LOCAL NEWS

The first Youth Catholic Congreso will welcome teenagers and young adults from throughout the area for a series of talks, panels, Masses plus a concert and rally.

Innate teacher and professional musician Sr. Louise Szkodzinski, BVM, who served as music director at St. Catherine of Siena Parish and as a music teacher at the parish school in the '80s and '90s, passed away Jan. 16 in Dubuque, Iowa. She was 95.

St. Benedict parishioners Joyce Petrowski, Lisa Campbell and Anita Buckel — plus Petrowski’s husband Greg stepping in as treasurer — formed Furnishing Dignity, a nonprofit that provides basic household goods to pre-screened clients that come through referrals from existing nonprofits.

The Pontifical Academy for Life could very well study the Diocese of Phoenix to help achieve its original and recently affirmed goal.

John O. Whiteman, a Mesa philanthropist advocating early childhood learning and college success, will address the graduates.

Fr. Alejandro López, a visiting priest from Boston, had a very simple yet poignant question for youth and young adults attending the Sunday Mass at this year’s Catholic Youth Congreso: “Why aren’t you going out there and sharing what the Holy Spirit has done for you?”

Funeral services were held Feb. 6 for Deacon Gregory Edward Galloway who passed away peacefully Jan. 28. He was 59.

While Christians may think of themselves as divided into different churches and denominations, the devil actually sees that they are one in their faith in Jesus, Pope Francis said in a video message to a Christian unity celebration in Phoenix.

Thousands attended rallies throughout the country in response to a series of undercover videos released by the Center for Medical Progress that showed Planned Parenthood officials discussing the sale of organs from aborted children.

One volunteer greets inmates upon release with a metal cylinder containing small, essential gifts. It's also "their bucket list to put their plans and dreams in."