West Point student earns national honor

By Maureen Smith
WEST POINT – Corgan Elliot made history on her summer break. The Fifth Street Junior High seventh-grader competed at National History Day Competition in Washington, DC. Elliot, a member of Immaculate Conception Parish, where she is an altar server, won the state essay competition last year, making her eligible for the national finals. When she wrote the essay she was attending Central elementary School.
National History Day is non-profit organization based in College Park, Maryland, that operates an annual project-based contest for students in grades 6-12. Last year, the theme was conflict and compromise. Students could write an essay or complete another project to explore the theme.
Elliot wrote an essay about Lucy Maude Montgomery, author of the famed Anne of Green Gables books. She examined how Montgomery had to face conflicts and come up with compromises in her life as a orphan and a woman who wanted to be a professional.
“Montgomery was special because she had different labors and problems, and she had the courage to be a female author and take on those additional struggles. She also had the courage to be known as a female author. Some female authors of her time wrote books under a male name, hiding their identity of being a female author in order for their pieces to have a better chance of being published,” wrote Elliot in her essay.
Her mother, Penny, said while Corgan did not bring home a trophy, the trip to the national competition was well worth the effort. “The competition was great. Corgan met a lot of students from around the world. She competed against over 100 students from around the US and world from grades 5-8. She did not place, but it was a wonderful learning experience. She enjoyed meeting other students with her interest in history. She is already planning for this year’s competition,” wrote Penny Elliot in an email to Mississippi Catholic.
The theme for 2018-2019 is triumph and tragedy in history.

St. Mother Teresa inspires Vicksburg youth to start ongoing service projects

By Joan Thornton
VICKSBURG – During the summer, Vicksburg Catholic School, in partnership with Families First for Mississippi, developed a program entitled ‘Mother Teresa Tuesday.’ Each week student and adult volunteers worked at various locations such as Vicksburg

VICKSBURG – Taylor Chewning and Natalie Burke participate in Mother Theresa Tuesday service for Vicksburg Catholic School students during the summer. (Photos by Joan Thornton)

Community Garden, Good Shepherd Community Center and Warren County Humane Society. Groups even traveled to Blair E. Batson Children’s Hospital in Jackson and Our Daily Bread Mississippi located in Canton. There were weeks when 40 volunteers went out on projects.
At the hospital, volunteers participated in the Adopt-A-Floor Program, which provides snacks free of charge for the family members of patients. Groups collected approximately $3,000 worth of snacks which they delivered July 11.
The goal at Our Daily Bread “Bring awareness of healthy eating and to aid in hunger relief in our local communities through God, good works, and deeds.” Student and adult volunteers prepared and served about 90 hot meals for the needy in the community of Canton as well as unloading delivery trucks and organizing their pantry.
Students plan to continue Mother Teresa Tuesdays throughout the school year and encourage all members of the community to join them as together they build up the Kingdom of God through service.

(Joan Thornton is the head of the theology program for Vicksburg Catholic Schools)

Cathedral alumna to lead elementary school

By Sabrina Simms
NATCHEZ – Cathedral School’s new elementary principal and assistant administrator in Kimberly Burkley has a familiar face. As a 1998 graduate of Cathedral, Burkely said working at the school is like coming home.

Kimberly Burkley (Photo courtesy Natchez Democrat)

“It’s exciting to be a part of Cathedral again,” Burkley said. “They’ve added a middle school wing … but most of it is the same.” Burkley said she grew up in Natchez and later pursued her undergraduate degree at the University of Mississippi and graduate degree at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
Before coming to Cathedral, Burkley worked in Concordia Parish Schools, both as a speech and language pathologist from 2005 until last year and as an administrative intern at Concordia Parish Academy for two years.
Burkley said she worked in education for nearly 13 years and enjoys helping students succeed.”The thing I like most is the opportunity to make a difference in children and students’ lives,” Burkley said.
Even though she has worked across the river, Burkley said she never left Natchez. She commuted from Natchez each day and let her children go to her alma mater at Cathedral. Burkley said most of her students and colleagues knew her already as a friend or neighbor. As a professional, Burkley said she has great expectations for the more than 400 students in prekindergarten through fifth grade at Cathedral who will be in her care this school year.
“I’m professional, focused on the academics of students and supportive of faculty and staff,” Burkley said. “Cathedral is an amazing school. As an elementary principal, I will maintain the positive culture and high expectations. I will be visible and available to parents, students and teachers, and I’m looking forward to being a part of the Cathedral family.”

