiritual growth and community service.

“Over the past 150 years, the bonds that have been created among the students, families, our faculty and staff, the community, has really resulted in lasting and successful relationships,” St. Mary’s High School President Jim Brusa said. “We have a commitment to caring for these students and making sure they are getting the best Catholic high school education and developing into good people, which is more than just math, science and English. It’s about bringing out the best in every student, making sure they know that they are valued by being who they are and being that well.”

The school has been an important part of the fabric of the community since it opened in 1876 as St. Agnes Academy with 95 students enrolled and seven Dominican sisters on staff. Stockton’s founder, Capt. Charles Weber, granted land for a Catholic school to be built in the new port city. Weber and his wife wanted what most parents seek, a good school to give their children a strong foundation for their future. He also gifted the school a bell that will ring once more on August 28, 2025, at a 150th anniversary mass celebrated by Bishop Myron Cotta of the Diocese of Stockton. “He took his bell off his ship and gave it to St. Agnes and they rang that as their school bell,” said Stefani Delucchi, who has been researching the school’s history since she helped organize an exhibit on the school at the Haggin Museum back when St. Mary’s celebrated its 140th anniversary.

The college preparatory school was initially an all-girls school. It later merged with St. Mary’s, Stockton’s all-boys Catholic school. After several moves, the coed St. Mary’s High School landed on its current site on El Dorado Street in 1956. It is here that the school continued to grow and thrive. In 1970, the Oblates of Saint Francis de Sales were invited to administer at Saint Mary’s. Its iconic St. Mary’s statue is a comforting landmark on the 25-acre campus where more than 850 students will be welcomed for the 2025-26 school year. Today it is one of two high schools, 11 elementary schools and eight preschools in the Diocese of Stockton.

The school’s mascot, a mighty ram, has prompted the St. Mary’s community to call themselves the Ram Fam and feel secure in the knowledge that “once a Ram, always a Ram.” “You develop lifelong friendships at St. Mary’s,” Jim said. “We have so many alumni who just want to give back. We have a lot of alumni who come back and work here. We have a lot of alumni who bring generations of their children and grandchildren to school here.”

One such person is 94-year-old Rose Leonardini. “The St. Mary’s I attended was what is today Annunciation Elementary. I graduated in 1948 from St. Mary’s,” Rose said. In 1968, she started working at her alma mater as a Spanish teacher. She held many different roles at St. Mary’s High School, finally retiring from its Alumni Office in 2023 after setting a record for 55 years of service. This year, her great-granddaughter will be a freshman at St. Mary’s.

Steve Dougherty, Class of ’79, whose own mother attended St. Mary’s back when it was located on Lincoln and Magnolia streets, said it makes an education at St. Mary’s all the more meaningful when so many generations of the same family continue to obtain their education there. “My wife, Lisa, and I have just been heartened to see our three children graduate from St. Mary’s because we did as well,” he said.

Some are new to the Ram Fam but become deeply involved. When Dr. Roland Winter and his wife, Kristin Winter, were deciding where to send their four children to high school, St. Mary’s smaller size, its sports programs and academic options such as AP classes were appealing. “They left St. Mary’s fully prepared for college,” Kristen said, “St. Mary’s also instilled a strong foundation of the importance of faith in their lives and gave them life-long friendships.”

The Winter family became big boosters of St. Mary’s and were the driving force behind getting the track resurfaced several years ago at the Thompson Sports Complex. This year will be Dr. Winter’s 31st year serving as team doctor for the football team. He also served on the school board as both a member and co-chairman while Kristen coached distance track and was on the athletic advisory committee.

St. Mary’s espouses the quote of St. Francis de Sales to “Be Who You Are and Be That Well.” Over the years, it has built a reputation for its 100 percent graduation rate and the college prep academy sends nearly 99 percent of its graduates on to college.

St. Mary’s has so much to commemorate. The year-long celebration will kick off with Mass on its football field to accommodate all the current students, faculty, staff, families, community members and Diocese schools. A special alumni tailgate will be held in October during football season. There will be a Breaking Bread on the 50th Yard Line farm-to-fork dinner. It’s Visual and Performing Arts program will produce an alumni concert and the theater program plans to stage Hamlet in the fall and Mary Poppins in the spring. The school is working with its athletic gear representative to produce a 150th commemorative patch that will be featured on all athletic uniforms. “We’ve been building excitement for our 150th anniversary since our 140th,” Stefani said.

Alumni who take part in the celebrations will notice a lot of changes on campus since they attended. The latest is a gigantic new reader board at the entrance to the Thompson Sports Complex, which was donated by Francine Carruesco Thompson and Carl Thompson, Class of 1962. The state-of-the-art sign most recently played video of the class of 2025 graduation. It also displays the temperature, time and upcoming events.

Jim says he hopes excitement over the anniversary will inspire alumni and community to support St. Mary’s so that it can continue to build on its legacy of private education. “It’s an honor to lead SMHS during this historical milestone. I’d like to thank the many businesses, alumni and people in the community who continue to support the mission of SMHS,” he affirmed.