I was a student of St. Francis parochial school from 1960 to 1963. I remember being at school the day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. All of us students were sent home that day and the nuns were crying. I was feeling a bit nostalgic a couple of weeks ago when I passed my old alma mater and saw a for sale sign. Yes, the Archdiocese of Santa Fe has put my former elementary school on sale for $3.8 million dollars. Since the school is just a couple of blocks off the Santa Fe plaza, the building will undoubtedly become a tourist related business.
Location, location
The school I attended on Alameda Street was not the original location. The first St. Francis School was located right across from St. Francis Cathedral, where the La Fonda parking lot is today. That building was a two-story brick building. The first school looked more like a building that you’d find on the east coast. The school I attended was built in the New Mexico adobe pueblo mission style, which is another factor that makes the location desirable for the downtown tourist trade. I’m curious to see how that corner property will evolve. No matter what it becomes it will always be St. Francis parochial school to me.