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Students receive scholarships for service
Catholic Community Foundation awards service with tuition
By Andrew Junker, The Catholic Sun
March 20, 2008
More than a dozen local eighth-grade students were honored at a March 5 awards ceremony at the downtown Diocesan Pastoral Center for their Christ-like service at the parish, school and community levels.
The Catholic Community Foundation recognized each of the 14 Christian Service Award winners with a $2,000 a year scholarship to any of the diocese’s Catholic high schools. The scholarships are made available by donors who have established a perpetual fund with the foundation.
“The Christian Service Award is the only scholarship program of its kind in the area, in that it is not based on academic achievement or financial need, but strictly on volunteer service,” said Cindy Ketcherside, chairwoman of the foundation’s board of directors.
“The foundation’s mission is to carry on the work of Christ by fostering philanthropy and we work closely with our school administrators, volunteers and clergy in ensuring that Catholic education remains at the forefront of our work,” she said.
In his opening prayer, Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted thanked God for the young students receiving the awards and asked that He bless those who support them. The bishop handed out the awards to each student along with Ann DeFrancesco, chairwoman of the awards committee.
The students receiving the awards were a diverse group, hailing from elementary schools both Catholic and public across the Valley. But an unwavering commitment to serving others bound the students together.
Donna Marino, president and CEO of the Catholic Community Foundation, introduced each student and read excerpts from their award applications.
“Service to others pleases the heart,” wrote St. Thomas the Apostle winner Marijo Gabriel. “Our service to one another is a form of prayer, just as our whole life is a prayer.”
After the awards ceremony, friends, family and the students’ teachers gathered for refreshments in the pastoral center’s courtyard. Some of them reflected on their future at a Catholic high school, which the Christian Service Award will help finance.
“I’m looking forward to the first moment of stepping on campus,” said Ss. Simon and Jude student Franchesca Nuñez. “It’s a built-in community,” she said of Bourgade Catholic High School, which she will attend in the fall.
Nuñez has served both at a local animal shelter and for the organization Ten Thousand Villages. They specialize in retail sale of handcrafted items from around the world. Proceeds from the sales fight poverty.
“The Gospel inspires me to serve,” Nuñez said. “Just knowing that it helps others makes it worthwhile.”
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