Beth McBride, the late former principal of St. James Catholic Elementary in Washington, plays piano for students in this file photo.
By Barb Arland-Fye
The Catholic Messenger
Washington — Each letter begins “Dear Mrs. McBride,” written by a former student of St. James Catholic Elementary School to their beloved Principal Beth McBride, who died two-and-a-half years ago from cancer. The letters share heartfelt impressions about how the young adults are living out their alma mater’s mission to “Glorify God through Word, Worship and Service.” The Washington High School seniors who write these letters are applicants of a unique scholarship program created in honor of their mentor.
Doug McBride, who chokes up describing Beth as “my best friend and partner,” established the scholarship to maintain her presence in people’s lives and to advance the post-secondary education of students of St. James, the school she loved deeply.
“Beth and I both, but Beth especially, took students under her wing who were struggling. It wouldn’t have mattered to her what their grade point average was. What she loved about St. James is that you can teach kids about their faith. The environment at St. James is a part of what they do and who they are,” said Doug, a retired educator and an active musician.
Students and staff recite St. James’ mission statement each morning, along with prayers and the Pledge of Allegiance. “It’s on the wall of our gathering space,” says Mary Sue Marek, business manager for the parish and school. Beth was her close friend.
In creating the BethAnn McBride Scholarship, Doug and his tribe of friends, including Mary Sue, chose to require a personal letter rather than an essay from applicants. “They need to write a letter to Mrs. McBride,” Mary Sue said, “telling her how their education at St. James has made an impact and how they have gone on to glorify God through Word, Worship and Service…”
“It’s not about ‘telling’ people how to be Christians or Catholics. It’s more about ‘being’ Christian or Catholic,” Doug said.
The scholarship selection committee, comprised of Doug, Mary Sue and other friends of Beth, get together to read the letters, redacting names, “so we don’t know who (the applicants) are,” Mary Sue said. “We’ve only had the scholarship for two years but both times it felt like there was one student who stood out in how they conveyed their thoughts.”
“We are looking for who this person is and how they have lived their life,” Mary Sue continued. This year’s recipient of the $1,000 scholarship, Trevin Sulentich, submitted a “handwritten letter. We set it down but kept going back to it.” She believes that Beth was nudging the committee to reread that letter.
The Washington High School senior wrote about his life, from his heart, and apologized for not having attended Beth’s funeral. “It was very clear this was someone who was glorifying God through Word, Worship and Service,” Mary Sue said. Doug appreciated the senior’s honesty and humility regarding his faith life.
Beth McBride, left, poses for a photo with teachers at the Washington school.
Last year’s recipient, Angel Mata, also “stood out in serving others in a way in which he was not afraid to share his faith with people,” Mary Sue said. “We definitely felt he just cared about others — he could sense people who were having difficulties and felt like he wanted to be by people’s side.”
Doug describes the scholarship committee as an “amazing tribe of people who stepped up and were just there for me” after Beth’s death, which happened just three months after her cancer diagnosis. At one point, struggling with his faith, Doug realized, “When I couldn’t find God, I could see (God) in them.” When the committee asked Doug to read the letters aloud, it jogged memories of Beth for the friends. “Remember the time Beth …?”
Beth and Doug met prior to their assignments as music teachers in the same small school district, but didn’t connect until then. “I think God was bringing us together,” Doug said. They married in 1984 and moved to Washington in 1986. Their son Tim was born in 1986 and daughter, Rebecca, in 1990. She attended St. James.
Beth served as an educator in a variety of school districts before and after St. James. She served as principal there from 1996-2010 and returned in 2016 when she learned that St. James was looking for a new principal. “She loved St. James. It was a wonderful place for her to retire,” Doug said.
His gratitude for Beth, St. James and the community that contributed generously in her memory, allowed Doug to establish an endowment in perpetuity through the Community Foundation of Washington County (cfwashingtoncounty.org/bethann-mcbride-scholarship-fund). The St. James Foundation will administer the BethAnn McBride Scholarship.
“Beth would have loved (the letter idea) and she loved St. James,” Doug said, “and she was all about getting out the message of being a Christian.”
