Campus Ministry at Trinity High School

Baby stuff galore!

2012-03-09T15:02:00.000-05:00

Once again, the Trinity High School community responded overwhelmingly to help those in need. Today we had our annual Baby Shower to benefit Our Place, an organization of Catholic Charities devoted to helping pregnant and parenting teens and 20-somethings. The picture off to the side does not really give justice to the amount of items we collected. But believe me when I say that 1/4 of Campus Ministry is full of diapers, baby clothes, car seats, wipes, etc, etc, etc.

To celebrate, we had three huge cakes (which lasted until about 11am), brownies, cookies, and drinks. All that is left are a few cans of soda and bottles of water. Just say free food and teenagers will swarm!

Thank you - as always- Trinity Pioneers!

Being extraordinary

2012-03-08T19:39:00.000-05:00

Today we continued our daily Lenten focus on prayer by having Mass. Each week during Lent, Father Richard Dion is graciously joining us to celebrate Mass. On the other four days of the week, I meet with a different class during their Theology mod in the Saint Basil Chapel to explain and pray one of the many great prayer traditions of the Church. This week we've looked at the rosary with the seniors, adoration with the sophomores, lectio divina with the freshmen, and tomorrow the Stations of the Cross with the juniors.

Father Richard gave a brilliant homily in which he discussed how one does not have to be a super hero in order to be a saint - one just has to be good. He used the example of Blessed Mother Teresa and told the story of how she could have cared less about receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. But, she saw an opportunity there and asked the committee to simply serve rice at the Peace Prize dinner and to donate the money they would have spent to her so she could spend it to help the poor in Calcutta. Mother Teresa could not fly, she could not perform miracles, she just knew how to be good.

So can we. We can turn the ordinary things in our lives into extraordinary, life changing opportunities.

Think about it.

Baby Shower!!!!

2012-03-05T12:54:00.000-05:00

Every year, Campus Ministry sponsors a Baby Shower to benefit Our Place of Manchester. Our Place is a Catholic Charities organization that provides assistance to pregnant and parenting teens and 20-somethings (up to age 25). The shower will be this Friday, March 9 during all mods in Campus Ministry. We will have cake and drinks available.

Our Place is especially in need of the following items
(* means very much needed):

* Enfamil Premium Newborn & Infant formula with Iron

* Baby Wash

** Size 4 diapers

* Newborn Diapers & Size 6 diapers

* Newborn and 0-3 months Sleep‘n Plays boys and girls

* Preemie Sleep’n plays with snaps

**Baby Wipes

**Diaper rash cream

0 months BPA free newborn pacifiers

Newborn caps

Newborn socks/booties 0-3 months

Girls cotton flannel receiving blankets

Sleep Sacks 0-9 months

New born girls & boys onesies

0-3 month onesies girls

Newborn and 0-3 months outfits boys and girls

0-3 months girls outfits

12 mo., 18 mo., 24 mo., 2T, 3T, 4T outfits for summer (girls and boys)

No spill sippy cups

Digital thermometers (not ear thermometers)

Toilet locks

Safety Door Knob Covers

Large Diaper Bags

Cabinet latches

Tummy time mats

Nursing pads

Pack ‘n Plays

Bassinets

Convertible car seats

100 Days Left

2012-03-05T08:37:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe but our seniors graduate 100 days from today. For them, we offered this as our morning prayer today:

Dear God,
As I finish my senior year in high school, watch over me. Be with me as I go out in the real world to find myself. Give me the strength I need to stick with my education and not give up when it gets hard. I can be described as the Proverb, "Like a bird that strays from its nest is one who strays from home" (27:8). It will be hard being away, but you will always be next to me--always. When I am like the bird spreading its wings to fly, you will be the wind beneath me, holding me up. Thank you.
Amen.

"Fishers of men...:"

2012-03-03T16:59:00.000-05:00

Archbishop Lacroix cheering at the 2010 Homecoming Game

Archbishop Gerald Lacroix, the Archbishop of Quebec and a Trinity Pioneer (Class of 1975), was recently interviewed by Vatican Radio. Archbishop Lacroix talks about new ways to bring the faith to people, especially through social media. He also talks about why he wears a fish hook on his lapel!

It's a brief interview (6 minutes), give it a listen. Click here.

"When you pray..."

2012-02-26T13:57:00.000-05:00

One of the three major traditions of Lent in the Catholic Church is prayer (along with fasting and almsgiving). Every day during Lent, we will have a different prayer opportunity/devotional available to the school community. The services will be held in the Saint Basil Chapel and each day a different class will attend during their Theology classes. In addition, each week we will also have a schoolwide Mass in the gym celebrated by Father Richard Dion.

