Catholic Chronicle

Bowling Green woman receives grant to pursue vocation

Laurie Stevens Bertke — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:00:00 +0000

BOWLING GREEN—The Mater Ecclesiae Fund for Vocations (MEFV) announced that Andrea Slivka of Bowling Green has been awarded a St. Joseph Student Debt Relief Grant.

Miss Slivka, a member of Bowling Green St. Thomas More, is to begin her formation with the Carmelite Monastery of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Ada, Mich., later this year.

She received a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from Bowling Green State University in 2008. While still in school, Miss Slivka began discerning a vocation to the religious life and eventually applied to and was accepted by the Carmelites at the Monastery of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The only obstacle to her entry was her student loan debt.

The MEFV is to make monthly payments on Miss Slivka’s student loans throughout her years of formation, with a guarantee that the debt will be fully paid by the fifth anniversary of her final vows.

The MEFV is a charitable organization, founded in 2006 to remove the serious obstacles that student loans present to individuals who seek to answer God’s call to consecrate themselves in the priesthood or religious life.

Because of the vow of poverty, people entering religious life must be free of all debt. However, the high cost of a college education means that many young people must take student loans to attend college, and the difficulty of paying off these loans — often tens of thousands of dollars — can delay or in some cases prevent many qualified individuals from responding to their vocation to religious life.

For its 2010 application period, the MEFV received 27 applications, but was able to issue only 16 grants, due to limited funds.

“We wish we could have awarded grants to all our candidates,” says Corey Huber, president of the MEFV. “The Church needs these young men and women serving in the priesthood and religious life.”

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Additional information about the program can be found at http://fundforvocations.org/.

St. Joan of Arc celebrates Grandparents' Day

Laurie Stevens Bertke — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 04:00:00 +0000

(Photo courtesy of St. Joan of Arc)

Sixth-grader Zach Wester shows off his classroom to his grandparents during Toledo St. Joan of Arc’s Grandparents’ Day celebration.

St. Joan of Arc’s annual Grandparents’ Day celebration took place Oct. 2. The day began at 8:45 a.m. with Mass and continued with classroom visits and a light snack in the school gymnasium. Each grade had some special activities planned for the morning, including art projects, Smart Board demonstrations, science experiments and family trees.

Filmmaker presents ‘Poverty, Prayer and the Power of Film’ Oct. 15

Laurie Stevens Bertke — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:41:18 +0000

TOLEDO—How do you put the power of film at the service of the poor? Find out as Toledo St. John’s Jesuit sponsors a presentation by filmmaker and award-winning author Gerard Straub.

‘Poverty, Prayer and the Power of Film’ explores the problem of poverty from a theological perspective. The event is Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. in St. John Berchmans Chapel.

Mr. Straub’s presentation wraps up Environmental Justice Awareness Week at SJJ, making the connection between environmental problems and social injustices.

“We are abusing creation, plundering its resources,” Mr. Straub writes. “The earth is crying, dying, because of our failure to see the solidarity of life.”

This abuse of the earth and the poverty it fuels is part of the reason Mr. Straub has traveled around the world to film the plight of the poor. Mr. Straub, a Secular Franciscan and the founder of The San Domiano Foundation, has created nine documentaries to tell such stories.

Phil Skeldon, director of St. John’s Christian Services department, believes Mr. Straub’s presentation will take all the messages from Environmental Justice Awareness week a step further.

“Students need to see the connection between the environmental choices they make and the impact it has on the poor,” Mr. Skeldon said. “I hope they gain a greater understanding of the major footprint they leave on the world and how they can lessen it.”

Throughout the week, St. John’s students are learning about consequences of mountaintop removal and the importance of local and organic farming. They even have the opportunity to purchase organically produced food items at a mini-farmer’s market.

St. Catherine presentation is Nov. 22

Laurie Stevens Bertke — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:52:42 +0000

TOLEDO—Dominican Sister Nancy Murray, sister of acclaimed actor Bill Murray, presents a one-woman show depicting St. Catherine of Siena at 3 p.m. Nov. 22 at Toledo St. Joan of Arc.

In this family-oriented program, Sr. Murray introduces the audience to St. Catherine, the patroness of the Dominican order, who may be best remembered for “The Dialogue,” an intimate collection of prayers and conversations between herself and God.

Sr. Murray has been performing as St. Catherine for many years across the country and believes her calling helps keep the saint’s spirit alive and inspires others to live the virtues by which she lived.

Thos attending will have a chance to meet “St. Catherine” after the performance and talk with Sr. Murray.

A free will offering will be accepted. For more information, contact Mary Ann Kahl at 419-356-5323.

Jiggs dinner to benefit food pantry

Angela Kessler — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 04:00:00 +0000

TOLEDO--A Jiggs Dinner and “half-way to St. Patty’s Day” party is planned for Sept. 17 at Shawn’s Irish Tavern. The event will help re-stock the emergency food pantry at St. Patrick of Heatherdowns.

Called “Fill Your Belly and Feed Your Neighbor,” the evening features Jiggs dinners from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and a performance by “Extra Stout” beginning at 8 p.m. There is no cover charge, but canned goods will be collected at the door.

The “Feed Your Neighbor” program and Society of St. Vincent de Paul serve the needy living within the parish boundaries, regardless of faith. St. Patrick’s parish boundary lies between Reynolds Road and Byrne Road and is bordered by the Anthony Wayne Trail and Angola Road.

In the wake of the economic downturn, St. Vincent de Paul and the “Feed Your Neighbor” program have experienced an increased demand to provide services, while realizing a decrease in donations. Between July 1 of 2008 and June 30 of 2009, St. Vincent de Paul provided food, rent and utility assistance, bus tokens, referral services and spiritual aid to 1,813 people living within the parish boundary. One hundred seventy-two bags of emergency food were given out by “Feed Your Neighbor” and $3,195 worth of grocery store gift cards also were distributed during the same time period.

As the weather begins to turn cooler and utility bills rise, it is expected that the requests for emergency food will increase. In order to be prepared, St. Patrick’s is hoping to collect 150 cans of food. Shawn’s is also going to donate $5 from the sale of each Jiggs dinner.

When choosing canned foods to bring, donors are asked to consider an item on the “critical need” list. Items include: chunky-style soups, peanut butter, jam and jelly, canned fruit and canned meats like chicken, tuna and salmon.

“We know we have a great need, but we also wanted to help meet that need by doing something fun — something where our donors could have a great time,” said Pam Mohler, St. Patrick’s development director. “Shawn’s is a natural South-end neighborhood gathering place and they are generous to help St. Pat’s put on this event. We hope people will come out to support us and our south Toledo families in need.”