Communities Of Faith, Knowledge And Service

    Students in Catholic schools throughout the diocese of Evansville are preparing for the annual celebration of Catholic education: National Catholic Schools Week.  It feels very fitting that the theme for this year’s celebration, held Jan. 29 - Feb. 4, is  “Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.”

Having spent the better part of the past decade as a teacher of the Evansville Catholic Diocese and mother of students within the Catholic schools, I’ve had the opportunity to experience what Catholic schools provide from a unique perspective.  The strength of the system, in my humble opinion, is the community.  Curriculum alone and/or tradition cannot create an inclusive society that cares and nourishes the whole child.  This care comes from the people who make up the heart of the Catholic community.

It’s the parents, who support the efforts of educators, and are their child's most important teachers.  

It’s the principal whose heart holds the backstory of each student and weighs each choice, each decision, with the guiding focus that the purpose of the school is to form not only the scholarship but also the spirit of the child.  

It’s the third-grade teacher who spends time during the Advent and Lenten seasons leading her class in praying decades of the rosary for each and every staff member of the school as their special gift. (It was my favorite gift I ever received as a teacher.)

It’s the volunteer, recently drawn back to her Catholic faith, who spends hours listening to students as they practice their speeches for competition.  Her patience and dedication are a gift to all of the students and parents she serves.

It’s the cafeteria manager who tries not only to provide healthy, interesting lunch choices but is also the first to volunteer to answer phones in the office and on occasion perform heroic feats as an amateur firefighter.

    It’s the staff, from priests to parish manager to secretary, who set the example through action and word in what it means to live as Christ asks. To show a forgiving heart and generous spirit through giving of time, treasure and most of all talent in their guidance.   

But first and foremost, it’s the children.  The students, from toddlers to teens, who fill the four walls with bursting energy and inquisitiveness.  These resilient students who bloom under the tutelage of the adults who care and protect them in a world that is growing more and more difficult to understand. These students who inspired me to learn more about my faith so I could answer knowledgeably as they asked their questions. The students that taught me: Got a problem?  There’s a saint for that!  (Saint Isidore, patron saint of the internet, was called on daily in our computer lab.)

As transplants to Evansville, the need for community in my family’s life has been vital. The community we have entered as part of the Catholic Schools family of Evansville has provided us with support and friendship, not only for our children but for adults as well.  True friends who have answered the phone in the middle of the night to help during medical scares, sharing chauffeur services back and forth to practices and have shared many, many hours of laughter and joy.

Being part of the Catholic community has brought a global view to our world.  We have become friends with neighbors originating from around the world.  We’ve been invited to share meals and explore cultural traditions that have taught us, in the words of Maya Angelou, that we are more alike than we are unalike.  

And faith is a strong, guiding presence.  This faith brings our students together each week as school Mass is said throughout the diocese.  This faith guides men and women as they hold prayer services before and after school to pray the intentions shared by students each week.  

    I’ve learned to seek out the activities and friends that nourish my spirit.  I find myself inspired by the stories I hear from others and their journeys.  And I have found where I fit comfortably within the community.  Many have not found that comfortable spot.  During this Catholic schools week, I will pray for those who are seeking the right fit for their family, and for the joy and celebration of the students in our diocese.  Have a wonderful week!