MINNEAPOLIS
Our Lady of Peace School
Peaceful poetry
“Our Lady of Peace is a PeaceBuilders school,” according to the staff. “This program is helping our preschool through eighth-graders become instruments of peace!
“Each day, all students recite this pledge:
‘I am a PeaceBuilder
‘I pledge:
‘To praise people
‘To give up put downs
‘To seek wise people
‘To notice and speak up about hurts I have caused
‘To right wrongs
‘To help others
‘I will build peace at home, at school, and in my community each day.’
“In addition to the daily pledge, students meet monthly in multi-age Peace Circles and recognize each other when they exemplify characteristics of being a PeaceBuilder.
The benefits of the program spill over into life at home, becoming a way for parents to build consistency in expectations for behavior at home and school for our children. It truly is a wonderful program!”
For more information, visit http://www.peacebuilders.com.
WOODBURY
Girl Scouts
A gift to others
The Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin River Valleys sent the following good news:
“In a true act of being a sister to every girl, Girl Scouts in Woodbury donated a portion of their troop funds to enable their fellow Girl Scouts at Ames/Sheridan Elementary in St. Paul to attend camp this summer.
“Previously, the St. Paul troop relied on funds from Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin River Valleys, which provides financial support for camp and other programs, to ensure that all girls can have the same experiences.
“The donation to River Valleys was given in honor of Thomas Kendrick, second-grade teacher and co-leader of the St. Paul troop. Kendrick promotes the benefits of offering Girl Scouting in schools because it enables lower-income girls to develop new skills and build their self-confidence.
“This act of kindness provides a powerful message to all Girl Scouts about giving back and the impact each girl can make by living the Girl Scout promise and law.”
HUGO
St. John the Baptist Church
Giving from the core
St. John the Baptist in Hugo responded generously to the archdiocese’s call for a second collection to help victims of the tornadoes that occurred during the week of May 22 to 28. It was just three years ago that Hugo suffered from a tornado touchdown similar to the one that hit North Minneapolis May 22. The news of that storm and the storms in Missouri and Oklahoma renewed the sense of loss caused by the storm of May 25, 2008. It also reminded St. John the Baptist parishioners of the overwhelming generosity and blessings poured out upon them in their time of need, said Father Jon Shelley, pastor.
The proposal for the second collection was for half the money to be used locally and the other half to serve storm victims in Missouri and Oklahoma.
“The hand of God and the generosity of people provided many blessings to our community in our time of need. It was now our turn to give, not from our excess but from our core,” Father Shelley said.
Father Shelley and parish leaders decided to give all of the Memorial Day weekend collections, totaling $3,740, to this worthy cause.
MINNEAPOLIS
St. Joan of Arc Church
Help on wheels
Father Jim DeBruycker, pastor of St. Joan of Arc in Minneapolis, reported that its joint Mobile Loaves & Fishes venture with Knox Presbyterian Church, which has been serving the homeless and working poor on weeknights for 14 months, jumped into action after news of the May 22 tornado in north Minneapolis.
“Minutes after we heard of the devastation, volunteers came together and made up over 400 meals, which were distributed Sunday evening to people who had lost their homes and to the police who were working in the area,” he wrote.
Karen Waldron, MLF volunteer coordinator, wrote: “Since then, we have taken our truck to the corner of Lowry and Penn avenues, by the request of City Councilman Don Samuels and Mayor R.T. Rybak, on a nightly basis. This situation was far worse than we could have ever imagined. Parts of our Twin Cities community look like a bomb went off. Debris, trees and glass littered the streets. . . .
“Many stories have been shared in the last week. But the story that especially hit home was the story of a woman who had a tree come through the roof on her house. Devastating enough for most, but she then invited 10 of her neighbors into her home because the line of people needing to stay in a shelter was so long.
“MLF fully expects the challenges to continue and we plan on being part of the solution.”
For more information, contact Mobile Loaves-Minneapolis at mlfmpls@gmail.com or see http://www.mlfnow.org. If you are interested in donating to the relief effort, please send a check to MLF-Minneapolis, c/o St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, 4537 Third Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55419.
