Newburgh Students Remember Their Teacher
Third graders at St. John the Baptist School in Newburgh decorated 40 silk scarves as part of “Project Angel Hugs,” under the direction of St. John the Baptist parishioner Evi Slaby.
The scarves will go to the “My Chemo Buddies” volunteer group, which offers emotional, physical and spiritual support to cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
“The idea is to create a scarf while praying for the person who will receive it,” said teacher and co-coordinator Kristi Hershberger, who explained to the students “The person that receives your scarf will then be wrapped in your prayers and love while wearing it.”
Their project coordinated with the one-year anniversary of St. John the Baptist teacher Becky Schnur’s passing from cancer, and is dedicated to her and those who have battled cancer. The school children and teachers kept Becky in prayer as they created these scarves.
Slaby explained to her artists that painting silk scarves is very unique because the paint moves and changes on the scarf as it’s applied. The artist often has no control over how a particular scarf turns out. "So let go and let the Holy Spirit take charge!" Evi often says.
Third-grader Anna Poole was very excited because the red heart at left appeared on her scarf as she painted. "It wasn't me! It just happened!" she kept telling people excitedly.