The schedule for Lent is:

February 22: Mass – all (gym)
February 23: Adoration - freshmen
February 24: Stations of the Cross - seniors

March 5: Lectio Divina - freshmen
March 6: Rosary - seniors
March 7: Adoration - sophomores
March 8: Mass – all (gym)
March 9: Stations of the Cross - juniors

March 12: Examen - freshmen
March 13: Via Matris - seniors
March 14: Mass – all (gym)
March 15: Adoration - juniors
March 16: Lorica of Saint Patrick - sophomores

March 19: Mass – all (gym)
March 20: Lectio Divina - juniors
March 21: Rosary - sophomores
March 22: Adoration - seniors
March 23: Stations of the Cross - freshmen

March 26: Examination of Conscience – all
March 27: Mass and Penance - all
March 28: Seven Last Words of Jesus - juniors
March 29: Adoration - freshmen
March 30: Stations of the Cross - sophomores

April 2: Passion According to Matthew - freshmen
April 3: Passion According to Mark - sophomores
April 4: Passion According to Luke - juniors
April 5: Washing of the Feet and Living Stations of the Cross – all (gym)

Ash Wednesday Mass

2012-02-25T07:45:00.000-05:00

Student's "Bona Opera" for Lent

You can listen to Father Richard Dion's homily from our Ash Wednesday Mass here. Please also enjoy some pictures from the Mass:

Deacon Charlie and Father Richard distribute ashes

After Mass, we placed this in the cafe for Lent

Lent: When It's OK To Give Up

2012-02-22T12:03:00.000-05:00

Today the Christian world begins 40 days of Lent. Lent is a time for people to re-orient and re-focus on their spiritual lives as we prepare for Easter and, eventually, our own Resurrection from the dead. These 40 days are a time to step back and see how our spiritual life is going and to make any adjustments and changes.

We begin Lent with Ash Wednesday as a reminder that someday we will indeed die. Ashes are placed on our foreheads as a reminder of our mortality and that we should always be ready for the time we will meet God.

The Catholic Church has three main traditions during Lent:

Prayer
Fasting
Almsgiving

Our school community filled out cards called Bona Opera which is Latin for "good works." Monks fill out similar cards at the start of Lent, they are a list of ways we hope to practice the disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving during Lent. The students and faculty placed their cards in a basket when they entered the gym for Mass today and they were brought up in the offertory and placed at the foot of a cross we set-up.

Father Richard Dion of Saint Anthony's Parish was our celebrant today and he was assisted by Deacon Charlie Pawlowsi, a transitional deacon for the diocese who will be ordained a priest in June. Father Richard's homily will be posted later on our website as a podcast.

Visit from Honest Abe

2012-02-20T15:50:00.000-05:00

President Lincoln (aka Steve Wood)

This really isn't Campus Ministry related but it does have to do with my other job here - teaching Social Studies. Our department was charged with coming up with an assembly for "President's Day" (which is actually Washington's Birthday) so we decided to invite Mr. Steve Wood, an Abraham Lincoln impersonator from Claremont, to come speak. We wanted it to be a surprise so we spread rumors all last week that a "former president" was coming to speak at Trinity. While technically true, rumors abounded that Presidents Clinton, Bush, or Carter were coming. There were also rumors that President Obama was visiting. The kids didn't know who was coming until some saw "Mr. Lincoln" drive up to Trinity in a Prius.

Ms. Byron introduced him as I played "Hail to the Chief" from the sound room. When "Flourishes and Ruffles" played there was a burst of energy from the kids and when they saw "Lincoln" they were dying - this guy looks just like Lincoln (as you can see in the picture to the left). Three of our students played Secret Service agents and escorted him in and stood by as he spoke. God bless them, they hardly moved an inch during his whole talk.

Mr. Sheenan presents the plaque marking Jimmy Carter's 1975 Visit to Trinity

Mr. Wood spoke for about 20 minutes about Lincoln's visits to New Hampshire (all in character) and ended with a reading of "The Gettysburg Address."

Mr. Sheehan '79 then spoke about Jimmy Carter's 1975 visit to Trinity during his campaign for president. Mr. Sheehan was a student here at the time and remembers thinking, "This guy doesn't have a chance." As Carter was the only president to have ever visited Trinity (albeit as a future president), we had a plaque made up marking his visit which will hang outside the classroom in which he spoke (310).

Back to the future?

2012-02-15T13:10:00.001-05:00

Bro. Ermest Miller, FSC speaks to faculty at Saint Anselm Abbey Church

On Monday and Tuesday, Bro. Ernest Miller, FSC and Mr. Alan Weyland of the District of Eastern North America visited Trinity High School. They were here to make presentations to our Advisory Board and faculty about the Lasallian Christian Brothers and our possible association with them.

Many people commented that we already exhibit many of the attributes of a Lasallian school. Where an association would benefit us is that we would have a number of resouces, formation programs, networking opportunities, etc. available to us. In addition, our identity and spirtuality would be enhanced and our school would part of something bigger than itself. Nothing would change vis a vis governance or ownership, we would just be part of this network. If we decided to go down this road, there is a three year discernment process where we and Lasalle decide if this is a right fit. Even after those three years are up, we can still back out at anytime.

We shall see. Stay tuned.

Lasallian Visit

2012-02-13T08:18:00.000-05:00

As we continue to look towards our potential affiliation with the Lasallian Christian Brothers, two representatives of the order will be here today and tomorrow to make presentations. Bro. Ernest Miller, FSC and Mr. Alan Weyland of the Office of Mission and Ministry for the District of Eastern North America will present to our Advisory Board tonight and then to our faculty tomorrow afternoon over a Saint Anselm College.
It is somewhat providential that their visit coincides with the 30th anniversary of the death of Bro. James Miller, FSC. Bro. James was a Wisconsin native who was assigned to ministry in Guatemala. On this day in 1982, masked gunmen shot and killed Bro. James while he was doing some repair work on a wall. It is thought that he was killed because of his and the order's efforts to prevent the conscription of young men. Bro. James had been working very hard to provide job and leadership training to local Indian boys so they would not have to join the military.

