Last Chapel is the last religious ceremony attended by seniors at school. This activity dates from the time when Miss Swaney was headmistress of Santiago College (1922-1932) and is one of the most significant traditions for 12th-graders, as it involves deep values and a great spiritual feeling and includes the three religions imparted at the school: Catholic, Jewish and Protestant.
During the ceremony, juniors and seniors said good-bye to this class through emotive speeches where they remembered their first years as SC students; they also gave advices and wished good luck to the entire generation that is finishing the school phase and starting a new challenge in university.
One of the rites and traditions of the Last Chapel is the delivery by first-graders of a bunch of flowers to senior girls and a banner to senior boys as a sign of renewal and continuity of new generations. The School Headmistress Miss Lorna Prado Scott reads a short text from the Bible and the ribbons in the colors representing each generation are added to the SC Flag. This time, the colors chosen by Class 2018 were white, representing purity and innocence; a yellow and orange thread symbolizing joy, optimism and energy, which are key to face the most difficult times, and green, representing hope to continue to grow as individuals and as a class.
Finally, the religious authorities of the School said some words of good-bye to seniors encouraging them to follow their dreams, but not live subject to them: “Don’t let your life be in vain, based only on what you can and wish to achieve. Look around you and see how many others you can help reach their dreams,” said the School Chaplain, Pastor Óscar Espinoza. Rabbi Gustavo Kelmeszes, in turn, urged them to be compassionate and see the world through the caring prism transmitted by the school. “Let your different professions serve you to serve others and feel that through this service you are serving God,” he ended.
