‘Let Our Joy Be Complete’: Bishop Machebeuf Bids Farewell with the Class of 2025
- Denver Catholic Staff
- 21 hours ago
- 4 min read
Beneath the bright morning sky on May 23, a green and gold sea of caps and gowns was visible. Parents clutched programs; faculty wore bittersweet smiles; and the final graduating class of Bishop Machebeuf High School, the Class of 2025, prepared to walk across the stage — not just as seniors but as the closing chapter of a 66-year Catholic legacy in Denver.
While graduation always brings endings and new beginnings, this year’s was shaded by the knowledge that the school will close in June. Yet, even amid mourning, as one speaker put it, there was a spirit of “complete joy.”
Acting Principal Ralph Pesce, who has served the school in many roles over six years, opened the ceremony with a message of gratitude, hope and faith, noting the community’s “love and commitment” to the “beloved place” that is Machebeuf.
“Everything you did, you did together. You were never afraid to be yourselves,” Pesce said.
He recalled the students' journey through great books and daily prayer, senior breakfasts and sports victories and even the quieter moments — the conversations in the front office, shared laughter in the hallways and the bonds formed in faith.
But above all, he reminded the graduates that their education pointed them to Christ.
“In every moment of joy and even every moment of sorrow, there we find Christ,” Pesce said. “This is what Machebeuf has always been about, and this is what Machebeuf will always be about, as the spirit of this school lives on in each one of you as we build up the Kingdom of God.”
Drawing from Scripture, Pesce quoted Ephesians: “You are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God… Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20). These words framed his charge to the graduates — to leave not just as scholars, but as witnesses of the Gospel.
This year's Salutatorian, Matthew Menke, delivered a speech that balanced humor, humility and heartfelt gratitude. Recalling a moment from third grade when his father, after a tough basketball loss, told him, “Second place means you’re the first loser,” Menke joked about the irony of now being salutatorian.
Though initially upset over coming in second place despite the “fire in my heart … to try the best at everything I do,” he couldn’t help but look back with profound gratitude for his time at Machebeuf.
“Looking over my time here at Machebeuf, I could not ask for a better experience,” he said. “Overall, I am so glad that I was able to spend my last four years here at Machebeuf. I could not ask for a better family to be surrounded by.”
Menke’s speech unfolded as a love letter to God and to the community that shaped him — his parents, teammates, teachers and classmates. He remembered feeling immediately welcomed as a freshman and reflected on how the small things — delayed starts on Wednesdays, jokes in the classroom, bus rides after games — created a deep sense of belonging.
“For the past four years, I have been able to call this place a second home,” Menke said.
“Even though the school is closing, the mark that Machebeuf has left on me and everyone here will truly last a lifetime,” he added.
Valedictorian Ben Mages followed with a speech that honored the work, faith and perseverance that defined the Class of 2025. He began by thanking the parents, faculty, clergy and staff who had walked alongside them in faith.
“Faith is an integral part of everything Machebeuf does and has had a huge impact on me and many others in this class and shapes who we are,” Mages said. “We wouldn’t be the people we are today without it.”
He described the class as small but mighty — students who led successful athletic teams, performed onstage, served in campus ministry and stood together in hardship.
“We have made memories that will last a lifetime during our time at Machebeuf,” he said. “And it’s those successes, struggles and friendships that have prepared us for the future. Our education and our friendships have given us the skills we will need to be successful, virtuous people. Machebeuf has prepared us for the future and formed us into the people we are today.”
The class’s accomplishments went beyond awards or accolades. They were formed not just for college or careers, but for lives of purpose. The Machebeuf education, grounded in a Catholic worldview, the pursuit of truth and the practice of virtue, has equipped them to face the unknown with confidence.
Principal Pesce reminded the graduates that this past year, marked by uncertainty and loss, was also a time of profound growth.
“As Machebeuf students, you are no strangers to the Cross,” he said. “In the midst of the storms we all experience, we have to remember that within our boats the Master of the Universe lies asleep; there is no need to be afraid.”
Quoting a student, Pesce added, “When you are educated, you want to strive for more. What more is there to strive for than God himself?”
With that, the Class of 2025 stepped forward — sent forth not only with diplomas, but with a mission. In the words of St. John’s First Letter, which Pesce chose to conclude his remarks: “That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you… And we are writing this so that our joy may be complete” (1 John 1:3-4).
As the final bell fades into memory, Bishop Machebeuf High School’s legacy continues — not in walls or buildings, but in the lives of those it formed, in the witness they bear and in the joy they carry into the world.
