Chris, Alicia, Tony, and Patrick

Chris, Alicia, Tony, and Patrick
Posted on 11/05/2021
Celebrating Staff LogoEvery week we celebrate SMCDSB staff members who have been recognized by a parent, student, or colleague.

This week, we are celebrating Chris Kovacs, Alicia Maxwell, Tony Quigley, and Patrick Rait.

Chris is a Custodian at Monsignor Michael O’Leary Chris Kovacs Catholic School. He was nominated by a colleague who said:

“Chris has been a very welcome new face to the day-to-day at MMO. He consistently goes above and beyond to contribute in meaningful ways to the school community. Always a smile on a face and the strongest work ethic imaginable, Chris gets the job done impeccably and never complains. Whenever he is needed somewhere, he responds immediately and attends to the task at hand in manners that show his devotion and care for what he does. For example, our playground was covered with small stones and dirt after the thaw. Chris took a leaf blower out when no one was around and meticulously cleaned up the mess to make the playground cleaner than ever. Yesterday, my "classroommate" and I overheard a young child crying hysterically in the small bathroom next to our room. As we are both virtual teachers, we were able to take a peek to see if this youngster needed help. Well, before we could get out of our seats, Chris was there supporting this little man and helping him through a tough time, calming him, and helping him solve the issue he was facing. He crouched right down to the child's level and did an amazing job. This is just one example of how Chris CONSTANTLY goes above and beyond. We are so grateful for Chris and he deserves to be celebrated for the amazing work he does every day!”

Alicia MaxwellAlicia Maxwell is a teacher at St. Angela Merici Catholic School. Alicia was nominated by a parent, who said:

“I am a parent of a wonderful boy who happens to have Dwarfism, and attends St. Angela Merici Catholic School (another child with dwarfism in fact attends the school as well). Every year we celebrate Dwarfism Awareness Month and specifically Dwarfism Awareness Day October 25th.

I would love to show the staff some acknowledgement, possibly a congratulations for celebrating and for educating the school on dwarfism. Many teachers went above and beyond of their own accord - Mr. Rogers had his class make a poster for Christian and Mrs. Angione had her kinders make him a card. I would specifically like to acknowledge Alicia Maxwell. She went so far as to create a presentation and included my son who shared the information over the morning announcements. What she has done has given kids awareness about inclusion and diversity, and means more to our family than she’ll ever know.

I would like to acknowledge this staff (especially Mrs. Maxwell) for their extra footwork that makes the community a better place for my son..”

Tony Quigley is the Custodial Services Supervisor at the Tony Quigley Catholic Education Center. Tony, when he was an ICT Technician, was nominated by a colleague, who said:

“Tony went out of his way to assist and help when I accidentally lost some important files. He was able to reach out to other colleagues and find software to retrieve the documents. He took my computer, worked his magic and then returned it to me with most of my files restored. He was a life saver! I can't thank him enough.”

Patrick RaitPat Rait is a teacher at St. Mary’s Catholic School in Collingwood. Pat was nominated by a fellow staff member, who said:

“Mr. Rait is a wonderful, kind, caring and understanding individual. He listens to the young people he teaches and connects with them all on a level that is truly unique. He isn't afraid of being himself and letting the students know it is ok to be different, so they can also believe in themselves. Every child should have the opportunity to be taught by an outstanding educator like Pat Rait.”

We would like to thank Chris, Alicia, Tony, and Patrick for their commitment to Catholic education at our board.