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Religion

A week of fun, charity, learning

Acts of both charity and pure fun characterize Catholic Schools Week at a school in Safety Harbor.

By EILEEN SCHULTE
Published February 4, 2006

SAFETY HARBOR - A couple of U.S. soldiers were driving a combat vehicle down an Iraq road when they saw her in the distance.

The little girl was standing in the middle of the street, clutching a stuffed Beanie Baby toy the service personnel had given her the day before.

When the soldiers drove closer, the child refused to step aside and allow them to pass.

When they stopped to investigate, they discovered two deadly mines on each side of the road.

The little girl was there to stop them. She saved their lives.

A guest speaker relayed this story to students at Espiritu Santo Catholic School during an assembly in November. They were so touched, they vowed to collect Beanie Babies during the 32nd national Catholic Schools Week 2006 and send them to service personnel overseas.

"We wanted something to comfort people and make them happy inside," said Nicole Marsalisi, 13, a seventh-grader and vice president of the student council. "(The Beanie Babies) are like a piece of home. The soldiers take them and give them to the kids."

The drive was just one part of their activities during Catholic Schools Week, which ran from Jan. 29 until today. The week celebrates the high standards of excellence and quality of education available to students in Catholic elementary and secondary schools.

The theme of this year's program was "Catholic Schools: Character, Compassion and Values."

To mark the occasion, the nearly 500-student school at 2405-A Philippe Parkway in Safety Harbor held an open house, a wacky hair and pajama dress-down day, a student photo display called "Where We See God," a special Mass, a poster competition, an essay contest, a family spirit day and a blanket drive.

One of the students, Casey Moore, was especially interested in helping with the blanket collection.

The 11-year-old remembers all too well driving in the car with her parents one frigid winter day and seeing a homeless person walking along a city street holding a large piece of cardboard under one arm.

Casey knew this is what the man would use to cover himself when he lay down to sleep that cold night.

She couldn't stand the thought.

"I felt sad," she said.

So the student council fifth-grade class representative decided to join her fellow students in donating blankets to St. Cecelia Catholic Church's cold weather shelter in downtown Clearwater and St. Clement's migrant worker outreach program in Plant City.

In a room near the school office were piles of thick, freshly laundered comforters that once kept young students warm. They were folded neatly in a corner. Surrounding them were dozens of brand-new fleece throws and soft baby blankets the students had amassed.

Joan DellaMonica, executive assistant to the administration, surveyed the collection.

"It teaches them to think of others and makes them aware other people's lives aren't as comfortable as theirs," she said.

City Commissioner Kara Bauer said her children Hannah, 4, and Emma, 6, did their part.

"They both brought in a blanket," Bauer said.

They also added to the stuffed toy collection.

"Mark (Bauer's husband) bought white Beanie Baby bears," Bauer said. "They had an American flag on the front and the letters U.S.A. in red, white and blue. And on the back it said God bless America. Emma said these would be perfect to give. Then (the Iraqi children) will know we love them."

Eileen Schulte can be reached at 727 445-4153 or schulte@sptimes.com

[Last modified February 4, 2006, 00:32:20]