Yesterday, Loretto High School announced it will be closing its doors in June.

Since I heard the news, I feel like I've been walking around in a daze for the whole day. I'm trying to make sense of how to exist in a world where Loretto doesn't. It's hard to explain to people who don't or have not experienced it themselves, but the impact of Loretto closing is larger than I think anyone could imagine. It sounds cheesy and sounds cliché, but those four years I was there were truly the four of the best years of my life. And this isn't something I now only recognize in retrospect, I've always thought that and I never let myself forget that I am who I am because of Loretto and all of the people I met there. I grew up there, not only in age, but emotionally and mentally.

Every square inch of that campus was my home. It was the place I learned to grow up and I firmly believe that my experience at Loretto has made me who I am today. I struggled a lot through elementary and junior high school after being diagnosed with Alopecia and losing my hair. I didn't think I would find a place where all judgments could be put aside and I could grow into a confident and strong person. I found that at Loretto, though, and because of the people I met there and the teachers and administration who guided me, I found the courage to stand up and move forward.

The first assembly we had back in the fall of 2003, I remember Sister Helen said, "You are Loretto wherever you go." At the time, we didn't get it and I don't think we particularly knew what to make of it, but after graduating, I found myself in another strange world: College. And at moments when I felt lost or confused, the one thing that kept me grounded was knowing that I was Loretto wherever I went. And even hundreds of miles away from 2360 El Camino Avenue, I was reminded of the person I worked to become and the people who helped me get there, and I felt comfort in knowing that no matter how our lives change or how the earth moves, there was always a place I could call home.

It was tough at first, adjusting to life in southern California. I had to think about what to wear in the mornings and it was strangely sunny when it shouldn't have been. On Wednesday afternoons I didn't have Room 43 and Shakespeare Society to go to and there was no Senior Lawn I could dump my backpack on in between classes. I started working at Albertsons, pushing carts and cleaning bathrooms, humming the Loretto Fight Song to myself (because I seriously think I will never forget it after all the many times Mr. Lien made us march around the choir room singing it) and wondering when I would use the quadratic formula (the song for that is still in my head too).

I've since quit Albertsons though. After talking my way into a Student Assistant job at UCI's School of the Arts last March, I've worked my way up to having my own office and working as the School's student graphic designer/publicist and sending out press releases like there's no tomorrow. I've chosen to double major in both Literary Journalism and Global Cultures and am considering a minor in Religious Studies too. I still read my journals from the many retreats over the four years and I wear my Senior Sweatshirt on days when it actually gets cold in Irvine.

Every single person I have met and known at Loretto has affected my life. I met my best friends at Loretto and people I can call my mentors. My drive, my motivation, my ability to challenge and question the world and my confidence to take on the world is all because of Loretto High School, and I will be forever grateful.

Thank you...and good night.