On Monday, May 25 the students and staff of Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School and St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School went for a walk – a walk to honour and support those fighting Cystic Fibrosis. As May is Cystic Fibrosis Month, and there are currently three students enroled at St. Benedict with the disease, the school campus decided show their support with the theme of the day being superheroes. The students and staff were encouraged to dress up as their favourite superhero while participating in the walk – the only two schools in Canada to be hosting their own. Member of the local Cystic Fibrosis organization were on hand to take part in the event with the group as well as families of some of the students. The two schools raised $1000 through a buy-out to
Category: Faith
Walking with Everyday Heroes
On Monday, May 25 the students and staff of Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School and St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School went for a walk – a walk to honour and support those fighting Cystic Fibrosis. As May is Cystic Fibrosis Month, and there are currently three students enroled at St. Benedict with the disease, the school campus decided show their support with the theme of the day being superheroes. The students and staff were encouraged to dress up as their favourite superhero while participating in the walk – the only two schools in Canada to be hosting their own. Member of the local Cystic Fibrosis organization were on hand to take part in the event with the group as well as families of some of the students. The two schools raised $1000 through a buy-out to participate.
Bishop ACCSS Students and Staff Break Break Together
Once again this year, the boys from grade 9 participated in Bishop Alexander Carter’s Wolf Project. The Wolf Project is designed to help the boys transition into positive and productive young men. The boys participated in various activities throughout the school year, and each activity focused on one of the seven Aboriginal teachings of Respect, Courage, Humility, Honesty, Wisdom, Truth and Love. The boys in the program had the opportunity to practice Humility and Truth by preparing lunch, and then serving it to someone else. That someone else was mystery staff member. As our Saviour taught us to be humble and to serve others, so did the boys as they spent the entire morning in the kitchen preparing a delicious lunch for their mystery staff member. While they put together a succulent menu of vegetable soup, salad, sausage or chicken salad sandwiches, as well as chocolate chip cookies, the boys also learned some basic kitchen skills. Then they sat down and broke bread with their mystery staff member. Many of the boys came back pleasantly surprised to have learned that teachers have lives, interests and hobbies outside of school. Staff commented on the great food, but most of on how pleasant and polite the boys were while serving them lunch and during their lunch chat. This activity was beneficial for all as it allowed both the students and the staff to see each other in a different light.
“JUMPCREDIBLE!”
Students at St. Bernadette Catholic Elementary School take heart health seriously. During the month of May students got active and skipped to their heart’s content while collecting over $3,700.00 in pledges for heart disease and stroke research. This partnership with the Heart and Stroke Foundation teaches students about healthy eating, the importance of daily physical activity, and the benefits of giving back to our community. Teacher Colette Perrin, the Jump Rope Event Coordinator at St. Bernadette, said , “Every year the students look forward to the opportunity to have loads of fun skipping and contriubuting to this great cause!” A special thank you goes out to the school community for their dedication and hard work in collecting pledges.
St. Charles College – Change Charity Gala
The St. Charles College World Issues Club is a student run and founded organization. The students want to encourage other young people to be informed, responsible global citizens who care about timely issues, and who make an effort to do something about it. In spirit of the club’s purpose, they will be hosting their first annual charity gala “Change” to fundraise and promote for charitable organizations such as L’Arche Sudbury and The Junction Creek Stewardship Committee. They will also be showcasing Red Cross in light of the recent earthquake in Nepal. Change will give each organization the chance to address the community, showcase their mission and raise awareness for their cause. The night will also feature musical performances from some St. Charles College music students and dinner will be provided. Semi formal wear is encouraged. For more information, please contact the school at 705-566-9605.
After Setbacks and Heartache, St. Charles Cardinal is Honoured with Full Scholarship
There is not a more tenacious and motivated student than Lisa Ludwig. The seventeen year-old St. Charles College student and cancer survivor has just won Laurentian University’s Jim Fielding Memorial Bursary which will pay for her next four years of schooling.
Lisa’s story is full of hardship and hurdles. She has been a child of the ward since she was small – living with a foster family for as long as she can remember.
In grade eight, while her friends were celebrating graduation, she was having her leg biopsied. Days later, she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma – the same cancer Terry Fox was stricken with in his teen years.
That summer before high school was overshadowed by hospital stays, treatments, hair loss and would eventually lead to the loss of her leg.
Due to treatments and a weak immune system, Lisa started grade 9 late in the second semester putting her off track to graduate with her peers. But that did not stop her – Lisa took classes through home schooling and summer school to get back on track. In addition, she worked on two co-operative education placements in grade 11 and 12 at Health Sciences North in both cancer and mental health wards and at the Children’s Treatment Centre. She will also graduate next month with a red seal with a Specialist High Skills Major designation in Healthcare.
