Stewardship paths
By Julia Williams
JACKSON – I once read in a parish bulletin a reminder that we should not use irreverent phrases such as “we’re serving wine at Mass,” because after the consecration during Mass, the wine is no longer wine — it is the Precious Blood of Jesus!

The Precious Blood of Jesus is Power! The power of the blood is enough to overcome everything coming against you. This is how you live a life of victory in Christ. It’s the life Jesus died to give you.
The life of a Christian steward models the life of Jesus. It is challenging and even difficult in many respects; yet intense joy comes to those who take the risk to live as Christian stewards. Women and men who seek to live as stewards learn that “all things work for good for those who love God.” (Romans 8:28)

The month of July is dedicated to the Precious Blood of Jesus, spilled on the Cross for us. It is your opportunity to focus directly on this topic … Read about it … Pray about it … Frequent the sacraments, (including confession), so you can receive Him with a clean soul!

Be Blessed, and Remember … “Jesus is Lord!”

Excerpts: catholic-link.org; and Stewardship, A Disciple’s Response, USCCB.

(To subscribe to the monthly Stewardship PATHS newsletter, scan the QR code or email julia.williams@jacksondiocese.org.)

By Sabrina Simms The Natchez Democrat
NATCHEZ — The Knights of Columbus recently presented an approximately $20,000 donation to a new pregnancy center slated to open this month at 4951 U.S. 84 in Vidalia.

The new Miss-Lou Pregnancy Center will be a satellite center of the non-profit Cenla Pregnancy Center, which has other locations in Alexandria and Marksville.

The donation, made possible by the Knights of Columbus organization’s fundraising efforts with area churches, will be used to buy the center’s first ultrasound machine. Both Vidalia and Natchez members helped raise the funds and another $13,000 donation will be given by the national organization, said Steve Neilson, Faithful Navigator of the Natchez post.

“It was great because we saw how two communities could help each other,” Neilson said. “A lot of people from Louisiana contributed and a lot of people from Mississippi contributed.”

“That’s why it’s called Miss-Lou Pregnancy Center,” added Kevin Friloux, a Vidalia member of the Knights of Columbus.

Neilson said the organization has plans to continue supporting the new center, which is much-needed for both communities.

“We have the Caring Hearts Pregnancy Center in Natchez, which is very limited,” Neilson said. “There is no medical staff. It’s more or less just a resource and referral point.”
The next closest pregnancy centers are an hour or two hours away.

Claire Lemoine, executive director of Cenla Pregnancy Center, said their focus is providing confidential services to women who find themselves with an unplanned pregnancy in a judgment-free environment.

There, they will have access to pregnancy tests, an initial ultrasound, post-abortion support, consultations with trained professionals, educational classes, baby items and referrals to other care facilities — all at no charge.

“It’s a place where anyone in an unplanned pregnancy can go if they need support. If they’re considering abortion, if they’re considering parenting or whatever state of life they found themselves in with their pregnancy, they can come to us to talk about their options. We talk about life-affirming options for them. We do talk about abortions but we don’t refer them for abortions or provide abortions. We talk about what that decision may mean for their life if that is what they choose,” Lemoine said.

She added the ultrasound machine that area churches and individuals helped pay for with their donations would be used for most of their initial screenings for mothers who haven’t seen any other physicians yet.
“We give them verification of pregnancy and have prenatal vitamins for them and we also do an ultrasound … which serves to make sure that the pregnancy is in the uterus and verifies how far along they are in their pregnancy. It also helps to make that connection. … They say the ultrasound is the window to the womb. It’s a good way to connect their mind and heart to this new reality.”

Kimberly Butler will be the director of the Miss-Lou Pregnancy Center, which will initially be open on Mondays and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. until it is fully staffed. The new center will also need volunteers to help receive clients, file records and teach classes, Lemoine said.

Inside the facility will be a boutique-like area where participants of educational programs can spend vouchers on baby items such as car seats, baby bottles, clothing, formula and diapers.

The pregnancy center is sustained entirely by donations and fundraising efforts, she said.

The annual Gift of Life Fundraising Banquet, one of the largest fundraisers for the organization, takes place Sept. 13 at the Randolph Riverfront Center on 707 2nd Street in Alexandria, Louisiana, and features actor and evangelist Kirk Cameron as a keynote speaker.

To find out more or make a donation, visit cenlapc.com.

For more information on the Miss-Lou Pregnancy Center, or to volunteer, call (318) 314-3061.

(Reprinted with permission of The Natchez Democrat)

By Joe Lee
JACKSON – Succeeding a legend like Shae Goodman-Robinson would be a daunting task to some, but for Christopher Payne, the incoming principal of Sister Thea Bowman School, it’s a comfortable fit as well as an opportunity to continue paying forward the many life lessons he learned from his mentor.

