Annual May Crowning Honors the Blessed Mother

Marian celebrated its annual May Crowning on Friday, May 2. A long-standing Marian tradition, May Crowning brings the school together to honor and reflect on Mary as a role model.

This year’s May Queen is senior Lucy Gerraughty. Her classmates nominated her as May Queen because she models the core value of Marian identity. Like Mary, Lucy inspires the Marian community to follow the example of Jesus. She courageously stands up for what is right; says “yes” to what God asks of her; works for social justice; offers a compassionate presence to those she encounters; serves as a trusted friend and companion; and lives her life with hope, joy and thankfulness.

In her address to the student body, Lucy encouraged all to say “yes” to God, like Mary.  “Mary didn't just say “yes” once, she lived that yes everyday, and in every moment, even when it brought her the utmost pain standing at the foot of the cross. Mary's yes is proof that obedience to God isn’t a weakness, it's about choosing to surrender our own plans for something greater than ourselves…We live in a world that is constantly pushing people to be bigger and better than others, but we must learn from and follow Mary’s example as she chose to make God bigger,” said Gerraghty.

Lucy is an outstanding and engaged student. She participates in student government as a class officer, and is a member of campus ministry, Marian Students for Life club, and the cross country team. She is the daughter of Alice and Sam Gerraughty. In the fall, Lucy will attend St. Louis University to study nursing.

Second-grade daughters and granddaughters of Marian alumnae also took part in the ceremony. More than 20 girls, who received their First Holy Communion this year, processed with the May Queen and placed a rose at the foot of the statue of Mary, symbolizing their blossoming faith. For the second-graders and their mothers, grandmothers and aunts, the ceremony concluded with cookies and lemonade and a tour of the school.