Festival queens
run in family
Amy Elizabeth Moore (center), who will be crowned
Festival Queen of Holy Spirit Parish in Fremont on May 16, stands
with her grandmother, Antoinette (Pimentel) Cordeniz and aunt, Catherine
(Cordeniz) Souza, who were crowned festival queens of 1949 and 1984.
This marks the first time in the history of the Holy Spirit Festival
that there has been three generations of festival queens. |
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| Community service as part of
Confirmation prep |
Carlos Santana Jr. helps plant one of six new
juniper trees at Children’s Fairyland. A student at James Logan
High School, he was one of 100 teens from the Confirmation program
at St. Anne Parish in Union City who spent a day helping refurbish
the 60-year-old Oakland playground.
ALFRED ALIPION JOCSON PHOTO |
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Erica Andrada and Roman Patungan, students at
James Logan High, attach a piece of new fence at Fairyland’s
goat pen. They and their Confirmation program peers raised funds to
buy the materials needed for their projects at the Oakland landmark.
They worked in six teams to dismantle and move a shed, build and paint
fences, create a rock border in a garden, and plant trees.
ALFRED ALIPION JOCSON PHOTO |
Rally for immigration reform
Carrying a banner that reads “El pueblo
unido jamás será vencido” (The people united will
never be defeated), a woman marches April 10 with more than 300 other
members of COR (Congregations Organizing for Renewal) along Hesperian
Blvd. in Hayward from St. Joachim Church to St. John Church in San
Lorenzo, asking Congressman Pete Stark to support immigration reform
this year. Stark represents California’s 13th congressional
district in southwestern Alameda County.
José luis aguirre photos |
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A member of St. Joachim Parish carries a banner
during the immigration march in Hayward, the first organized in that
city. |
Christian Brother to receive
high honor
Christian Brother Carlos Gabriel Gomez-Restrepo
(right), president of the Universidad de La Salle in Bogota, Colombia,
will receive an honorary doctoral degree from Saint Mary’s College
in Moraga, April 28, during its annual De La Salle Week convocation.
He is being recognized for his numerous contributions to education and
the works of the Christian Brothers. De La Salle Week celebrates the life
of St. John Baptist de La Salle, founder of the Christian Brothers.
Shop, celebrate WFT Day
The Cathedral Shop at the Cathedral of Christ
the Light will observe World Fair Trade (WFT) Day, a celebration of a
social movement dedicated to bringing economic justice to international
trade, with the sale of numerous fair trade items next month.
Although World Fair Trade Day is traditionally held the second Saturday
in May, the Cathedral Shop will begin its celebration on May 1. Fair trade
items at The Cathedral Shop include chocolate, picture frames and baskets,
many of which were produced in collaboration with Catholic Relief Services
(CRS).
The theme of World Fair Trade Day, “Fair Trade My Home,” is
designed to encourage consumers in developed countries to purchase and
use more fair trade items produced by farmers, artisans and other workers
in the developing world and help improve their lives.
Help ‘Golden Retrievers’
A group of retirees at St. Charles Borromeo Parish
in Livermore have earned the colorful nickname of Golden Retrievers
— a name that not only reflects their “golden years”
but their ministry to retrieve food for those in need.
The group began 10 years ago when Brian O’Reilly, a St. Charles
parishioner, wanted to find a way to help local food -pantries. He noticed
that they lacked adequate food storage and coordination. O’Reilly
solved both issues by finding a local benefactor to donate the necessary
storage and volunteers to pick-up and distribute donated food to Open
Heart Kitchen, St. Vincent de Paul food program, Interfaith Sharing, and
the Tri Valley Haven Food Pantry.
Over the years, these volunteers have used their trucks or vans to collect
donated fresh and canned food from local supermarkets, restaurants, delis
and hospital cafeterias in the Livermore Valley. Recently, the pancake
breakfast group from St. Charles has also donated leftover food.
Because of the economic downturn, food donations are in great demand.
To help, contact O’Reilly at (925) 858-5288.
High school musical
Richmond’s Salesian High School and San
Ramon’s St. Joan of Arc Light Players are busy preparing for
musical performances of two well-known musicals, “Alice in Wonderland.”
and “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”
With a cast of 40 students, Salesian High brings to life the whimsical
characters of the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, and the White Rabbit,
among others. “Alice in Wonderland” will run April 29 and
30 and May 1 at 7 p.m. in Salesian Gym, 2851 Salesain Ave. Tickets are
$5 for adults and $2 for students. For tickets contact the school at (510)
234-4433.
The St. Joan of Arc LIGHT Players, a cast of over 40 youth from
high schools in San Ramon Valley, will present Andrew Lloyd Webber’s
classic musical, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,”
for a six-performance run beginning May 7.
