While there are obvious difference between Rosary’s Royal Welcome for freshmen and Servite’s Freshman Formation, both events also share many similarities that make them integral parts of each school’s culture. 

For those that are not familiar with Freshman Formation, it is Servite’s tradition in which the incoming class spends the weekend at the school, strengthening ties through character-building exercises. Hans Garcia ‘21 shared his experience as a group leader in Formation: 

“These are people you’ll have a lifelong bond with, regardless of graduation year. It’s also exciting to help them form bonds with each other, because they’ll form the connections and relationships that will last them forever.” To older Servite Friars, Formation Weekend is a journey towards helping incoming freshmen discover the bonds of brotherhood that make their time at Servite so special.

To freshmen, Formation is also a way to discover new bonds with their brothers. Nick Goldstein ‘27 also describes his weekend: “At formation, I was able to make lots of new friends. The thing that makes Servite special is that it’s all boys, so it helps us form brotherhood.” Servite builds the same kind of unity Rosary does. Both schools want to help their incoming freshmen establish strong friendships with their peers early on.

Royal Welcome is Rosary’s way of embracing new sisters and introducing them to the empowering environment of our school. Group leaders greatly value their position, since a good first impression can make a young Royal’s experience so much better. Senior Julia Watson says, “I’ve always loved helping out with Royal Welcome; it gives me a chance to get to know a lot of the freshmen. And I know how much having a good group leader can make a difference, so I try to do my best to make sure they all have a great experience.”

Both Rosary and Servite want to promote unity through these pivotal events. When asked to reflect on her Royal Welcome experience, freshman Melina Beltran explains, “I got to bond with a lot of girls I had never met. I think the sisterhood and school bonding can’t be found at other schools. We all learn to be a team and build strong friendships.” Throughout their four years at Rosary, Royals nurture the bonds that started in August of their 9th grade year, hoping to deepen their sisterhood.

Although Freshman Formation and Royal Welcome include different activities, the clear common ground between them is the building of a community between classmates. An environment of friendship and mutual respect makes attending both schools unique and memorable. Throughout their time in high school, Rosary and Servite students cherish the sisterhood and brotherhood formed during these events.