'More than a school'

After more than 50 years of educating children in Valley Stream, Blessed Sacrament School has closed its doors. To mark the closing, students, parents, teachers, alumni and parishioners gave the school a special sendoff.

Several hundred people visited the facility last Sunday afternoon — nine days after its last eighth-grade class graduated — to celebrate 53 years of Catholic education. Many were alumni who wanted one last opportunity to see their old classrooms and reminisce about their elementary-school days — which, for some of the visitors, ended in the early 1960s.

Pascale Laguerre, Andre Desire, Virgilio Lopez and Natalie Jean, 2009 graduates, walked around the school together. “This is where our friendships were established,” said Jean. “We’re still good friends.”

She added that she is sad to see the school close because she wanted to send her own children there.

Desire said he felt bad for the teachers who have to find other jobs. “They worked here for so many years,” he said.

One of them is Susan Vaccaro, who has taught first and third grade in her 29 years at Blessed Sacrament. Vaccaro said she is very close to her former students, and has attended their weddings and the christenings of their children. “I always see my former students,” she said. “They don’t leave me. They’ve given more to me than I could ever give to them.”

Vaccaro, who spent much of the afternoon hugging former students and sharing memories, gathered them all together for a picture with her. As cameras snapped, she asked, “Who’s going to email this to me?”

Memories never fade

Pam Reilly, who walked around the school with several of her fellow 1971 graduates, said the class was a cohesive group, and most still keep in touch.

Dario Rossi, one of those classmates, had nothing but good things to say about Blessed Sacrament. “It was probably the greatest time of our life,” he said. “This is what shaped us as adults.”