Article by Phoenix writer Kailyn Kelly ’26:

Latest News
Article by Phoenix writer Victoria Vakser ’26:
Article by Phoenix writer Mary O’Brien ’27:
The PhoenixOnline is the school newspaper, published by the students of Kellenberg Memorial High School. Articles are posted throughout the school week to PhoenixOnline at kellenberg.org/phoenix. PhoenixOnline covers various Faith, Academic, Extra-Curricular, and Athletic stories and features at Kellenberg Memorial. PhoenixOnline staff contribute to the school journalism publication by conceiving stories, attending school events, conducting interviews, and writing and editing articles. Membership on the PhoenixOnline staff is open to all students in grades 6 through 12. Editorship positions are available by application.
PhoenixOnline Surveys
Throughout the year, we run open surveys polling our student body on some general interest topics.
PhoenixOnline Video Segments
Athletics News

Boys JV Lacrosse Improves Their Record Against Seaford
Article by Phoenix writer Griffin Noumair ’24: The Boys JV Lacrosse team improved their record to 4 and 1 with a 6 to 3 win at home over the Seaford Vikings on April 8th. In net, freshman Vinny Ciro recorded 18 saves keeping the Seaford attack at bay, while Jamison

Varsity Dance Whirls Through Nationals
Article by Phoenix writer Mika-Ella Accardi ’25: Kellenberg’s Varsity Dance Team brought the heat to Orlando, Florida as they competed in the NDA High School National Dance Competition from March 7th to the 11th. The team made it to finals in all four small varsity categories. Overall, they placed 7th

Varsity Cheer Takes on Nationals
Article by Phoenix writer Sophia Venturino ’26: On February 9th, the Kellenberg Varsity Cheer Team traveled to Orlando, Florida to compete in the National High School Cheerleading Championship. The vigorous competition lasted multiple days and concluded on February 12th. The cheerleaders competed in two different divisions with Medium Varsity taking

Lady Firebirds Achieve Winning Streaks
Article by Phoenix writer Justin McKenzie ’24: In sports, streaks can be like catching lightning in a bottle. It’s challenging to win a game and it’s an entirely different game trying to maintain success. Teams have to work together like a well-oiled machine. It takes a special mindset to perform
Activities News

Celebrando Lingua Semaine!
Article by Phoenix writer Kailyn Kelly ’26: During the week of March 2, Kellenberg Memorial celebrated Language Week, a worldwide initiative recognizing and promoting the importance of languages and cultural diversity. Language week consists of parades, cultural performances, and international potlucks held across the globe. Kellenberg celebrates language week by

Eco-Friendly, Budget-Friendly: Entrepreneurship Club Invests in Hydroponic Tower
Article by Phoenix writer Victoria Vakser ’26: For two months now, the Entrepreneurship Club has been in the process of growing its own garden right in room 203. Where did they place the plots with all the soil? They didn’t need any! The plants, which include basil, arugula, kale, rainbow

Honor Society Seniors Change Lives
Article by Phoenix writer Keira Quigley ’26: This year, the National Honor Society seniors went through the Red Blanket Project, an organization that builds water tanks in Kenya, for their service mission. NHS set a goal to raise enough money to build 2 tanks and fill them with water. Thousands

Kellenberg SMART Program: “The Greatest of these is Love”
Article by Phoenix writer Mary O’Brien ’27: It’s 2:52 PM, and the final bell has just rung, signifying the end of another school day. Students are at their lockers, putting their blazers and ties away, many of them getting ready to go home, go to practice, or another after school
Apostolic News

Students Grow Closer to Jesus at XLT
Article by Phoenix writer Keira Quigley ’26: On January 8, 2025, the Kellenberg family came together in prayer for this year’s first XLT. But this XLT wasn’t any ordinary New Year XLT, it was the first XLT of the Jubilee Year, the Year of Hope. This XLT was extra special

Aquinas League Pilgrimage
Article by Phoenix writer Mika-Ella Accardi ’25: On Saturday, December 14, the Aquinas League traveled to St. Barnabas Church in Bellmore to visit the relics of their patron saint, St. Thomas Aquinas. The pilgrimage included 12 Juniors and Seniors of the Aquinas League along with Mr. John Ruhl and Mrs.

Kellenberg Celebrates the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
Article by Phoenix writer Cristina Palmieri ’25: On Monday, December 9, the Kellenberg family celebrated the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The day was made a solemnity in 1708 by Pope Clement XI and commemorates the conception of Mary without original sin. The celebrants for the three masses were Father

Ladies of Kellenberg Celebrate Annual Magnificat Dinner
Article by Phoenix writer Mary O’Brien ’27: On Friday, December 6th, Kellenberg hosted its annual Magnificat dinner. This event for the young women of Kellenberg and the special women in their lives is named after the prayer offered up to God from Mary while she was greeting her cousin Elizabeth.
Last Week at Mass

Last Week at Mass: A Russian Orthodox Girl at Liturgy
Article by Phoenix writer Victoria Vakser ’26: “Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages!” With these words the lights came on, the choir sang a majestic “Amen,” and the Orthodox Divine Liturgy began. March

Last Week At Mass: Faith from a Child’s Eyes – St. Patrick’s Glen Cove
Article by Phoenix writer Cristina Palmieri ’25: On the first Sunday of March, I found myself everywhere but with God. I was organizing arrangements for the Senior Trip, stressing over college admission decisions I hadn’t even received yet, and any other thing that was on my mind. I piled clothes

LWAM: The Opportunity of a Lifetime
Article by Phoenix writer Grace Andino ’25: “Are you interested in becoming a Eucharistic Minister?” The bolded letters on the front of St. Thomas the Apostle’s Church bulletin made my heart jump. Though an 8-year-old me who received her Sacraments of Initiation and altar served for St. Thomas would have

LWAM: Trusting What I Can’t Change
Article by Phoenix writer Brooke Oldenborg ’26: On Sunday, November 17, I decided to end my weekend with my home parish’s evening mass. This is the first mass I’ve attended fully in a while. As the priest started talking, it seemed like a normal mass, but as he continued it
But What Do I Know?

