The day that every Mount Mercy student eagerly awaits occurred on Thursday, Feb. 2. The juniors from the Class of 2018 received their school rings in a ceremony held at the Mercy Center Chapel. Sixty-six students placed the distinctive Mercy ring on their fingers for the first time.
Dawn Robertson, Mount Mercy’s Computer and Career Development Chairperson and an alumna, served as the mistress of ceremony for the evening. Junior class president Olivia Andriaccio welcomed the parents, family, friends, faculty and Sisters of Mercy to the ceremony. The class vice president, Julia Acosta, explained the history of the ring.
The signature Mercy Ring, a rite of passage and responsibility, was first worn in 1916. The ring is a reminder of the virtues held dear by Mercy students and alumnae. The gold band represents loyalty to God, country and school. The seven pearls represent faith, hope, charity, obedience, humility, patience and joy.
The students received their rings from Margaret M. Cronin, the school’s president, and Margaret Staszak, the school’s principal. Both women graduated from Mount Mercy and received their rings during a ring day ceremony.
Beth Ilecki, a member of the Languages Other Than English Department and a 2005 graduate of Mount Mercy, addressed the members of the Class of 2018 about what her ring has meant to her and the significance of the Mount Mercy Academy ring. She told the class that the entire school was “excited to see where their rings would lead them in their lives.”
