Most attendees arrived at the Towson Catholic High School Class of 2010 graduation in beach attire. The graduates had already done the cap-and-gown thing at numerous other high schools, where they were scattered when their alma mater closed before their final year.
Graduates crammed into restaurant booths and sipped sodas as they caught up on their unexpected senior year. Their parents tossed them a party at a Parkville crab house to give the graduates each a tasseled mortarboard, in the Towson Catholic blue and gold, and one last memory of the school.
Faced with a mounting deficit and low enrollment, the coed high school on the grounds of the Immaculate Conception parish closed last July.
"Mercy High was where I got my diploma," said Rachel Haley. "But Towson Catholic will always be where I went to high school."
Bittersweet gatherings like the "graduation" ceremony are likely to continue as the Archdiocese of Baltimore closes schools that are steeped in deep traditions and central to their communities. Alumni, even those who did not have the chance to graduate, cherish the memories from those schools and say they'll gather for reunions for many years to come. When St. Mary's in Govans became one of three elementary schools closed in 2009, more than 1,200 alumni returned for a reunion and parish fundraiser.
The archdiocese created a consolidation plan to address declining enrollment and closed another 13 schools this spring. Twelve elementary schools and Cardinal Gibbons High School held their last classes in June. Those buildings, many of them attached to vibrant parishes, now sit idle.
Gibbons' closure provoked an outcry from its students, parents, faculty and alumni. Efforts to dissuade church officials failed despite rallies, fundraising and an offer to reopen as an independent school. About 70 rising seniors from Gibbons now face the same difficult transition their peers at Towson Catholic endured this year.
"My best advice to Gibbons parents is get your kids involved in as many things as possible at their new school," said Donna Mitchell, whose son, Cody Mitchell, transferred to Baltimore Lutheran School from Towson Catholic. "It will help them adjust."
Like Gibbons, Towson Catholic parents, alumni and students fought the closing, even to the point of seeking a legal injunction. When their efforts failed, parents said they urged their children to look forward.
"We supported these kids as they moved on, and we encouraged them to embrace their new schools," said Joyce Rohlfing, mother of Bryan Rohlfing, a Baltimore Lutheran School graduate. "High school is not defined so much by a structure as by your friends."
The closure sent nearly 200 students scrambling for spots in other schools, and proved most painful for the dozens of rising seniors who had anticipated a year full of Towson Catholic traditions.
"This decision happened so quickly that it took us off guard," said Hannah Messina, a Mercy High graduate. "None of us had what we were used to for our senior year. If I learned anything, it's be prepared for the unexpected."
A few parents came up with a playful graduation to give the students one last Towson Catholic event.
"I know we are dragging this out, but everyone coming to the party will tell you this is what they want," said Lois Windsor, parent of Elisa Windsor, who just graduated from Mercy.
The parents posted a "Welcome Back!" sign at the entrance to the restaurant, decorated the room in blue and gold and served a large cake iced with "Congratulations." Rows of graduation caps sat under a stuffed owl, the Towson Catholic mascot. There was one for each honoree. Instead of the typical handshake, former assistant principal Jeff Palumbo greeted each teenager with a hug.
"You had the rug pulled out from under you," Palumbo told the gathering of alumni, teachers and families. "We want to finish your senior year for you and show you that we have not forgotten you."
DeVen Hill transferred to Mount Carmel High School, another small coed Catholic school. "They were very welcoming, but there was not the family atmosphere we had at TC," he said. "I came to the party to see old faces and get that sense of togetherness again."
Shannon Conway, a Mercy High School graduate, said, "We all really hold TC near and dear. This was a hard situation for us, but most of us managed to stay close."
Courtney Brzozowski tried Perry Hall High School for a day. But, overwhelmed by its size, she opted for Baltimore Lutheran, a small, private coed school, much like Towson Catholic, she said. Cody Mitchell, her classmate there, said the school helped the transfer students adjust. And, making the lacrosse team, which eventually won its division championship, will always be a senior year highlight for him.
"Baltimore Lutheran was really good about helping us," he said. "But, for me, it was just somewhere to go. I graduated and that's the important thing."
With fewer than 200 students in all four years, classmates knew one another. Many at the party met earlier this month at the funeral of John Crowder, an outstanding basketball player for the Owls, who had transferred to Mount Carmel for his junior and senior years. Crowder died of gunshot wounds in his city neighborhood.
"He was a good friend to many of us and we were shocked at his death,' said DeVen Hill. "He lived and breathed basketball but was humble about his great skills."
Palumbo called the graduates' names and gave them their caps and tassels. The grads posed for a class photo and mugged for shots with their friends.
"All these kids had to start over, but they had a good foundation," Palumbo said.
Elisa Windsor, who wears a Towson Catholic school ring, has a shadow box frame at home, large enough for graduation mementos from both Mercy and Towson Catholic, she said. She plans to study pre-med in the fall at Cabrini College in Pennsylvania
On her first visit to the college, she found the family-centered environment she had known at Towson Catholic, she said.
"I chose it because it reminded me of TC," she said.