But What Do I Know: The “Importance” of Sleep
Article by Phoenix writer Michelle Paszek ’24: Photo by Bruce Mars on Unsplash Sleep – the one thing that everyone agrees they can never get enough of. Recently, all I’ve been hearing about is sleep. With the last trimester of the school year coming to a close and final exams creeping just around the corner, the one recurring topic of conversation that I hear is how nobody is getting enough sleep to be considered healthy. Science always tells us teenagers that we need 7-9 hours of interrupted sleep a night, with some studies going even further to suggest that this number isn’t enough. Anything less than the recommended amount is said to lead to definitive negative side effects, which can include difficulty concentrating on everyday events, reduced academic performance, and trouble remembering things. And yet, I, a sixteen year old teenager, feel fine with a very much less-than-recommended average of

But What Do I Know: An Animal Sanctuary Made Me A Vegetarian
Article by Phoenix writer Grace Garcia ’23: Plant-based. It’s the new popular phrase in the media utilized to avoid a negative connotation of the V-word. Yes, I mean vegetarian or vegan. The two words are not synonymous and have important differences; however, both involve moral, religious, or health reasons. A vegetarian is a person who does not consume meat. In contrast, a vegan is an individual who does not eat any food derived from animals and does not purchase nor utilize products made from animals, like leather. For my eighteenth birthday this past February, I chose to celebrate my birthday at a 360-acre animal sanctuary located immediately outside of New York called Tamerlaine Farm. Tamerlaine is owned by close family friends Peter and Gabrielle. They were motivated to become vegan as they became educated about the horrors of the food industry, such as veal crates, forced molting, and debeaking. These

But What Do I Know: The Case for Senioritis
Article by Phoenix writer Isabel Connolly ’23: As the first snow falls, so do seniors’ test scores. It’s inevitable. As we drudge our way through the late winter slump, high school seniors lose interest. It is a phenomenon colloquially termed ‘senioritis.’ The word is the bogeyman, waiting in the shadows of a senior’s first semester, ready to antagonize teacher and student alike. Senioritis is an all too real reality for myself and my classmates. There comes a moment where every senior has the epiphany that what they are doing now is simply a prelude to their future. It shouldn’t be too difficult to figure out why we seniors become disengaged. Especially for the class of 2023, high school has been turbulent. We have had to deal with the mundane in never-before-seen circumstances. We worked through it all with an end goal in mind, which, for my peers and myself, was
Academics News

Academic Achievement Recognized At Annual Awards Assembly
Article by Phoenix writer Keira Quigley ’26: On Tuesday, October 24th, sophomores, juniors, and seniors with outstanding academic achievements were honored at the annual Academic Awards Assembly. This assembly included students receiving pins for being on the Honor Roll, badges for having perfect attendance, and inducting new students into the

Students Shine In Advanced Labs Program
Article by Phoenix writer Michelle Paszek ’24: The Advanced Labs Program is an after-school STEM group at Kellenberg where any high schooler in grades 9-12 can join in on college level labs that prepare them for what they will experience in college. “It made me appreciate science and all that
Firebird Crosswords
The Renaissance
An important extra facet of the academic life at Kellenberg Memorial is the literary magazine, Renaissance. Published twice a year in Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer issues, it contains the creative writings and artistic talents of students from grades six through twelve.
The creative voice heard in the poems, short stories, essays, and art is often unheard in the day-to-day work within the classroom.
The Renaissance, Poetry: “Death isn’t Soft, Oscar” by Erin O’Connor ‘25
I’ve heard that Death is soft so that when we hold it, it does not callous our hands. But when I play the guitar you

The Renaissance, Photography: “Soft Glowing Lamp” by Sophia Santag ’27
“Soft Glowing Lamp” by Sophia Santag ’27

The Renaissance, Art: “Memory of a Boat Trip” by Lauren Reyes ’26
“Memory of a Boat Trip” by Lauren Reyes, ’26
The Renaissance (Poem) “In response to ‘Woman! when I behold thee flippant, vain'” by Victoria Vakser ’26
Good sir! When I behold thee proud and tall, Full of thyself, commanding, seeking praise, Withholding all advance, all kindly phrase, Thy sullen mouth

The Renaissance: Artwork: “Overgrown” by Rosann Passalacqua
“Overgrown” by Rosann Passalacqua An impressionist painting of the memory of my grandparents’ backyard garden.
The Renaissance: Poetry: “A Glimpse of 2013” by Danielle Kercy
“A Glimpse of 2013” by Danielle Kercy Winner of The Renaissance Challenge: “Memory” The specific scent of sanitizer stings my nose, and I am only