You can read more about Bro. James' martyrdom here.

Bro. James Miller, FSC - Pray for us.

Blessing of the Throats

2012-02-06T14:45:00.000-05:00

The Catholic Church has an ancient tradition of blessing throats around the Feast of Saint Blaise. Saint Blaise was a bishop in what is now Turkey in the 4th century who was known for blessing people's throats to protect them from illness.

Father Richard Dion of Saint Anthony's Parish graciously came by Trinity today during the lunch periods to bless the throats of any student or staff member who wanted a blessing. Given the amount of illness going around, every little bit helps!

As is customary, Father Richard held two candles like an X and placed them against the individual's neck and said:

Through the intercession of Saint Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other illness:

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Spirit.

Catholic Schools Week: Honoring our students

2012-02-04T09:48:00.001-05:00

Yesterday during lunch, our students were treated to ice cream sundaes - personally scooped by Mr. Mailloux, Mr. Gadecki, and Mr. Smith. I helped out a little bit and I have a greater appreciation for people who work at ice cream stands - it was hard work!

It was a nice way to top off (yes, pun intended) a great week honoring and celebrating Catholic schools!

LVs Ride

2012-02-03T09:20:00.001-05:00

Last summer, a group of cyclists (including a 71 year old Lasallian Christian Brother) biked from Oregon to New Jersey to raise money for the Lasallian Volunteers, a group of post-college graduates who spend a year or two of service in Lasallian ministries. The bike ride, called LV's Ride, raised over $100,000!

A brief movie, also called "LVs Ride" was made about the ride and yesterday we showed it to all the students during their Theology classes. Not only was it inspiring but also a good introduction to the Lasallian world as we continue to discern our future with the Lasallian Christian Brothers.

Some interesting quotes I picked up from the movie:

"One bike ride is not going to end poverty but hopefully it inspires people to volunteer somewhere."

"We are giving up some our downhill to make it an easier uphill for others and to make it an easier ride for everybody."

One of our students was so moved by the film that she emailed one of her teachers the following:

I just wanted to let you know that I really enjoyed the movie we watched in theology today. It truly inspired me. I have always wanted to do something like that since I was a little kid and seeing others do it made it seem more possible to me. I love that sort of thing; biking across country or helping children in Africa. Those are the things I think I was created for. I just wanted to thank you for showing us the movie, because it helped to reinspire me.

Good things are happening folks!

Humility, thy name is Libasci

2012-02-02T19:05:00.000-05:00

You have to love this man. This is Bishop Libasci at a Catholic Schools Week assembly today at Saint Benedict's Academy in Manchester:

Father Kelley's Homily

2012-02-01T17:25:00.000-05:00

You can listen to Father Kelley's homily from today's Mass at our school website. Click here to listen.

Catholic Schools Week Mass

2012-02-01T11:36:00.000-05:00

Today we had our annual Catholic Schools Week Mass celebrated by Father Richard Kelley, the pastor of Saint Christopher Parish in Nashua. Father Kelley is a former member of the Trinity High School Advisory Board and a strong supporter of Catholic schools.

A number of students processed into the Mass carrying icons of saints who are patrons of local Catholic schools and Catholic education in general: Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Saint John Neumann, Saint Joseph, Saint John Baptist de la Salle, Saint Benedict, Saint Christopher, the Blessed Mother, the Holy Family, Saint Anthony, Saint Francis, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Saint Catherine, and the Trinity. The choir beautifully sang the Litany of the Saints for the opening hymn.

Father Kelley gave a nice homily congratulating Trinity for its work in Catholic education and rightfully giving Mr. Mailloux his due for all the work he's done in his 15 plus years as principal. The homily will be posted as a podcast later today.

Following Communion, I offered a reflection thanking our teachers for their dedication and commitment to their vocation. I then called each teacher and staff member up by their year of service and Mr. Mailloux and Father Kelley presented them with a medal of Saint John Baptist de la Salle, the patron saint of teachers. Video of this should be posted later.

Below is my reflection:

For decades, Catholic schools were staffed and operated by men and women religious (i.e. nuns and brothers) who dedicated every fiber of their being to their vocation as Catholic school educators. They did so for little or no pay and were oftentimes referred to as the “wageless workers of paradise” because of their willingness to devote themselves to building up the kingdom of God without pay. Simply put, were it not for these selfless pioneers, this school and every other Catholic school in the United States would not exist. You and I are the beneficiaries of their sacrifices.

Today, 96% of teachers in Catholic schools are lay people. They don’t work for free like the sisters and brothers but they do make considerably less money than their public school counterparts. In addition, much more is expected of our teachers and as you know, they often do the equivalent of two or three jobs here. Our teachers are the rare exception in this world of people who actually love coming to work and who are not motivated by money. Rather, they are motivated by their vocation and in fulfilling the mission of our school. Their reward will not be in their paychecks but rather, in heaven. These amazing men and women make significant financial, professional, and personal sacrifices for you and I ask that you join me in thanking them for all that they do.

