Every morning, Fr. Arnold Perham, CSV, arrives at Saint Viator High School, where he meets with Querbes Scholars and members of the math team. Afterwards, he tutors students in the math lab.
Fr. Arnold Perham, right, accepts a special award from Principal Brian Liedlich, while his sister, Faustine Perham, shares in the moment.
This same routine has played out year after year — with the exception of a few years when he taught at Loyola University. When administrators added up his years of service, they realized he reached a rare milestone of 50 years.
At the end of the year banquet for faculty and staff, his colleagues gave him a standing ovation.
Fr. Perham is the first Saint Viator faculty member to reach this level of service to the school, and it’s not surprising.
Fr. Perham acknowledges the applause from his colleagues.
After all, he has been a Viatorian for more than 70 years. He is an award-winning mathematician and nearly all of his years in ministry have been spent teaching math, starting in 1962, one year after Saint Viator High School opened.
While he formally retired in 2002, he continues to share his passion for math, and he especially loves preparing mathletes for state level competition.
Faculty and staff give Fr. Perham a standing ovation.
In each of the last three years the students he has worked with in the difficult “oral competition” have advanced to state.
“I love it,” Fr. Perham says. “It gives me a reason to get up in the morning. Any time you can work with young people, it’s a good thing.”