The family of kindergartener Lucia Altamirano wanted a place for the St. Christopher Students to be able to share in their family’s devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Through the generous donation of time, hard work, plants, flowers, beautiful decorative pieces, and hand-painted artwork, the St. Christopher School Meditation Garden has received a complete makeover. After pressure washing the garden area, Lucia’s family donated new plants, flowers, and decorations. Lucia’s aunt, Paola Barbuti, hand-painted the beautiful statue, now enclosed in a protective case. A speaker system with continuous-playing soft, soothing music was installed. On Wednesday, May 10, 2023, Fr. Raymond blessed the newly renovated Meditation Garden. Words cannot express our gratitude for this priceless gift to St. Christopher School from the Altamirano and Lozano families.
Congratulations to the recipients of the 2023 Order of St. Louis Award from St. Christopher The Martyr Parish: Anthony and Laura Hagstette and David and Clare Muscarello. Archbishop Hannan began giving out the award in 1975 as a way of saying thanks to the unsung heroes in parishes – the lay volunteers who give so much of themselves to help a parish fulfill its mission of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s very interesting that Archbishop Hannan began the award in part because he was so pleased with the work of the Second Vatican Council, which made it very clear in “Lumen Gentium” that through our baptism and confirmation, all Catholics, not just those who are ordained or who serve as consecrated religious, play a vital role as part of the body of Christ. In Chapter 4, “Lumen Gentium” says the laity are called as “living members” of the body of Christ “to expend all their energy for the growth of the Church and its continuous sanctification, since this very energy is a gift of the Creator and a blessing of the Redeemer” (33). That passage continues: “The lay apostolate ... is a participation in the salvificmission of the Church itself. Through their baptism and confirmation, all are commissioned to that apostolate by the Lord himself. Moreover, by the sacraments, especially holy Eucharist, that charity toward God and others which is the soul of the apostolate is communicated and nourished. Now the laity are called in a special way to make the Church present and operative in those places and circumstances where only through them can it become the salt of the earth. Thus, every layperson, in virtue of the very gifts bestowed upon him, is at the same time a witness and a living instrument of the mission of the Church.”
Congratulations to Nicholas P. Karl, Class of 1994, who was among the 2023 New Orleans Archdiocese Distinguished Alumni Award recipients honored at a reception at Notre Dame Seminary. Archbishop Gregory Aymond and Dr. RaeNell Houston, Superintendent of Catholic Education and Faith Formation, presented Nick with an award that recognized his outstanding contribution of service to the greater community. He lives the mission of service to others. Nick is the Regional Vice President of the Southeast Region for United Healthcare. He is in his second year as Chairman of the Board for Second Harvest and has served on the Board for twenty years. Nick has been a member of the Jefferson Chamber of Commerce for the past ten years, having served as Chairman and is now on the Board of Directors. You make St. Christopher proud, Nick!