(Reprinted with permission from The Natchez Democrat.)

Annunciation expansion on track for groundbreaking this fall

COLUMBUS – Annunciation School has raised $2 million of the $3 million dollars needed to expand its school facility. The school announced the expansion plan last year after several years of enrollment increases.
“Our architectural committee has met and new building designs have been drawn. Demolition and new construction bids are going out and we hope to break ground sometime in the coming months,” said Katie Fenstermacher, marketing and admissions director for the school.

A rendering of the new Annunciation School. (Courtesy of Katie Fenstermacher)

During the summer the current school building and cafeteria building got a new roof. Work crews added walls and doors where partitions use to be in the existing classrooms. The library and offices have been moved temporarily in preparation for construction to begin.
The students’ routine has not been impacted much. They eat lunch in the classrooms and dismissal is a little different this year.
“We’re excited to provide the best environment we can for continued excellence at our school,” said Father Jeffrey Waldrep, canonical administrator for the school.
“Overall, you can feel the excitement among our school family,” added principal Joni House. Administrators hope to be in the new building by next fall. Meanwhile, the capital campaign continues. To donate, go to www.annunciationcatholicschool.org.

Vicksburg Catholic promotes principal, director

By John Surratt
Vicksburg – Catholic Schools have announced the promotion of Karla McHan to principal of St. Aloysius beginning with the 2019-2020 school year, and Lori Tzotzolas to director of the Vicksburg Catholic Schools Early Learning Center, which opens in 2019.
McHan and Tzotzolas are Vicksburg natives with experience teaching in the Vicksburg Warren School District and at Vicksburg Catholic Schools.

Karla McHan

McHan has a bachelor’s degree in education from Mississippi College and master’s in educational leadership from William Carey University.
She taught in the social studies for 22 years in the Vicksburg Warren School District. She taught 11th grade American History at Warren Central High School, and served as a department chairman and then as lead teacher.
She taught social studies and theology at St. Aloysius. She will still teach theology in her role as assistant principal.
McHan will serve as assistant principal to Dr. Virgil Strickland, the current principal, this school year.
“Administratively, I will be working in collaboration with him on the day-to-day operations, student discipline, professional development curriculum; just a little bit of everything,” she said.
“I’m very excited and humbled,” she said of the promotion, “But very excited.
“It’s a big change, but it’s (St. Aloysius) a good place to be. I kind of felt like I came home when I got to St. Aloysius; it was a good fit for me. I am a Catholic and I really love my faith and my church, and I have a great passion for education, so this was a really good way to combine those two.
“I’m excited about what the future holds for the school and the students and for myself as well.”
She is married to David McHan and they have three children. They attend St. Michael Parish.

Lori Tzotzolas (Photo courtesy of Kristi Smith)

Tzotzolas has a bachelor’s degree in education from Mississippi State University and a master’s of education in administration and supervision with an endorsement in Catholic school leadership from Marymount University.
She is married to Lester Tzotzolas and they have two children. They attend St. George Orthodox Church.
When she learned of her promotion, she said, “ I was surprised and honored and a little bit nervous, because it is a new position and a new building we are building from the ground up. We’re very, very blessed.”
Tzotzolas was a classroom teacher for seven years in the Vicksburg Warren School District, teaching fifth and third grades at Beechwood Elementary. She also taught at Warrenton Elementary and Dana Road Elementary.
She has spent the past 17 years as a classroom teacher and lead teacher at St. Francis Xavier, teaching fifth grade, and has taught kindergarten for the past 11 years. She will teach sixth grade this school year while also spending time working on preparations for the Early Learning Center, which will accept children from ages 6 weeks old to 3.
Tzotzolas will work with the Vicksburg Catholic School Development Office to continue raising funds for the early learning center. She will also work with the project architect and Mississippi Department of Health to ensure the center meets all the requirements to open in 2019.
“We work with the diocese in everything we do,” she said. “We are under their umbrella. They have to approve all of the necessary things here at our school.”
She said the school administration has given her time during the school day to work on the center.
“I certainly will not be taken away from my students,” she said. “I will be in the classroom when I need to be in the classroom, but I will have certain time during planning time or times when other teachers are teaching other subject areas where I can come out of the classroom and attend to the administrative duties I need to attend to.”
She said the design for the new building is ready, with groundbreaking expected early in the fall.
“I’m very excited, just to know I can build something from the ground up, and I absolutely have a team of skilled people who will be working alongside of me,” she said. “I will be supervising, so we will be making sure we have the best teachers to teach those students and understand their needs in the classroom.”

