Q: How have you seen God through your encounters, with your staff, the children, and the parents, as a principal?

I see God in everyone. I think every time we serve one another at school. God is present in our students, in our staff, and the families, the parents as well. I would say, especially during the pandemic, the most difficult time that many families experienced. 

I have seen how the teachers have had to step in and help wherever possible. So I see God in them when they’re providing extra meals to the kids that come to school without breakfast, or the kids who, because they’re going between homes, have no school supplies. They forget their things here and there. I see that they really step up to be a great support, and that includes our office staff as well. Our team wants to provide the children with stability including a safe, compassionate, and loving learning environment where every child can reach their full potential.  

I also see it in the families that make the community that we have as well. So, those that look out for each other and volunteer for the school, not just to fulfill their hours. You know, because every parent has to put in certain hours, but those that go well beyond that and do it meticulously. We have an amazing group of parents that deeply care about the wellbeing of the kids. That mindset makes us a family at school too. 

The parish education committee has been diligently working for a common goal for our seismic upgrade of  our school and it’s a lot of work. It is [an] area that we are not all experts in. The members put aside their differences and their personal interests and work as the body of Christ on earth. . So, I think that is where I see it the most when our whole community is working together to reach a common good for the safety and well-being of the kids. That is God’s work; He is guiding us and giving us purpose whilst in communion. 

Right now, it’s very much about completing the seismic upgrade but it’s not just about the project as much as  the safety and the general well-being of the kids and the staff. The seismic upgrade is about the long-term presence of our school. I also believe the commitment is driven by the fact that they recognize the school is a sacred ground of evangelization for many families.

So, they want to maintain the wellbeing of the school and longevity of it. The members of our community deeply care that our school is available for generations to come as it has been since 1954. It’s neat to witness a group of people working passionately towards a common goal for the school.

We can be from all walks of life, even in a Catholic school, we can have differences. People can be upset about parking, traffic, and all kinds of  things. Nevertheless, the school remains a holy space, in a sense that when you come to school, you enter with peace because we work here for God’s children. 

So, whatever conflict there is or things that could cause separation. When you enter the doors  of our schools, you have to recognize that this is God’s place. It’s not the Church, as that is obviously a sacred place, but “the school is an extension of the Church” as our parish priest so well stated at our open house. 

Within that, we have so many opportunities to evangelize. When new families consider our school for their children, we interview them. So, Father Gilbert and I sat through these interviews and noticed the same thing. We have families who say that they grew up in the faith, went to Catholic school, and stepped away from the faith. 

Now, when it comes to their children and  they have to make a choice for their education, They want to get back to their foundations. Because they’re making these core decisions that involve their children. Parents who attended Catholic schools as children tell us their solid foundational pillars and values are rooted from their families and their early education. 

They often add, “Once we know what school our child will be attending, that’s where (school parish), we would like to register at. We wanna go back to the Church because our children will be connected to the school”. Schools have so much potential in bringing the faith to families and play a vital role in the formation of each member.

Reine Mykyte is the principal of École Saint-Sacrement / Blessed Sacrament School in Vancouver, BC.


#WeAreProclaim is a story campaign by the Proclaim Movement. Inspired by Humans of New York and the Archdiocese of Detroit’s I am Here campaign, it will showcase missionary conversion stories of people from the Archdiocese of Vancouver. Check out the rest of the campaign on Facebook and Instagram at @weareproclaim.