A graduate of Mississippi State University, Payne has spent the last seven years teaching social studies and technology to Sister Thea Bowman students in grades 3-6. A native of Jackson, he graduated from Jim Hill High school and knows the city and its challenges well.

“In my first year, I noticed a student whose behavior was changing. He was more aggressive around others and a bit standoffish,” Payne said. “I’ve seen boys do that and felt I needed to have a heart-to-heart with him. He started talking about what was going on at home, his relationship with his parents, and he broke down and cried.”

“I started sharing some of my experiences from the past, and he hugged me and said he hadn’t had anyone to talk to. That was the moment I said, ‘Oh, my gosh, this is the impact I can have on these students’ lives.’”

In the short term, Payne says that while Sister Thea Bowman School already has a safe, loving, Christ-like environment, he wants to bring it “times ten” and immediately increase enrollment.

“I want to help guide the school to be one of the premier Catholic schools in Jackson,” Payne said. “Sister Thea Bowman is up for canonization, and we look forward to our school being known as ‘Saint’ Thea Bowman Catholic School. Having at present a prominent African American student body, I’d like to see kids of all races at our school. That’s what Sister Thea wanted: harmony among all groups.”

(Sister Thea Bowman School is now enrolling grades PreK-3 through sixth grade. Interested persons may contact the school at (601) 352-5441. Financial contributions to Sister Thea Bowman School as well as donations of your time and talents are greatly appreciated. Visit theabowmanschool.com to learn more.)

By Joe Lee
JACKSON – Something especially meaningful dawned on Shae Goodman-Robinson as she drove to Sister Thea Bowman School one morning near the end of her thirteenth and final year as principal.

“I told my parents that I started at Sister Thea Bowman in kindergarten when it was Christ the King School, and here I am retiring there as principal,” Robinson said. “What a beautiful full circle of how God puts you in places to pay it forward.”

In the midst of an emotional few days of saying goodbye to students, parents and her employees, Robinson reflected on the many pay-it-forward moments she’s had in more than four decades of being an educator.

“I’ll miss the children and the face-to-face contact with them,” she said. “It put a smile on my face, whatever may have been on my mind at the time. Kids will tell you what they see, in their honesty and love for you. ‘I love your hair, Ms. Robinson. I love your dress, Ms. Robinson. I love your shoes, Ms. Robinson.’ I will genuinely miss that. It’s kept me going all this time.”

Sister Thea Bowman, whom Robinson met two years before her death in 1990, had a profound impact on the way approached her calling.

“Her legacy was, ‘I try,’ and one of my favorite Sister Thea sayings was, ‘I know God is using me in ways beyond my comprehension,’” Robinson said. “As principal, I tried to make sure the students understood the importance of education, and that they took responsibility each day. I tried to make sure they understood that everything comes full circle regarding academic education and spiritual growth.”

A kindergartener in the early 1960s, Robinson recalls her parents earning approximately $200/month but insisting on paying a tuition bill of $32/month to send all three of their children to Christ the King School.
“They believed in the importance of the education we were getting at Christ the King,” she said. “All of that propelled me to want to come back to the school and help pay it forward.”

Another full circle moment is the friendship and work relationship Robinson has had with her successor, Jackson native Christopher Payne, who has taught at Sister Thea Bowman school for seven years and will serve as principal beginning this fall.

“I worked with his grandmother at Bailey Alternative School back in the 1980s, and I told Chris that I remember when his parents got married and when he was born,” Robinson said. “He attended my children’s birthday parties – I remember him as a toddler and growing up. My daughter went to Mississippi State, and so did he.”

“When I heard Chris was in education I talked to him, and when he said he wanted to teach, I offered him an open position I had. Once he got here, I saw leadership skills. He was not a teacher that raised his voice. He was always mild-mannered, and the kids loved him.”

“Shae was the main reason I ended up at Sister Thea Bowman School,” Payne said. “I wasn’t even sure teaching was my calling, but she saw something in me. She said to me, ‘You aren’t just here to work for the students; you’re here for the parents, your co-workers, the church and the community. She has instilled in me the bigger picture, that what happens outside the classroom matters most.”

Robinson will certainly miss her cherished interactions with the many students she mentored at Sister Thea Bowman School, but she has no doubt the right person was selected to succeed her.

“There was never hesitation when I asked Chris for help. He was always ready to help, and he volunteered to do things he saw that needed to be done without me having to ask,” Robinson said. “He has the personality, intelligence and another level of ideas that can take Sister Thea Bowman School to another level.”

(Joe Lee is the Editor-in-Chief of Dogwood Press, a small but traditional publishing house. He is a regular contributor to Mississippi Catholic and a parishioner of St. Francis Madison.)

Click here for accompanying story on incoming principal – Christopher Payne