SA Dedicates Events Center & Means Alumni Gym

The state-of-the-art building is a LEED certified, multi-purpose space, which now serves as the centerpiece of the Academy’s commitment to building community.

People entering the Events Center were greeted by the SA Panther and the Class of 2017, who passed out custom pennants designed to commemorate the occasion. The dedication festivities kicked off with music from the Sewickley Academy Jazz Band as the community entered Means Alumni Gym.

Head of School Mr. Kolia O’Connor shared opening remarks about the significance of the occasion intermixed with reflections on the season of Thanksgiving. “During this season of Thanksgiving, we as a school, have so much to be thankful for, and this new facility is certainly among those things for which it is proper that we give thanks,” he said. “Today marks the first time in the recent history of our school that we are all gathered together inside where we can celebrate our school and our community. Where in the past we have had to exclude one division or another – or gather outside under the blazing sun, today and going forward, we now have a facility that allows us to come together in fellowship and celebration in comfort and safety from the elements.” Mr. O’Connor went on to thank individuals and organizations that “supported and guided our plans to create a place where we can all come together to celebrate what a remarkable, dynamic, and unique community this is.”

As the dedication neared its end, Mr. O’Connor said, “And now ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, the moment you’ve been waiting for: the cutting of the ribbon.” On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the faculty, staff, and students of Sewickley Academy, he declared the Events Center and the Means Alumni Gym open. Mr. Thomas Hewitt, John '71 and Nancy (Sproull '72) Means, and Ryan Brown '17 cut the ribbon, triggering a set of motions forcing a basketball to drop through each hoop onto a target that set off two cannons bursting with red, black, silver, and white streamers high into the air. The assembly concluded with the audience singing the school alma mater.

To see more pictures from the event, visit our Facebook page.