The patron saint of teachers is Saint John Baptist de la Salle, the founder of the Lasallian Christian Brothers, the religious order that founded Trinity High School, Bishop Bradley High School, and Saint Joseph High School for Boys. I am going to call up the teachers and they will be presented with a medal of Saint John Baptist de la Salle from Mr. Mailloux. These medals will be a constant reminder to them of their vocation and mission. I’d first ask Father Kelley if he will bless the medals for us…

After the presentation of the medals

May God the Father continue to bless the work of these men and women, that is, to carry on the mission of God the Son, all with the help and guidance of God the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Care Givers

2012-01-31T19:34:00.001-05:00

Well over 1,100 cans!

Today Eric Emmerling from Care Givers stopped by to pick up the canned good we donated for his organization. He told me that they supply 2,000 pounds of food each month to low income elderly and between us and Bishop Guertin, we supplied about that much. So, thanks to the students of Trinity and BG, folks will be able to eat for a month!

In terms of the final count and the competition, Care Givers is still tabulating everything but I am pretty confident we did very well! I'd hate to brag when both schools did such an amazing job...but...wink, wink, nod, nod, nudge, nudge.

Students with Eric Emmerling of Care Givers

Either way, major kudos to BG for all their work too.

Some great students helped me bring the items to the van this afternoon and posed for some pictures. Thanks to everyone who took part.

Catholic Schools Week: Remembering the Pioneers

2012-01-31T15:22:00.000-05:00

Today, about 96% of teachers in Catholic schools are lay people. But, for decades before the 1970's, the vast majority of teachers in our schools were men and women religious. Due to the major decline in vocations, many of our students have never met a religious or know anything about them. So, during Catholic Schools Week, we thought we'd introduce our students to the work of women religious, whose selfless sacrifices made Catholic schools possible.

Sister Pauline Maurier, CSC (the sister of Mr. Maurier) showed a wonderful movie on the history of women religious in the United States to our juniors and seniors yesterday and today. The students gathered during their Theology classes in Campus Ministry and watched the film and had a discussion with Sister Pauline. Hopefully this was an opportunity for our students to learn something about the amazing work and impact of many thousands of women in our Church, especially in our schools.

Catholic Schools Week: Thanking our Parents

2012-01-30T15:03:00.001-05:00

Mr. Mailloux greets a happy parent!

We often focus on the successes and sacrifices of the students and teachers of Catholic schools but we tend to overlook the many sacrifices made by our parents to send their children to Catholic schools. Our students could just as easily go to school in their local town or nearby and not pay a dime (outside of their property taxes of course). But, parents drive their children day after day to Trinity and spend over $9,000 to do so. If it were not for the dedication of our parents, we would not be open. As the parent of a Catholic school student myself, I know firsthand how tough it is to send a child to Catholic school. Just yesterday my wife and I signed up our son Kevin for next year at Saint Louis School in Lowell. He has thrived there in their pre-K program and while we have other financial obligations, we know how much Saint Louis has done for Kevin and we are willing to make that sacrifice.

Ms. Girard thanks one of our parents.

So, as we begin Catholic Schools Week, we honored our parents today and treated them to coffee and donuts as they dropped off their children. Mr. Sheehan graciously picked up the coffee and donuts at 6:30am and he, Mr. Mailloux, Mr. Gadecki, Mr. Bielik, Ms. Girard, and Ms. Bryon braved the cold to greet and honor our parents.

Happy Catholic Schools Week to all of our parents...and thank you.

Food Fight!

2012-01-29T08:17:00.000-05:00

Last summer, Care Givers of Bedford approached Trinity and Bishop Guertin High Schools about having a friendly canned food competition to benefit their organization. We both agreed and this past week was the drive, culminating in Friday's basketball games between the two schools. The boys played at Trinity while the girls played down at BG. I am not sure how many cans Bishop Guertin collected but I am pretty confident we collected over 1,100! Mega, mega kudos to Mr. Carnevale and the seniors and Ms. Twomey and the juniors who donated the vast majority of the cans.

I will have more concrete numbers on Tuesday when Care Givers comes by to pick the cans up. Eric Emmerling, who works for Care Givers and organized this, was at the boys game on Friday and was so excited about how many cans Trinity students and families donated. It's what we do!

Standing for those who can't

2012-01-26T21:37:00.001-05:00

This weekend, Trinity students and adults and 300,000 of their closest friends marched on Washington, DC to protest the 1973 Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in the United States. This was the 39th annual March for Life and for me, one of the best. This was my fifth time at the March and my third with Trinity High School.

We gathered in our school gym bright and early on Sunday at 5:15am for Mass. Father Richard Dion, the pastor of Saint Anthony Parish in Manchester, graciously offered (well, agreed) to say Mass for us. It was quite simple but he set the tone well for our pilgrimage. I'd be lying if I said I remember everything he said in his homily as my mind was racing but I remembered he said a lot, "We have an agenda..."

After some housekeeping matters, we headed out on the buses around 6am. We had to turn around as some adults forgot to moves their cars but we were back on the road at 6:30am. Father Richard drove down with us as well. We arrived in New York City around 11:45am and the groups had 3 hours to do some sight seeing. Some groups did a lot - ice skating at Rockefeller Plaza, going to the top of the Empire State Building, etc. My group got some lunch and just walked around, I kind of feel bad! We were back on the road at 3pm and stopped again at a rest stop in Delaware a few hours later. The Patriots game was on in the rest area and with 5 minutes left in the game, we decided to stay and watch the rest of the game. There was a TV on the other side made up of mostly Ravens fans and I am sure they didn't like our roar when their kicker missed that field goal.