(Reprinted with permission from the Vicksburg Post.)

Toma note

Desde ya – Está abierta la matrícula para la Escuela de Ministerio. Las clases comenzarán el 20 de octubre en San Judas en Pearl con el tema” La familia hispana en Estados Unidos, quienes somos y hacia dónde vamos”. Se necesita un mínimo de 35 estudiantes. La Escuela de Ministerio abarca una serie de cuatro temas que incluyen, además:” El ser humano en crecimiento”, “Retos y oportunidades de educación y formación en los Estados Unidos” y “Administración y finanzas”.
Miercoles, 5 de septiembre – Día de Santa Teresa de Calcuta.
Viernes, 7 de septiembre – El actor Jim Cavizel, quien interpreta a Jesús en la película “La pasión de Cristo”, de Mel Gibson, estará en el Thalía Mara Hall de Mississippi a las siete y treinta de la noche.
Sábado 8 de septiembre – La Natividad de la Santísima Virgen María – Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre, Cuba.
Martes, 11 de septiembre – Dia de Virgen de Coromoto, Venezuela.
Viernes, 15 de septiembre – Dia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores.
– Celebración Día de la Hispanidad. Iglesia St. James, Tupelo. La fiesta incluye selección de la Reina Hispana. Para más información, llamen a Raquel Thompson (662) 402–9599.
Sábado, 22 de septiembre – St. James en Tupelo. Curso” Evangelio de Juan y Cartas.

Celebración del Día de Santa Ana

Por La Hermana Maria Elena Mendez. MGSPS
CARTHAGE – La comunidad hispana en Cartago celebra cada año a su patrona: Santa Ana, el día 26 de Julio. Antes de la misa, tienen una procesión alrededor de la propiedad de la Iglesia seguida de una misa bilingüe. Después de la misa, celebran todos juntos, como una comunidad de fe, con comida y bebidas tradicionales. En este año, la misa fue oficiada por el Padre Odel Medina ST. Niños, jóvenes y adultos de diferentes culturas disfrutaron de la celebración hispana compartiendo a su “Abuela” como algunos llaman a Santa Ana con respeto. Santa Ana es la madre de la Santísima Virgen María. Santa Ana es patrona de las mujeres en trabajo de parto; está representada sosteniendo a la Santísima Virgen María en su regazo, quien a su vez lleva en sus brazos al niño Jesús. Santa Ana también es patrona de los mineros, Cristo es comparado con el oro, María con la plata.

CARTHAGE – Fieles llevan a Santa Ana en procesión en Cartago, Misisipi. (Foto por hermana María Elena Méndez, MGSPS)

Aniversario

Por Berta del Carmen Mexidor
FOREST – El 15 de agosto, día de la asunción de la Virgen María, es dos veces notable para cuatro Misioneras Guadalupanas del Espíritu Santo, primero por la solemnidad de la fiesta y segundo porque es el aniversario de profesión para las hermanas María Elena Méndez, María Josefa García, Obdulia Olivar y María Eugenia Moreno, MGSpS.
La celebración eucarística, en inglés, español y vietnamita, tuvo lugar en Forest, coincidentemente con la visita de los miembros del equipo de Extensión Católica (Catholic Extension, por su nombre en inglés) a las parroquias en Mississippi. El padre Sergio Romo de la parroquia St. Andrew en Chicago ofició la misa. Parroquianos del lugar participaron en el alegre evento. El aniversario marcó 28 años para la hermana María Elena, 42 años para la hermana María Josefa, 45 para María Eugenia y 44 para Obdulia Olivar. Otro ejemplo del servicio a Dios es la hermana Magdalena Carrillo con 57 años de profesión religiosa, a celebrarlos el 12 de diciembre.
Las Misioneras Guadalupanas del Espíritu Santo tienen su origen en 1914, en Saltillo México y más de 88 años de servicio desde su fundación en 15 de septiembre 1930. Las Misioneras Guadalupanas han estado en Mississippi por 16 años. La hermana María Elena dijo: “Agradecemos a Dios por nuestra hermosa vocación y por su constante fidelidad hacia nosotras. Además, a nuestras familias y a todas las personas que nos ayudan a ser mejores y nos permiten ser parte de sus vidas “.
Cientos de rostros y millas de camino están en los archivos guardados en los corazones de estas hermanas. Su trabajo es reconocido por líderes en parroquias alrededor de Mississippi, pero también por cientos de personas, receptoras de sus esfuerzos que un día, inesperadamente, le muestran su aprecio.
La dulzura en sus voces y los impecables hábitos de color blanco hueso, no son un impedimento para andar por caminos polvorientos o enlodados y ayudar con sus delicadas manos en lugares sucios o estrechar las asperezas de manos trabajadoras. Las mismas manos suaves con las que enseñan, comparten alimentos, limpian lágrimas y sudor y dan consuelo espiritual a mujeres y hombres que necesitan el amor de Dios.

