Saying Goodbye To CB’s Delightful Mr. Delgado

The bell rings. It’s August 10^th 2022, 8:35 AM: the first day of school. My first class is Chemistry in Room 108 and I’m filled with nerves because I don’t know anyone in this class. But then I walk in and meet Mr. Danny Delgado ’79.

The first day is nothing special. It’s filled with “Get to Know Me Activities” as we awkwardly share with the class our “favorite things”. The desks were arranged in a strange half circle so we were all facing the center. My phone rings uncomfortably loud in the most annoying ring tone you could imagine. I turned it off and turn red. I convince myself for the remainder of the class period that my classmates would forget about this by the time they got to their next class. Walking out of the class that day it felt like what most of my first days did — you meet the nicest version of your teacher and the most shy version on your classmates.

However, between then and now, this classroom became my chemistry classroom. One that no longer feels me with nerves. One taught by my most memorable teacher. I couldn’t tell you when or how exactly, but I soon came to know that Mr. Delgado is loved and raved about here and Christian Brothers. In case you’ve missed your opportunity, here’s everything you need to know about Mr. Delgado as he prepares for retirement.

Mae Steenhausen (’25) immediately jumped on the opportunity to talk about Mr. Delgado. She shared the community and comfort he has brought throughout her sophomore year in high school, “He goes out of his way to form a relationship with the students that can extent outside of the class,” the sophomore shares.

As once of Mr. Delgado’s students, I completely agree. I went into this school year, hearing about him several times. On the first day of school, Mr. Delgado explained his self-assessments and how grading in our class would work. After you complete an assignment, you grade yourself based on how well you feel you’ve completed and understood it. For me, this seem really great because I wasn’t sure how well I would understand chemistry, but self-assessment ended up giving me a comfort in the classroom I didn’t even know I needed. As I worked, I realized that not being worried about a grade actually helped me to understand that content better. 

Now don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of times I sat in my desk, staring at Mr. Delgado wondering what the heck he was teaching us, but he would always check-in and help.

Mr. Delgado has the ability to provide a sense of comfort for his students and doesn’t make his classroom a stressful or overwhelming place. At the start of every class, he has thoughts and the Delgado Daily ready for us. I was in A Set, so we normally listened to prayer over the school speakers, but the few times he shared his thought of the day with us, it really stuck with me. All of my teachers pray for us at the start of class, but never like this. Mr. Delgado’s prayers are realistic and well thought out. My favorite was the one he gave the week before finals where he talked about the importance of spending time doing things that are fun and make us happy. He explained how he gets that finals can be stressful, but we always should make time to do something that is fun and brings us joy but not sitting on our phone for hours. It really shifted my prospective, and made me more aware of how I was spending my time and how doing more that just stressing about finals could be really important. 

Mr. Dave Levasseur, a science teacher here at CB, shared with me just how special Mr. Delgado is to him. “[He is] the type of friend that always has your back, so I never feel judged by him,” Mr. Levasseur shares. “He’ll stick up for you.” 

Their friendship began back when Mr. Levasseur first started teaching at CB in 2005 while Mr Delgado was the science department chair. Mr. Levasseur remembers the immediate comfort and leadership Mr. Delgado provided during their first meeting. He provided a helping hand to make sure Mr. Levasseur had a comfortable transition and knew how to help guide him without forcing anything. 

Over the years, Mr. Levasseur has shared many special memories with Mr. Delgado. Mr. Levasseur remembers how good it felt to beat Mr Delgado in a race at cross country practice, as he had previously accepted Mr. Delgado was faster than him. “There was one race that I remember where I got him, and it was like he was ahead of me but then he had to stop and throw up.”

Another cool memory he cherishes outside of school was when Mr. Levasseur had to build a spa in his backyard, but had no idea what he was doing. Mr Delgado went out of his way to be there for his friend. “He came over on a Saturday and built it with me because I had no idea what I was doing,” Mr. Levasseur recalls.

Throughout all of my interviews, I’ve only learned more about the selfless and kind Mr. Delgado I already knew. He’s the perfect example of what a best friend should be like. As a teacher, he knows how to make topic more interesting and easier to understand as well as providing a safe space for students to go for anything they need. As Mr. Levasseur put it, “I think he will just be remembered as a great teacher, a great friend, and a great colleague.” 

Mr. Delgado always carries a light and happy presence to him, and if you’ve missed your opportunity to get to know him, you can always catch him outside coaching the Track and Cross Country teams.  He’s definitely worth saying hello to and getting to know.

His retirement may be the end of in era, but it’s only the beginning of Mr. Delgado’s legacy.