It was back on the road and we arrived at our schools - Elizabeth Seton High School for the girls and Dematha Catholic High School for the boys - around 8:30pm or so. These schools have been letting us stay in the gyms and using their facilities for 7 years no at absolutely no cost. They have been so good to us and this year was no exception. The boys had a lot of energy as you can imagine and played basketball and football for a couple of hours before we shut the lights out at 11:30pm. I slept in the hallway on the floor as I snore like nobodies' business. It was a tough night of sleep as all I had was a blanket and a pillow but I woke up easily at 5:30am.

The cafeteria staff fed our boys and we were picked up around 7am. We headed for the Verizon Center in downtown Washington for the highlight of the trip - the Youth Rally and March for Life. Here are 20,000 teenagers, hundreds of priests, bishops, deacons, religious, and seminarians gathered. The music was top notch and had everyone out of their seats. The Mass was celebrated by the archbishop of Washington, Cardinal Donald Wuerl. He always begins the Mass by welcoming the bishops and the people of their dioceses. The people always respond by clapping and yelling. Bishop Libasci had told me earlier that he wanted people to go crazy when they announced us and we certainly did!

The Mass was very powerful, especially the homily by Msgr. Charles Pope, a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington. I would not be doing it any justice if I tried to recap it for you - just do yourself a favor and watch it here (if you don't watch the whole thing, at least fast forward to the last 2 minutes or so). Following Mass, Bishop Libasci greeted everyone from Manchester and we presented him with a t-shirt that all the Trinity pilgrims were wearing. He joked with me that he would wear it on his head as it was raining out.

We all then proceeded outside for the march. We've always brought these giant signs that say LIFE, mostly so our group can stay together. We had three this year which were generously made by the Photiades family and put together by Paul Pearsall, father of Lauren '08 and Dan '10. We walked down to the Mall and huddled outside a museum while waiting for the march to begin. Mr. Andrew Nelson graciously brought donuts for our kids who were ready to revolt, they were so hungry. Eventually the march started and we slowly made our way down Constitution Avenue and up to the Capitol. It's quite a sight to look back at the top of Capitol Hill and see the swarm of people behind you.

Everyone then had a couple of hours to walk around and we were back on the road by 5:45pm, arriving back in Manchester around 3:45am! I cannot thank all the pilgrims and adult chaperones who took part. I am especially grateful to Mr. Pearsall and Mrs. Henning.

Speaking of Mrs. Henning, be sure to check out the video she put together of the March below:

March for Life 2012_Trinity High School from Trinity High School on Vimeo.

Marching for Life...

2012-01-24T14:52:00.002-05:00

This year's March for Life is in the history books and man was it so much fun. I have much to write but I've had about 10 hours of sleep in the past 72 hours so I may not be too coherent at this point. Plus, I haven't seen my children since I put them to bed Saturday night so I am dying to see them. So, I have to run off and pick them up. I will have a full rundown later today or tomorrow.

In the meantime, you can check out an article the Union Leader did on Trinity and the March in Sunday's paper here. They also did a follow-up story in Monday's paper but it's not available on-line.

Saying thanks

2012-01-20T22:08:00.001-05:00

This afternoon at St. Pius X Parish in Manchester, Bishop Libasci hosted a simple reception to thank everyone who played a role in his Installation Mass. Many of our students helped decorate for the reception and another group helped the day of the Mass directing guests.

The reception was held in the Church Hall and about 10 of our students were able to attend. Bishop Libasci gave everyone a beautiful icon of Mary and the baby Jesus. Before distributing them, he said he would bless them - he said he better bless them because it is written on the back that they were blessed and he joked that he "didn't want to give [us] anything fraudulent." Bishop Libasci is bi-ritual which means he can celebrate Mass and the sacraments in the Roman Rite and the Eastern Rite. He blessed the icons using the prayers of the Eastern Church, wore an Eastern stole, held a cross, and made the sign of the cross in the opposite manner in which we are accustomed. It was very interesting.

The food was prepared by Recipe for Success, a job training program run by Catholic Charities. Bishop Libasci went to every table to speak to the guests and he had a nice chat with the kids from Trinity.

All in all, a simple reception which is how he likes it. He is extremely humble and so down to Earth. I was thanking him for something he did for Trinity recently and he genuinely asked, "Oh, was that OK?"

The. Real. Deal.

This is the inscription on the back of the icons he gave us:

Thank you!

Because you cared and gave your best,

you helped to make my installation

as The Tenth Bishop of Manchester

a most holy and memorable occasion.

Each time you look upon this blessed icon

Receive a grateful blessing in return!

+Bishop Peter Libasci

From the moment of conception...

2012-01-19T20:35:00.000-05:00

This Sunday, 80 students and 20 adults from Trinity High School will be heading down to Washington, DC for the annual March for Life. This is the 7th time Trinity has sent a group and it's always an amazing event. What's so unique about the March for Life is that it is largely composed of high school and college students. About 500,000 descend on Washington to protest Roe v. Wade and to demand respect for all human life, which we as Catholics believe begins at conception.

We will gather in the school gym at 5am (yikes) and Father Richard Dion, the pastor of Saint Anthony's Parish, has kindly agreed to celebrate Mass for us before we depart. We should arrive in New York City around noon and spend about 2 hours stretching our legs and seeing some sites. We will then hop back on the bus and arrive in the DC area around 8pm. The girls will be spending the night at Elizabeth Seton High School while the boys will crash at Dematha Catholic High School, both Catholic schools who host us year after year at no cost. In addition, they provide us with free food!