Throughout high school, she was dealt more grief. Her foster father died of a heart attack when she was in grade ten and last year, and last year her foster care worker, Nicole Belair was killed in a house fire in Hanmer.
Lisa continues to have two hospital visits per year for her osteosarcoma but nothing has stopped this driven student. She is excited about this new chapter of her life at Laurentian University. She has high hopes of becoming a social worker who can help people and give back to a system she has been a part of all her life.
Cardinal Girls Told to “Love the Skin You’re In!”
Cardinal Girls told to “Love the Skin You’re In!” St. Charles College girls’ were told their voices and imaginations are far more important than being eye candy. Brie Mathers, a presenter who hails from small town Bracebridge but now spends winters in California delivered a presentation on Media Literacy and Body Image. Mathers says this message is needed for young girls now more than ever as a culture of self-objectification creates mental health issues such as disordred eating, anxiety and depression. Brie’s work speaks to media idealizations of women and the influence they are having on young women’s self perception, shifting the conversation to a focus on inner resilience and loving yourself, your body, and one another. The presentation was made available through a Speak Up Grant from the government aimed at creating confident girls who don’t concern themselves with negative body image. And it seemed to work. Wrote one participant in a follow-up evaluation: “This presentation made me feel like a strong, beautiful, independent young woman. I appreciate what you’re doing and I would like to help other girls feel as confident as I do today.” It also reached young women already struggling, inspiring them to attitudinal and behavioural change. During the presentation, Brie stopped the girls and implemented energy breaks.
SCDSB Celebrates Sixth Annual Turning Points Essay Contest Awards
Invited students, parents, teachers and invited guests gathered together on May 6, 2015 to take part in the Sudbury Catholic District School Board’s Sixth annual Turning Points Essay Contest Awards ceremony. This essay contest is an initiative that stems from the Learning Partnership, which is an organization that champions a strong public education system to deliver innovative programs, credible research, policy initiatives, executive leadership and public engagement across Canada. Turning Points is a character development and literacy program that allows students to reflect on their fundamental values and, through a process of self-reflection and dialogue, write a narrative essay about a significant event, or turning point in their lives. The Turning Points Essay Contest is a powerful character development and literacy program that all 4 of our secondary schools, as well as the intermediate students at St. Anne participated in this year. There are 3 divisions, Grade 7/8, Grade 9/10 and Grade 11/12. Cash prizes were awarded for secondary essays and all essays will also be published in an annual anthology that will be sent to students and participating schools next year. The students that took part in this contest and authored the winning essays were awarded plaques, a copy of the publication, as well as monetary awards at the celebration. Joanne Bénard, Director of Education for the Board was on hand for the celebration and awarded the students their prizes. After hearing the students read their essays, Bénard was visibly moved by their words and experiences. “I want to thank these students for sharing with us your strength and resiliency, and for being able to see the shining light in your experiences,” Bénard stated. “You have shown us that everyday is a blessing by sharing your emotional stories of strength and courage, accounts of laughter and tears, your deepest secrets, greatest fears, and biggest triumphs. What emerges as these essays take shape is just magic, and it reminds us all of the goodness and beauty in all of our students.”
Top Winners include:
Grade 11/12 Division
First Place – Mia Tullio
Second Place – Emily Brohart
Third Place – Taylor Emery
Grade 9/10 Division
First Place – Jenna Hoolans
Second Place – Julia Moore
Third Place – Alexis Gunther
Grade 7/8 Awards
First Place- Madison Penrose
Second Place – Amy Lucas
Third Place – Kaylee Kruk
Sudbury Catholic Schools – Relays for Life at St. John, St. Anne and St. Paul
As part of their school’s Catholic Education activities, St. John, St. Anne and St. Paul Catholic Elementary Schools held an in-school Relay for Life on Friday, May 8, 2015. For St. John, this year marks the school’s seventh year hosting the event. St. John teacher and event organizer Irene Raymond was talking to staff at the other two schools and decided that they too would start an in-school Relay for Life event. At each school, students, staff and invited guests started off their day in the gymnasium to listen to speakers from their own school communities talk about their own experiences, as well as local cancer organizations talk about the positive impact the schools’ relays have on the community.
All three schools surpassed their fundraising goals with St. John raising over $4500, St. Paul raising over $6400 and St. Anne raising over $13,500.
Organizer and St. John teacher was overwhelmed with the participation and fundraising efforts at all three schools. “What an amazing turnout for all three Sudbury Catholic schools! I am so very proud of our successes! It was truly an amazing and emotionally humbling experience – we are all so proud of the efforts of all the students, staff, families and community partners that supported this year’s Relay for Life events – it is so very touching and impactful!”