SJU blesses new bridge and townhomes at ceremony
Students, faculty, administration and surrounding community members joined speakers to bless the new St. Elizabeth Seton Townhomes and Nicol Bridge. Guests were provided a meal following the ceremony.
On Friday, Oct. 14, St. John’s University hosted a dedication and blessing ceremony of the new St. Elizabeth Seton Townhomes and the Nicol Bridge.
Bennett Morgan, the vice president of the Boards of Trustees, began the ceremony, followed by a prayer by Abbott John Klassen. SJU Student Senate President Duran Thompson then spoke on behalf of the student body, offering gratitude and reflection.
“The convenience, cost and peace of mind that living in quality college sanctioned housing offers are hard to beat,” Thompson said. “Campus housing effectively integrates learning and social development by providing students the opportunity to form an identity and form a sense of community with the institution and our peers. It’s proven that students who live on campus generally participate in more campus activities, take advantage of campus resources and just be more involved with leadership experiences.”
He said that student excitement has been growing for years as the planning and construction process has progressed. He added that the new bridge offers safety and connection for Johnnies that makes the campus feel like home. SJU Senate First-Year Representative Ilhan White attended the event to see the new buildings. He was optimistic to see that the university leadership was investing in new infrastructure to support the value of on campus community engagement.
“It shows they are committed to advancement, to progress [and] to students concerns,” White said.
Following Thompson’s remarks, President Brian Bruess spoke, depicting the bridge as an impressive infrastructural feat and the newest icon of St. John’s.
“It’s not just the aesthetics or the magnitude of this beautiful bridge, crossing was built for safety… it also serves an important function. It connects the upper and lower campus and [creates] a grand entry, a gateway to Flynntown,” Bruess said.
He noted that the new townhomes are named in honor of Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first person from the United States to be canonized as a saint. Bruess thanked the former interim presidents, construction teams, relevant campus departments, the board of trustees, the finance committee and the family of Tom and Elizabeth Nicol—who the bridge was named after.
In the second portion of the ceremony, Klassen read a prayer and blessing, followed by a sprinkling of holy water on the buildings and bridge which he conducted with a group of student leaders. Following the blessing, Tom Nicol ’91 thanked the university and monastery.
“I can’t tell you what this place has meant to our family. [We are] very very appreciative,” Nicol said. “The bridge is about connection, Flynntown is about connection and it’s about residential life. It’s about building community, and we’re very excited and honored to be a part of that.”
After the dedication ceremony, Bruess said that in addition to demonstrating the value of community engagement, the construction of these facilities reflects other campus values such as sustainability.
“The request was to have the roofs run off to the back of the buildings so we can catch the water, put it in retaining ponds, and then refill the aquifer. So those kinds of thinking about the environment, doing it in a responsible fashion reflects the Benedictine value of stewardship as well,” he said.
The ceremony was followed by a barbeque and celebration hosted in the McKeown Center. It was a gathering of campus staff, students, alums and those involved in the building process.