The Catherine Garcia-McDonnell Collection
Dr. Catherine Garcia-McDonnell expands our view of St. Norbert life with this collection from her time as an elementary school student, and that of her younger sister, Elizabeth Ann. They attended along with a brother Michael Mark, who stayed for one year, and cousins Charles and Robert Volland, students during the 1950's and 1960's (the cousins graduating from Edsel Ford High School in '71 and '73 respectively). Cathé (or Cathi, as she spelled it in her early elementary school days) attended St. Norbert's from 3rd grade through 8th (1956 through 1962). She went on to Inkster High for two years and graduated from Cherry Hill in 1966. After enjoying an education at Eastern Michigan University, Cathé completed her Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction from Wayne State University. She is currently retired after 30 years of teaching in the Westwood Community School District (Robichaud High School). She still lives in the area, not far from St. Norbert's. Her major claim to fame is that she was the girl singer with Inkster's premier rock and roll band, Jeff and the Atlantics (Jeff and Mark Williams, Tom Tyrell, Mike Fisher and Terry DesJardins), from 1963 through 1967. "Almost Famous!"
Lizz attended St. Norbert's from 1st grade (1959) through 9th grade Shared Time (1968). She moved from 27988 Rosewood, Inkster, Michigan, with her mom and dad, Miguel, and Helen Garcia, to Floresville, Texas and began the 11th grade graduating from Floresville High School a year later in 1971. She died at the age of 26. Cathé has included pictures of Lizz' First Communion, as well as her graduation photo and funeral card, the latter displayed on the dedication page.
The Dedication page now includes a remembrance of Joseph (Joey) Servantez, a good friend of Cathé, who submitted those photos. She includes Joey's 1966 Cherry Hill Senior Class picture, and photos of "the memorial brick we had created in his honor at the Michigan Vietnam Monument," a structure that was dedicated on Veteran's Day, November 11, 2001. Joey was on the St. Norbert's football team, and his name appears in some of the other publications Cathé submitted.
Cathé writes, "putting together the collection has been a wonderful experience/flashback for me and reemphasizes the great effect St. Norbert's schooling/church has had on my life. . . . . I hope you and all who view it will enjoy it as much as I do."
An inventory page will appear soon to assist in browsing this large collection. The contents include pictures of Cathé's sister Lizz, in honor of her memory, of her 1st Communion dress, and a couple class portraits, and 4 of her report cards. Cathé includes her own report cards revealing an exceptional student, a variety of Remembrance Cards, and membership cards in the Service squad and The St. Norbert's Youth Club. She has saved a couple class publications such as the Class of 1962 History, Wills and Prophecies. A copy of the CYO 'newspaper" is here, with a revealing look at the youth culture of the early 1960's. And a complete Class Yearbook from 1962 was included. I'm sure you will enjoy pouring over these pages.
