Big Shoulders will serve as the grand marshal for the 47th annual South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
The announcement took place the morning of Feb. 12 in the Brother Rice High School gym. The Big Shoulders Fund provides financial and academic support to Catholic schools who are in underserved communities in Chicago and Northwest Indiana.
The South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade will take place beginning at noon Sunday, March 16, at 103rd and Western and will conclude at 115th and Western in Chicago’s Beverly and Morgan Park neighborhoods.
“We are in kinship with the South Side Irish Parade,” said Josh Hale, president and CEO of Big Shoulders. “We are part of that history with the parade and we assist students at these schools.”
Marianne Rowan Leslie, who serves as chair for the South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee, said that the event is the largest community-based parade outside of Ireland.
“This parade is about faith, family and community,” Leslie said. “And Big Shoulders serves nearly 25,000 students across 72 Chicago area schools and 20 Northwest Indiana schools.”
“The South Side Irish Parade is an institution,” said Hale, who grew up in Boston. “I did not grow up here but I feel close to all the neighborhoods. The South Side Irish Parade has changed with time. Big Shoulders has served Catholic schools in underserved communities. We have jumped in and have gotten involved and expanded to Northwest Indiana. We have a shared sense to serve.”
Big Shoulders was created in 1986 through the efforts of the late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, who assisted in contacting corporations and organizations to assist Catholic schools that were having financial difficulties and reach out to families whose children otherwise could not afford the tuition costs.
“Since its inception, Big Shoulders has raised over $650 million,” said Leslie, who is the mother of two Brother Rice graduates.
Leslie added that students who attend schools with Big Shoulders support graduate from college at two times the national rate, with Black and Hispanic alumni graduating from college at nearly three times and four times the national rate, respectively.
The event began with a member of the Chicago Stockyard Kilty Band playing the bagpipes followed by students from schools supported by Big Shoulders, including St. Walter St. Benedict, St. Margaret of Scotland, St. John de la Salle Academy, and Our Lady of Guadalupe.
The St. Francis de Sales High School choir sang a song.
Along with Big Shoulders, the special honoree for the parade will be Mount Sion at Brother Rice, which is a special education inclusion program to meet the unique needs of students with moderate cognitive disabilities or significant learning disabilities.
Matthew Prunckle is the director of the Mount Sion program. Also attending the event were Mary Erdman, director of Special Education at Brother Rice, and Robert Alberts, the principal.
“Thank you for highlighting our innovative initiative that underscores our unwavering commitment to educating all boys and fostering a sense of brotherhood within our Brother Rice community,” Prunckle said. “This program is representative of the essence of what it means to be part of the Brother Rice family. It enables to educate and uplift all boys and provide them with the tools they need to succeed and make a difference in the world. We are just beginning our program, but we intend for it to make a fundamental difference for many young men as we continue to build it.”
Mount Sion is new at Brother Rice, beginning just last year. Peer Mentor Program student members who are paired with Mount Sion Program students are active in providing academic support, friendship, and encouragement, fostering meaningful connections that extend beyond the classroom.
“Both Big Shoulders Fund and the Mount Sion Program are leaders in the community that do tremendous work educating young people, particularly those students from underserved communities including those with unique special educational needs,” added Leslie.
Parents of students who attend schools supported by Big Shoulders and Mount Sion students were in attendance at the press conference.
Grace McKee was selected as the queen of the South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade. She was chosen during the St. Patrick’s Day Parade fundraiser held Saturday night at 115 Bourbon Street.