Student Jessica Lutmer ’21 Brought Grade School Principal’s Dream to Fruition

By Mrs. Alison Dahlman, Principal, St. Peter Catholic School
October 1, 2018

When I started as principal of St. Peter Catholic School in 2013, I spent a lot of time in the cafeteria, as I do lunch duty daily. I felt our cafeteria needed something to liven it up. After many a meal in the Notre Dame cafeteria during college, with the Last Supper displayed beautifully, I thought about how I could add the Last Supper to our cafeteria in North St. Paul.

I really hoped I could find a student who would have the interest and skill to take this on. Each year, I scanned our students to see if a budding “Michelangelo” was among us. At the end of her eighth grade year, I noticed Jessica Lutmer '21 sitting at the lunch table sketching something (as she often did) and I approached her with my crazy idea. She seemed interested and sketched a draft of what it might look like. We shook hands and I commissioned my first artist!

I gave her a key to the cafeteria for the summer so she could begin to work. What started as a summer project turned into two summers and a school year, but the end result was well worth the wait! I often felt like Pope Julius II while Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel and he would ask, "Is it done yet?" with Michelangelo’s response of, "Give me time!"

Slowly the figures took shape and the Last Supper became a reality. Our younger students loved to comment when new things were added – “They have faces!" and “There's food on the table.” I am so pleased with the final result and so impressed with Jessica's diligence to finish such a large-scale project. We will be framing the image to really give it a polished final look and putting a plaque under it to honor Jessica. My brain is already working to determine the next space we might find to highlight Jessica's shining talent!

The Lutmer family donated the paint and supplies, with Jessica supplying the vision and creativity, to give Jessica's school a one-of-a-kind gift.