Performances will be held at St. Joan of Arc Church, 2601 San Ramon Valley
Blvd., on May 7 at 8 p.m.; May 8 at 8 p.m.; May 9 at 3 p.m.; May 14 at
8 p.m.; May 15 at 8 p.m.; and May 16 at 3 p.m. General tickets are $15
and may be purchased at the parish. For more information, call (925) 830-4720
or musical@sjasr.org.
Around
the Parishes
Members at St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Berkeley
gathered April 17 for a Mass of Thanksgiving to celebrate the Golden Jubilee
— 60th year in the priesthood — of their pastor, Dominican
Father David Farrugia.
The Knights of Columbus at St. Joan of Arc Parish in San
Ramon recently presented a check for $6,900 to the Food Bank of Contra
Costa and Solano.
Paulist Father Bernard Campbell, pastor at Holy Spirit-Newman
Hall Parish in Berkeley, joined parishioners in the CROP Hunger Walk
yesterday (April 25) sponsored by the Lutheran Church of the Cross, also
in Berkeley. The three-mile walk focuses on helping local and international
agencies to feed the hungry, including Dorothy Day House in Berkeley.
CROP Hunger Walks are held across the nation to help educate local communities
and raise funds for Church World Service, an ecumenical ministry that
works to eradicate hunger and poverty and promote justice around the world.
Richard Lane, a dynamic speaker known for his charismatic style
of ministry, will lead a parish mission at St. Jerome Church, 308
Carmel Ave. in El Cerrito, May 10 – 13, from 7 – 8:30 p.m.
Lane, a convert to Catholicism turned evangelist, is co-founder of the
Catholic Men for Christ Conference in St. Louis. He will focus on reconciliation
as a way to bring about healing to those who have fallen away from the
Church. Free-will offerings will be collected each evening. Information:
(510) 525-0876.
Father Robert Mendonca, pastor at St. Michael Parish in Livermore,
is presenting a series of homilies on prayer during the Easter season
at the 9:30 and 11 a.m. Sunday Masses until May 30. There will be a workshop
on prayer on May 29, 1 p.m. – 4:30 p.m., in the parish hall. Childcare
will be available. Information: (925) 447-1585, ext. 36.
The Young Ladies Institute (YLI)donated rosaries to the 67 children making
their First Communion at Corpus Christi Parish in Fremont, April
25 and May 2.
In observance of Earth Day, the social justice committee at Santa Maria
Parish in Orinda sponsored a student poster contest on the themes
of Reduce, Reuse, or Fair Trade.
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Around
the Schools
Despite these financially challenging times, last month’s
“Roaring ’20s” fundraiser for Assumption School in
San Leandro was a major success. The 21st annual dinner dance raised
more than $50,000.
The De La Salle baseball team recently organized a fundraiser to
help Gunnar Sandberg, the Marin Catholic High School pitcher
who is recovering from a head injury sustained during a scrimmage match
with the Concord team last month. Six Bay Area restaurants agreed to donate
a share of their proceeds on April 17 to a fund set up for Sandberg who
was injured when a ball struck with a metal bat struck him in the head.
He was put into a medically induced coma and doctors removed a portion
of his skull to reduce swelling in the brain. The Marin Catholic junior
is now recovering in a rehabilitation hospital in San Francisco.
Greg Fiorina, a sophomore at Bishop O’Dowd High School in
Oakland, has earned a scholarship to Steps on Broadway Dance Studio
in New York City after being named best overall dancer at the recent Celebrity
Dance Championship Regional Competition. Steps on Broadway, the nation’s
largest dance studio, draws many Broadway performers and other professionals.
Tyson Ross, a pitcher with the Oakland Athletics and a 2005 Bishop
O’Dowd grad, made his Major League debut earlier this month
against the Seattle Mariners. Not only did he throw two and one-third
scoreless innings but he stuck out Ken Griffey, Jr., one of the games
most prolific home run hitters.
The Class of 1960 at St. Mary’s High School will hold its
50-year reunion dinner on the school campus in Berkeley, May 29. The “Golden
Grads” will join the Class of 2010 at its Baccalaureate Mass on
May 29 and commencement exercises on May 30. For more information and
reservations, contact Joanne Howe at (510) 559-6227 or jhowe@stmchs.org.
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Names, News, Notes
Mission San Jose Dominican Sister Moira Macpherson,
a hospital chaplain based at St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Martinez,
was honored April 11 at a luncheon at the Veterans Administration’s
care facility in Martinez upon receiving her 1000 hours pin for volunteer
work at the hospital. She is also chaplain at the Contra Costa Regional
Medical Center, also in Martinez.
Congratulations to Rosa Lupian of San Leandro, Fred Shelton
of Oakland, and Sheila Torres of Walnut Creek, who won tickets
to see the Harlem Globetrotters on April 24 at the University of California
in Berkeley. The tickets were a giveaway offered on the website of The
Catholic Voice.
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