POPE FRANCIS GOES HOME: On Easter Monday morning, April 21, 2025, we all received the sad news of the demise of Pope Francis by 7:35 A.M. To everyone, he was a pope of ecological justice and stood for the rights of immigrants and those at the peripheries of society. He is the first Jesuit pope, and his simplicity and humility are some of the legacies he has left behind for all of us. Our quest to build a green Jesuit Memorial College was inspired by him—especially his encyclical, Laudato Si. He encouraged us to make our environment plastic free and to avoid a “throwaway” culture and single-use plastics. As a Jesuit-Catholic institution, I encourage all of us to keep his legacy alive in the Home of the Phoenixes, our places of work, and our respective homes. The Fundraising Gala that is being planned for Green Energy at the Girls’ Hostel and Boys’ Hostel will be in honor of Pope Francis, who advanced a greener and cleaner planet. May the gentle soul of Pope Francis rest in peace.
NEW APOSTOLIC ADMINISTRATOR FOR PORT HARCOURT DIOCESE: On April 9, during the Pastoral visit of the Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria to Port Harcourt, Archbishop Michael Francis Crotty announced the appointment of Bishop Patrick Eluke, by Pope Francis, as the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Port Harcourt after the retirement of Bishop Camilus Etokudoh, who had served the Port Harcourt diocese for sixteen years, after twenty years episcopacy in Ikot Ekpene Diocese. We congratulate the new Apostolic Administrator, Bishop Patrick Eluke. We are grateful to Bishop Camilus Etokudoh, who has given Jesuit Memorial College unwavering support since its inception in 2013. We look forward to welcoming the Apostolic Administrator to the college on Sunday May 18, 2025, as we had initially scheduled a Confirmation Mass with him on that date.
EASTER MESSAGE: Having risen from the ashes of tragedy, Jesuit Memorial College is a veritable echo of the Easter experience. We thank all parents and members of staff for joining in nurturing the seeds and dreams of the college and holding on to Hope Reborn.
Indeed, our nation has been affected by recent tragedies during this Lenten Season. We could not but experience outrage and dismay at the heart wrenching news of carnages coming from Edo
State, Plateau State, and Benue State. As we pray with hope for our nation, let us keep in mind that light will always overcome darkness. From a dark tomb rises the Light of Life.
The empty tomb is a resilient reminder that God can transform tragedy and despair into life and Hope Reborn. May the stone of death be rolled away from our nation. May the Risen Christ
inspire us with deep gratitude, rebirth, and a robust desire to participate in making our nation a land of freedom, peace, truth, unity, and love.
JMC GALA NIGHT FOR GREEN ENERGY AT ABUJA: The fundraising gala for solar energy in the girls’ hostel and boys’ hostel is still being planned. The Abuja Parents’ Association and the Parents-Teachers’ Association of the college will synergize to anchor the gala/dinner night. The Chairman of the Fundraising Gala Night Steering Committee is Chief Clovis Okereke of Port Harcourt Parents’ Association, and the Secretary is Arc Abioye Ayeni of Abuja Parents’ Association. Please all JMC parents should cooperate with the Gala Planning Committee in their goal to raise funds for sustainable energy in the Phoenixes’ hostels. Further information will be released after crystallization of ideas for the capital campaign and gala for green energy.
IGNATIAN CONCERT: The evening of April 3, 2025 was a night of music, dance, poetry, and drama in honor of St. Ignatius of Loyola. The Phoenixes expressed their talents in our fourth Ignatian Concert. We thank the Chaplaincy for organizing the Phoenixes as they celebrated the heritage of St. Ignatius of Loyola. We also thank the Phoenixes for their artistic gifts—including a musical drama (This is Moses) and a poem on Prayer after Midnight.
ANOTHER TRIMESTER: We thank God for a successful second trimester. The Phoenixes returned home safely for Easter break. On April 26, they returned for the final trimester of the 2024/2025 academic year. The Phoenixes of the Class of 2025 returned earlier on April 15, 2025 and spent the Holy week with us. They have started taking their UTME examinations. We thank God for journey mercies for all our Phoenixes. We pray for a fruitful trimester, and we wish the students of the Class of 2028 and Class of 2025 best of luck as they write their external examinations.
SCHOLAR AFFECTUS: St. Ignatius laid emphasis on the formation of the human heart. The Latin Word Scholar Affectus describes well this aspect of Jesuit education. Scholar affectus means school of the heart. It happens through retreats and compassionate care for those at the Margins. The Kairos 18 (K-18) community had their Kairos retreat at the Pastoral Centre from April 12 through April 15, 2025. Their retreat was organized by the Chaplaincy, during which the Phoenixes spent quality time with God reflecting on their personal experiences, faith, future, and goals.
WARRI PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION VISIT LITTLE SAINTS ORPHANAGE: The Warri Parents’ Association, some Phoenixes, and some JMC alumni visited the Little Saints Orphanage, Warri and donated food and cash to the orphanage. May God bless the Warri parents for their generosity of hearts during the Easter break.
CITIZENSHIP AND LEADERSHIP TRAINING: The Citizenship and Leadership Training (CLT) of the Phoenixes (Class of 2027) took place from April 5, 2025 through April 18, 2025. We thank the training officers, who came from a parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Youths and Sports Development. The Phoenixes returned home on April 19, 2025. CLT is a program for SS1 Phoenixes that is aimed at expanding their individual awareness, self-discipline, entrepreneurship, service, leadership, courage, and national consciousness. During the program, the Phoenixes also experienced the Holy Week at the college: Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, and Good Friday.
OUR LADY OF THE WAY CHAPEL: There is ongoing construction at Our Lady of the Way Chapel. We are grateful to the Port Harcourt Parents Association for the donation of three million naira (N3,000,000.00) for the advancement of the chapel project. We also thank Dr. Godwin Nwabunka (founder of Amadeus University) for his contribution in kind towards some granites for the chapel. We express gratitude to Mr. and Mrs. Augustine Amachaghi for the donation of two million naira (N2,000,000.00) for the advancement of the chapel project. We also thank an anonymous donor for the gift of one million naira (N1,000,000.00) to support the chapel project. We are grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Michael Adande (parents of our alumni, Chioma – Class of 2023 and Munachimso – Class of 2024) for the gift of one million naira (N1,000,000.00) for Our Lady of the Way Chapel. Additionally, an anonymous family donated a Yamaha Keyboard and stand for sacred music during Masses at Our Lady of the Way Chapel. May God bless all our benefactors for our new chapel and replenish their accounts a hundred-fold. We encourage everyone to continue to make generous donations for Our Lady of the Way Chapel to Jesuit Memorial College, First Bank 2024616041. THANK YOU.
AD MAJOREM DEI GLORIAM
(FOR THE GREATER GLORY OF GOD