LOCAL NEWS

Students from across Arizona comfortably filled Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral for the all-school liturgy Jan. 30 as part of Catholic Schools Week celebrations. All four bishops serving the state’s three dioceses along with up to a dozen priests — many of them school pastors, chaplains and rectors — were also on hand to celebrate and later honor nine educators for their dedication.

Warmer weather than in recent years sent nearly 1,000 students from across Arizona to a lunchtime rally at the state Capitol Jan. 30. The gathering was in celebration of National Appreciation Day for Catholic Schools, which is a standard part of Catholic Schools Week festivities for local students. It draws largely student council leaders, teachers, parents, legislators, and this year all four bishops serving dioceses in Arizona eager to celebrate Catholic education and school choice. This also marked the first time that donors and supporters had a catered VIP lunch on site and special seating.

Two parents were happy to help students with a last-minute cram session last week. Maggie Gillespie and Tim Burns, members of the Catholic Parents Advocacy Network, hosted a whirlwind meeting for 60 student council members from five area Catholic high schools Jan. 30. They filled a room at Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral on National Appreciation Day for Catholic Schools to prepare students for a visit with local legislators later that day.

Theologian and foremost papal biographer George Weigel drew a crowd of more than 400 people to the Virginia G. Piper Center for the Performing Arts at Xavier College Preparatory Jan. 26 for a lecture about the life of Blessed John Paul II.

National Bank of Arizona will offer $250,000 in corporate matching gifts to leverage an additional quarter million in individual tax credit gifts to benefit low-income Catholic school students.

Arizona served as the kickoff venue for National School Choice Week Jan. 25.

Sister of Notre Dame de Namur, Janice Bohn, who followed her heart and calling to Arizona where she served in ministry for nearly 40...

The heavens helped one school facing its second groundbreaking in three years switch things up a bit. Dirt and dust normally fly during such events. Record rainfall over the weekend made for a ceremonial “mudbreaking” instead. The gentle drops didn’t stop hundreds of St. Francis Xavier students, families and donors from celebrating the milestone Jan. 27. It should be the school's final building project for awhile.

A large photo of Martin Luther King Jr. greeted more than 200 guests Jan. 21 at St. Mary’s Basilica.

Lawyers, judges, canonists and lawmakers from around the State of Arizona gathered at St. Mary’s Basilica Jan. 22 for the 44th annual Red Mass to mark the opening of a new legislative session.