Every eighth grader who graduates from St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School in Manteca leaves with plenty of memories. But there is one memory that they all share – the Living Stations of the Cross that has become a Good Friday tradition for more than two decades.

“It’s part of their eighth-grade experience,” said Father Patrick Walker, pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Parish, after yet another moving performance that the students of teacher Nancy Hogle presented to a packed church at noon on Friday.

“The students actually look forward to doing this,” he said.

The coveted role is that of Jesus whose story in this re-enactment is focused on the day he was condemned to die by crucifixion. So she washes her hands when it comes to the selection of the student to take on that role. She lets the students in her class of 24 make that decision. This year, the chosen one was Alexis Alcantar.

While the Living Station of the Cross presentation is technically a performance with the students wearing costumes of those highlighted in the Stations of the Cross – Jesus, his mother Mary, Pontius Pilate, Simon Cyrene, Veronica, and the Roman soldiers, among others – while dramatizing the events of that momentous day more than 2000 years ago, the presentation is really a solemn worship service, the pastor pointed out.

“It is meaningful, especially to the young,” he said.

The main characters on this Good Friday dramatization and the students who were given the roles are Pontius Pilate (Mark Velazquez), Mary the mother of Jesus (Alissa Ortiz), Veronica who wipes the face of Jesus (Steffy Mathew), and Simon who is tasked to help Jesus carry the cross (Noel Gutierrez). Students who played the role of the Roman soldiers were Braydon Rollins, Geo Alvarez, Nick Creighton, Vincent Hernandez, Christopher Munguia, Kevin Young, and Keone Oiterong.

Julia Ramos, Alexa Rebelo, Nina Murphy and Sofia Perez comprised the women of Jerusalem who wept when they met Jesus on his way to Calvary. Those who made up the crowd were Diego Paez, Jaycee Marques, Anjelina Pelicas, and David Jesus-Barragan. The students who served as narrators in the form of meditations were Charisse Dumlao, Kaitlyn Morenzone, Spencer Oberman, and Samantha Rodgers.

A musical piece from the movie, “The Mission,” serves as the meditative instrumental backdrop for the duration of the presentation. Additional music for meditation is provided every year by church cantor Norma Franco Orosco with Aimee Cambra on the piano.

The student-led Good Friday service concluded with the “body” of Jesus being carried on the shoulders of four students in the cast down the church’s central aisle to the front door of the church.