Loaves and Fishes
I was raised Catholic - about as Catholic as one can possibly be. My mom was a nun before she married my dad, I was the youngest of eight kids, and every one of us attended at least 12 years of Catholic school. We went to mass every Sunday without fail, even when we were on vacation.
In the intervening years, I have struggled to reconcile my very real belief in God with my dismay and horror at many facets of Catholic and other religious institutions. I have felt very cynical and disillusioned at times, even enraged and betrayed by the church.
Now my 10 year old son is attending St. Ignatius Loyola, a Catholic school in Manhattan. At first, I enrolled him primarily for financial reasons. Private schools are horrifically expensive here (think $25,000 per year - for KINDERGARTEN!) and the public schools run the gamut and just - scare me. But because of the generosity of the school community in endowing this school, the tuition for us is about the same as it would be for a Catholic school in Omaha. Connor is receiving a top notch academic education, and is also being carefully taught compassion, good manners, and ethical behavior by the amazing, dedicated teaching staff and the stellar leadership of the school.
A few weeks ago in the weekly newsletter, there was an appeal for people to contribute home cooked meals for a school family whose father was in the hospital. The mother was juggling a full time job, hospital visits, and caring for three school age children - not to mention untold anxiety and stress. I called the organizer since I love to cook and wanted so much to help, and she asked me to come to a meeting the next morning before school.
There were twenty mothers at this meeting. Most of us work full time in Manhattan.
We divvied up days and duties. We figured out a central location to drop the food, and someone volunteered to drive the meals to the family. From that evening onward this family has had a homemade dinner delivered to their door every single night.
The mother called the principal in tears, saying that she could never express her gratitude, not only for the food but for the feelings of comfort and safety it gave her children during a time of great sorrow and fear, and for the unforgettable example it was giving them on how to treat others.
I can't even write about this without being all choked up and blinking back tears. It's such a simple thing - just dinner. Yet it means so much. I'm so proud and humbled to be part of this large, vibrant community of good people. What an example for my own son to witness!
So the principal put another item in the weekly newsletter, telling the story and dubbing our group "Loaves and Fishes." She asked for more volunteers so that this could be an ongoing benefit for any school family in difficult circumstances, and now there are dozens of people involved!
Hurray! Hurray! This is how it is supposed to work!
P.S. Of course, it is a Jesuit school. Go Jebbies!
In the intervening years, I have struggled to reconcile my very real belief in God with my dismay and horror at many facets of Catholic and other religious institutions. I have felt very cynical and disillusioned at times, even enraged and betrayed by the church.
Now my 10 year old son is attending St. Ignatius Loyola, a Catholic school in Manhattan. At first, I enrolled him primarily for financial reasons. Private schools are horrifically expensive here (think $25,000 per year - for KINDERGARTEN!) and the public schools run the gamut and just - scare me. But because of the generosity of the school community in endowing this school, the tuition for us is about the same as it would be for a Catholic school in Omaha. Connor is receiving a top notch academic education, and is also being carefully taught compassion, good manners, and ethical behavior by the amazing, dedicated teaching staff and the stellar leadership of the school.
A few weeks ago in the weekly newsletter, there was an appeal for people to contribute home cooked meals for a school family whose father was in the hospital. The mother was juggling a full time job, hospital visits, and caring for three school age children - not to mention untold anxiety and stress. I called the organizer since I love to cook and wanted so much to help, and she asked me to come to a meeting the next morning before school.
There were twenty mothers at this meeting. Most of us work full time in Manhattan.
We divvied up days and duties. We figured out a central location to drop the food, and someone volunteered to drive the meals to the family. From that evening onward this family has had a homemade dinner delivered to their door every single night.
The mother called the principal in tears, saying that she could never express her gratitude, not only for the food but for the feelings of comfort and safety it gave her children during a time of great sorrow and fear, and for the unforgettable example it was giving them on how to treat others.
I can't even write about this without being all choked up and blinking back tears. It's such a simple thing - just dinner. Yet it means so much. I'm so proud and humbled to be part of this large, vibrant community of good people. What an example for my own son to witness!
So the principal put another item in the weekly newsletter, telling the story and dubbing our group "Loaves and Fishes." She asked for more volunteers so that this could be an ongoing benefit for any school family in difficult circumstances, and now there are dozens of people involved!
Hurray! Hurray! This is how it is supposed to work!
P.S. Of course, it is a Jesuit school. Go Jebbies!
posted by Joan at 10:11 AM
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