The next morning we will head early out early to the Verizon Center in downtown Washington for the 2012 Youth Rally and Mass for Life, sponsored by the Archdiocese of Washington. Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the archbishop of Washington, will be the celebrant. This event is perhaps the best part of the trip. Before Mass begins, there is an hour or so of singing and a party like atmosphere with 20,000 teenagers taking part. The opening procession of the Mass takes about a half hour as all the priests and bishops present process in (our very own Bishop Libasci will be in attendance). The cardinal will then welcome everyone and will do a sort of roll call by welcoming the bishops who are present. When a bishop is introduced, the people from his diocese in the crowd clap and yell. The apostolic nuncio will also say a few words and, if tradition holds, will read a personal letter from Pope Benedict XVI.

Following Mass, we will all head down to the National Mall for the march which kicks off at noon. After the March, the students will have about 3 hours to walk around DC and we will all meet at Union Station at 6:30pm to head back to Manchester.

This is always an exhausting and freezing trip but it's always so worth it, especially since we get to go to the Youth Rally. Stay tuned!

...until natural death

2012-01-18T16:52:00.000-05:00

You may remember from the Book of Genesis the story of Cain and Abel. Cain was jealous of his brother Abel and killed him. Rather than strike him dead for his actions, God "put a mark on Cain so that no one would kill him at sight." This shows, Pope John Paul II wrote, that "Not even a murderer loses his personal dignity..."

Today I had the opportunity to attend a meeting of the Faith Initiative Committee of the New Hampshire Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. New Hampshire has the death penalty but no prisoner has been executed in the state since 1939 and there is presently one prisoner on death row - Michael Addison who killed Manchester police Officer Michael Briggs in 2006 not far from Trinity High School. I remember the next day at school they had still not found the killer and we had to check all of the student's cars before they got into them at the end of the day. Addison is currently appealing his sentence. However, even if he ran out of appeals, New Hampshire doesn't have a death chamber in which to execute him.

There were 7 of us at the meeting including one man named John Breckenridge. John was quiet for most of the meeting until he mentioned that he was the partner of Officer Briggs. My jaw almost hit the floor - here was Officer Briggs' right hand man who was with him when he was killed and is now sitting on a committee to abolish the death penalty in the state. Most police officers believe that a cop killer like Addison should be executed but Officer Breckenridge changed his position on the death penalty after hearing Sister Helen Prejean speak in Manchester last year. Sister Helen is of course famous from the movie "Dead Man Walking" and is a strong advocate for abolishing the death penalty.

Officer Breckenridge is now retired but his witness to the dignity of human life is powerful. This is not to say that Addison should be let go free. He should certainly spend the rest of his life in jail but he should not be killed. As the old adage goes, two wrongs do not make a right.

More to come on this.

Dufour Blood Drive

2012-01-17T20:37:00.000-05:00

Each year, the amazing Dufour family (Bryan '14 and Jason St. Joe's '12) holds a blood drive in memory of their son and brother Colby. Colby passed away in 2004 at the age of 2 from liver cancer. Because he needed so much blood while he was sick, the Dufours felt it would be a touching memorial to Colby be helping others who may need blood today.

This year's blood drive is Saturday, January 21 at Ste. Marie's Parish in Manchester and runs from 8am-2pm. Please consider giving blood to honor the memory of a sweet little boy and to save a life today. If you cannot give blood, perhaps you can help set-up or clean-up. Set-up begins at 6:30am and clean-up will begin at 2pm. Please email me at bflaherty@trinity-hs.org if you're able to help.

On behalf of the Dufour family, thank you.

Food Fight!

2012-01-15T14:34:00.000-05:00

Last summer, Care Givers of Bedford, an organization that provides assistance to low income seniors, approached us and Bishop Guertin High School about having a friendly canned food drive competition. We both readily agreed and the competition will take place the week of January 23-27 culminating in the basketball games between Trinity and BG on the 27th (the boys are playing at BG and the girls at Trinity).

Folks can bring their cans to the gym lobby of Trinity anytime during the week and those going to the game on Friday are asked to bring a can, or two, or a hundred!

Respecting Life

2012-01-15T14:18:00.001-05:00

Each year around Martin Luther King Day and the March for Life, we have a special assembly on respecting life and human dignity. This year we thought we'd have a Mass of Peace and Justice followed by a special presentation on Christopher Duffley. Following Mass, Christopher's mother Christine spoke to the students about Christopher's story. As many of you know, Christopher was born to drug addicted parents in Florida in 2001 (his father is Christine's brother), was 14 weeks premature, blind and weighed 1 lb when he was born. His mother considered having an abortion as she already had a previous one so what was one more? But, she delivered Christopher and Christine went down to check on her nephew. She and her husband Steve (a Trinity graduate) decided to take custody of Christopher and in 2003, they adopted him.

Today, Christopher is blind and autistic but he has discovered his talent - singing. Christopher has perfect pitch and can play the piano and sing like a pro. Following Christine's emotional presentation (during which our students sat stone silent listening), Christopher went to the piano and played "Open the Eyes of My Heart Lord" by Michael W. Smith. The sound of his sweet little voice along with the line from the song "I want to see you" brought me (and many I am sure) to tears.