FOREST – Misa a Misioneras Guadalupanas del Espíritu Santo, en su aniversario de profesión, oficiada por el padre Sergio Romo de la iglesia San Andres, Chicago. (Foto Cortesía de la hermana María Elena)

Germanfest kraut canning

GLUCKSTADT– Wesley Gannon, closest to the camera, Billy Endris and Paul Aubin boil the canning materials as they prepare sauerkraut for GermanFest 2018. The festival is a St. Joseph Parish tradition honoring the German roots of the community. The 32nd annual GermanFest is scheduled for Sunday, September 30, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The day features lots of German delicacies, polka music, games for kids and a country store. Advance meal tickets are $6 and are available from parishioners of St. Joseph. Ticket information is also available by calling the parish office at (601) 856-2054. Meals the day of the festival will be $7. (Photo by Felicia Lobrano)

Parish calendar

SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
CULLMAN, Ala., Benedictine Sisters Retreat Center, Introduction to Centering Prayer for those new to Centering Prayer. Centering Prayer is a form of Christian prayer rooted in the ancient Christian contemplative tradition. Its purpose is to foster a deeper intimacy with Christ through the silence and stillness of contemplative prayer. August 31 – September 2. Private rooms and the ability to maintain silence are required. Cost: $245 Details: (256) 734-8302, retreats@shmon.org or www.shmon.org.

JACKSON Mississippi State Capitol Building on the South Steps, Memorial Service for Aborted Children, Saturday, September 8, 12:30 p.m. as part of sixth annual National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Children. Details: contact: Laura Duran, 601-956-8636, laura.duran@prolifemississippi.org.

PARISH, SCHOOL AND FAMILY EVENTS

GREENVILLE Delta Event Center, 2524 East Alexander Street, Annual Delta Alliance for Congregational Health Conference, Saturday, September 22, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Details: (662) 702-5055 or Sacred Heart church office (662) 332-0891.
St. Joseph, Parish Fair, Tuesday, September 11. Candy makers, spaghetti workers, donations for prizes, cakes, new toys and two-liter bottled soft drinks are needed. Volunteers are appreciated. Details: church office (662) 335-5251.
TUPELO St. James Church, Dia de la Hispanidad. Friday, September 15. The gathering includes a celebration of many Hispanic cultures. Other parishes are invited to participate as vendors. Details: Raquel Thompson (662) 402-9599
GRENADA St. Peter, bilingual Mass followed by a meal at the Family Life Center, Sunday, September 16, 6 p.m. Details: church office (662) 226-2490.
JACKSON St. Richard, inaugural Team Bass Challenge, Saturday, November 10, at Ross Barnett Reservoir. Friday, November 9, dinner for team members in Foley Hall. Guest speaker and door prizes. You do not have to be a parishioner to participate. This is a fundraiser for retired priests. Details: Tommy Lamas at (601) 366-2335 or email lamas@saintrichard.com.
MADISON St. Francis of Assisi, “A Taste of St. Francis” annual multicultural event, Sunday, September 30, in the Family Life Center following 10:30 Mass. Volunteers needed to cook and serve. Details: call the church office (601) 856-5556 or Amy Hornback (601) 953-4182.
NATCHEZ St. Mary Basilica, Basilica Music Ministry Adult choir begins Wednesday, September 5 from 6:30 – 8 p.m. Advent concert and seasonal music will be introduced and distributed. Music rehearsals are held in St. Therese Hall. Details: contact Musicdirector@cableone.net.
6th Anniversary of the Dedication of the O’Connor Family Life Center, Saturday, September 22, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Guest speaker is Dr. Tom Neal. Details: church office (601) 445-5616.
OXFORD St. John, groups of 3-5 people willing to cook enough spaghetti for 100-150 people needed. Parish provides all the supplies and recipes and a volunteer to help with set up and clean up. Each Sunday after the 5 p.m. Mass, parishioners prepare a spaghetti supper for University of Mississippi students and any parishioners who want to enjoy a $2 meal. Details: Susan Kelly at (662) 801-1008 or email suekel1@bellsouth.net.