If Olympic Day is the favorite of the fall, Heritage Day is quickly becoming the showpiece of the spring. Blending the brotherhood of our House System with the fervor of ethnicity, Heritage Day at Iona Preparatory has become an annual celebration of ancestry, culture, language and traditions. Now a full day of presentations and performances, food and fun, the fourth annual Heritage Day continues to actualize the fifth Essential Element of an Edmund Rice Christian Brother Education to "celebrate the value and dignity of each person, and nurture the development of the whole person."

Student affinity clubs, including the African American Society, Albanian Club, Gaelic and Hellenic Societies, Fratelli d’Italia, Latinos Unidos and the Mandarin Club, helped facilitate a number of cultural performances and a fashion show. There were hints of heritage from start to finish as we prayed for Argentinian Pope Francis, followed by the National Anthem on saxophone performed by Kadin Huling '26.

Former longtime English teacher Mr. Kevin Kavanah piped pupils into the Tully Gymnasium before providing some insight on the Celtic origins of the bagpipes. Then our Lower School boys got into the act as pre-kindergarten and kindergarteners Nolan, Angel, Luca, Keean, Jayson, Carols, Hugo, Mateo, Benji, Lucas, Mason, Cole, Valentino, Sy and Zurain sang "Hello to All the Children of the World" while wearing sashes representing their families' native countries.

Accompanied by members of the Rock Ensemble, Dr. Kevin Kelton P'98, Mrs. Abigail Showers, Mrs. Kimberly Cinguina P'25, Mr. Morales and Mr. Garcia from our World Language Department performed Celia Cruz's Cuban classic, "Guantanamera." John Callanan '26 showcased his world-class Irish step dancing with a contemporary set, while Alfred Blanco '26, Ishant Buddhavarapu '27, Joshua Simmons '27, Brennen Presley '26, Mamadee Sangaray '27 and Ghael Cassamajor '27 of the Mandarin Club performed the traditional Chinese Dragon Dance.

John-Adam Witherspoon '27, Nicolas Bonasia '27, Francesko Gjuraj '27 and Ethan Gore '27 danced a Calabrian version of the Tarantella, followed by Malcolm Courtlandt '25, Talen Rivero '27, Witherspoon '27, Nate Shillingford '25, Dennis Mota-Cox '28, Isaac Gonzalez '27, Christopher Leysath '26, Chase Reeves '28 and Antony Gray '25 of the African American Society with a "Spoken Word Performance on Black Pride." Albanian Club juniors Christian Cukaj '26, Hektor Lajqi '26, Elijah Pye '26 and Armend Rugova '26 performed the Albanian dance, "Valle Shqiptare," and then members of the various affinity groups staged a multicultural fashion show.

After a special guest performance from Los Pleneros de la 21, an Afro-Puerto Rican ensemble that has pioneered Bomba and Plena music and dance in the metropolitan area, students were treated to a cultural smorgasboard in the Heffernan Gym provided by myriad Prep parents, plus food trucks out behind the school, Henna Art or Mehndi and dominos in the Student Lobby, ethnic and historical trivia in the Verni Center theater, and soccer and bocce out on Mara Field.

"Heritage Day is not just a living example of our school's Mission," said Ms. Maria Cavallaro P'32,'37, the World Language teacher who first originated the concept back in 2021 following the pandemic, "it's an immersive experience of the cultural, ethnic and racial diversity that collectively makes Iona Preparatory the premier PK-12 Catholic institution in our area."

While perusing the many food options, one student was overheard saying that the atmosphere was like every Sunday at his family's house.

"That's the beauty of Heritage Day," said Heri Albertorio P'37, World Language Teacher and the school's director of Mission Integration, "it's a little piece of all our houses."