The students erupted in applause after he finished singing. Christopher, as you may know, as sung the National Anthem at Fenway Park, before many sporting events, NASCAR races, conventions, etc. He is such a treasure and a testament to the value and worth of all human life, no matter how "broken" that life may be.

You can hear Christopher's sing at his YouTube channel.

Vocation Awareness Week

2012-01-12T08:39:00.003-05:00

This week is Vocation Awareness Week. It is an opportunity for all of us to consider what God is calling us to do with our lives and to be open to the possibility that He may be calling some to serve Him and His Church as a priest or religious. We remember in a special way four Pioneers who have answered God's call - Father Benedict Guevin, OSB '72, Archbishop Gerald Lacroix '75, Mr. Michael Sartori '06 (seminarian) and our former Campus Minister Mr. Andrew Nelson (who, God willing, will be ordained a transitional deacon this May).

Yesterday Father Jason Jalbert, the Director of Vocations for the Diocese of Manchester, came to Trinity to speak with the freshmen and sophomores about vocations. I wasn't there unfortunately as I was away at a conference but I heard it was a wonderful presentation.

Let us pray that more young men and women may be open to God's call:

Loving and Generous God, it is You who call us by name and ask us to follow You. Help us to grow in the Love and Service of our Church as we experience it today. Give us the energy and courage of Your Spirit to shape its future. Grant us faith-filled leaders who will embrace Christ's Mission of love and justice. Bless the Church of Manchester by raising up dedicated and generous leaders from our families and friends who will serve Your people as Sisters, Priests, Brothers, Deacons and Lay Ministers. Inspire us to know You better and open our hearts to hear Your call.

We ask this through our Lord.

Stand up, Speak out

2012-01-12T08:28:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, Mr. Mailloux and I went to Assumption College in Worcester, MA for a junior high student leadership conference called Stand Up, Speak Out. The conference is sponsored by Boston College's Roche Center for Catholic Education and was for junior high students in the Diocese of Worcester. They also have a conference tomorrow at Boston College which is for the students of the Archdiocese of Boston. Mr. Mailloux and I went to see if this is something he may want to introduce to the student of Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School where he of course is also principal.

There were about 20 schools at this conference with about 4-5 kids from each school. The morning began with about an hour of fun games and icebreakers. One of the games called for the kids to stand across from each other and hold hands while another kid is "passed" through the line on the kid's hands. One poor boy fell right through the hands and cracked his head pretty good. He was OK though.

After the games, the students went off to the first of three workshops - one on listening, another on team building, and another on values. The workshops were run by students of Assumption College who came back early from their Christmas break to help out. The students rotated through the workshops so they got to attend all three during the day. While the students were at the workshop, the presenters did a workshop for the chaperones. After a period of Ignatian prayer called the Examen, we had a discussion and presentation on the mission of Catholic schools and our mission statements. Mr. Mailloux kept looking at me laughing because we as a faculty have been having the exact same conversations and discussions. He joked to me, "So I am not crazy, huh?"

After a tasty lunch in the school cafeteria, the students had one more workshop which the adults attended. Following the final workshop, the students got back into their school groups and came up with a plan for a project to implement at their schools. As they worked on their ideas, they used the skills they learned in the workshops.

Mr. Mailloux has been in education for a long time and has been to hundreds of these conferences and said this was one the best he's been to. It was perfect for the age level, well organized, and very focused on Catholic education. It would be perfect for the junior high schools of our diocese.

Power of Catholic schools

2012-01-05T10:07:00.000-05:00

Throughout the year, I have been focusing on the vocation of Catholic school teachers. When our teachers gather for our weekly prayer services, the "theme" is our mission as teachers in a Catholic school.

We came back from Christmas vacation a day earlier than the students for workshops and meetings and I thought it would be nice to start the new year with a movie on a Catholic school. Together we watched "The Street Stops Here" which chronicles Saint Anthony High School in Jersey City, NJ and its basketball team led by Hall of Fame coach Bobby Hurley.

The movie is mainly about the team but the arc is the mission of the school and Hurley to help these students, many of whom come from dangerous living situations and could very easily fall into a life of crime and drugs. The movie is very motivational and a reminder to all of us about why we do what we do. Hurley has had offers to coach college, in the NBA, to be a scout, etc. but he's turned it all down to help the kids of Saint Anthony's. Like Hurley, many of our teachers could be making a lot more money somewhere else. But they stay here...not because of the money or the amazing benefits. They stay here because they have been called by God to carry out His mission in this tiny corner of His vineyard. What could be more rewarding?

Come, follow me

2011-12-30T11:24:00.000-05:00

Each Christmas, the seminarians of the diocese - those studying to be priests - have a gathering with the bishop, priests, and other young men who may be interested in learning more about priesthood. Father Jason Jalbert, the Director of Vocations, invited me to bring some boys from Trinity and 7 accepted my invitation.

The evening began with Vespers, or Evening Prayer, in the chapel of Saint Joseph Cathedral. It was a beautiful service and Bishop Libasci gave, as always, a wonderful homily. The chapel is on the side of the building and it absolutely beautiful. I was first there this fall for Cameron Pichette's '11 reception into the Catholic Church. There were about 100 men there and the sound of all them singing is something special, it reminded me of my time in the seminary.

Following Vespers we went downstairs into the hall for dinner and talks. In addition to Bishop Libasci, Bishops McCormack and Christian were there as was Archbishop Gerald Lacroix, the Archbishop of Quebec and a 1975 graduate of Trinity High School! I was so excited to see him as the last time I saw him was in Rome. He spoke at the end of the evening and the first thing he said was, "My name is Gerry Lacroix and I am a Pioneer." He motioned to our table and we all clapped for him. He gave a beautiful talk about how when he was a student at Trinity, he would walk to work over on Elm Street and stop into the chapel at the cathedral to ask God what He was asking of him. It was a very touching and positive talk and so full of joy and happiness. This man is the real deal.

The seminarians also gave some talks about what it was like applying for the priesthood. Andrew Nelson said that when he was accepted, he was so afraid to tell people. He said it would have been easier to tell people he was a drug dealer! I can relate - when I applied to the seminary, I told very few people. In fact, when I quit my job I told them I was going to study Theology, not for the priesthood.

All of the seminarians were very impressive and poised. In the crowd were three bishops, an archbishop, and tons of priests. But, they were not nervous in the least. We are very lucky to have these men as our future priests.

It was a very powerful evening and a great opportunity for some of our boy to meet the seminarians, priests, and the bishops. I was so proud of the way our students carried themselves and represented Trinity High School. And who knows, perhaps some day.....

Advent/Christmas Mass

2011-12-23T10:00:00.000-05:00

This week we capped off the calendar year with our traditional Advent/Christmas Mass with Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School. As always, we had the Mass at a local Church and this year we went to Saint Anthony Parish. The Church was beautifully decorated and the manger scene was breathtaking. One of our students commented that the manger statues were taller than her!

Father Richard Dion, the pastor of Saint Anthony, was our celebrant assisted by Deacon Charlie Pawlowski and Deacon Paul Leonarczyk. Deacon Charlie is a transitional deacon and, God willing, will be ordained a priest in June. Deacon Paul is an Eastern Catholic and is the father of Mary '14 as well as the chancellor of the Eparchy of Newton. Mr. Andrew Nelson, our former Campus Minister and current seminarian, served as did some students.

Bishop Peter Libasci stopped by before Mass began to say hello to everyone and to say a few words. He has been so good about getting around the state meeting and being present to as many people as possible. You cannot help but love this man. You can view his wonderful remarks here. Father Richard, as always, gave a stirring homily which you can watch here or listen to here. Our choir beautifully led us in song and Mr. Maurier continued his tradition of singing "O Holy Night" in French. You can listen to it here.

Following Communion we honored Sister Frances Lessard, CSC. Sister Frances was the last principal of Saint Anthony High School and the first assistant principal of Trinity High School when it opened in 1970. Mr. Maurier, a student at both Saint Anthony and Trinity at the time, paid an emotional tribute to Sister Frances who is celebrating her 65th anniversary of religious life. Sister then said a few words which were quite inspiring and spoke directly to the students. You can watch Mr. Maurier's and Sister's remarks here.

Following Mass, we all went back to the Trinity gym for the mother of all Christmas parties. Our amazing parents helped set-up and serve the food and then clean-up.

As always, a wonderful way to head off onto Christmas break. Merry Christmas everyone!!!!

25 Days of Service Wrap up

2011-12-22T09:49:00.000-05:00

This week we ended our Advent-long 25 Days of Service. Between November 27 and December 21, many of our students and faculty engaged in numerous service projects:

- We rang bells for the Salvation Army
- We served food at New Horizons and the Nashua Soup Kitchen
- We greeted children at a Christmas party for homeless children
- We worked at the food pantries at Saint Raphael's and Transfiguration Parishes
- We prepared dinner for the residents of Anne Marie House
- We helped the Sisters of the Precious Blood put up their manger scene
- We organized Christmas presents for the elderly at Care Givers
- We helped prepare for Bishop Libasci's installation
- We wrapped presents and served breakfast to benefit Southern New Hampshire Services
- We bought books for the students of the Henry Wilson School

I am so proud of the many students who stepped up to serve and I am very grateful to the faculty and staff who helped chaperone at many of these events.

For me, this was a wonderful opportunity to learn about the work of the many charitable organizations in the area. We built some wonderful relationships and made connections with some amazing people. It was very gratifying to me when students would ask for the contact information of the groups so they could do more service for them in the future!

We are working to build a even bigger culture of service and discipleship among our faculty and students. Our school has always been at the forefront of service and helping others - I hope that this just adds to that.

Reading through Partnership

2011-12-22T09:30:00.000-05:00

In the craziness of the week, I forgot to mention a pretty significant achievement by our students - they donated close to 400 books for the students of the Henry Wilson School in Manchester. Henry Wilson School is a K-5 school in an underprivileged part of the city and the school is working hard to promote the importance of reading with the students.

Trinity and Henry Wilson have about the same number of students so each of our students bought a book for one of theirs. The seniors and juniors bought books the kindergarten students and first graders, the sophomores bought books for the second and third graders, and the freshmen bought books for the fourth and fifth graders. The books were placed under the Christmas Tree in Campus Ministry and were picked up on Tuesday. Going forward, some of our students will go to the Henry Wilson School to read to the students.

I cannot thank the students enough for their generosity. Time and time again, they come through when we put the call out for help. I also want to thank Mrs. Tortolini and the many students who helped wrap the books and helped me organize everything. It made my life a million times easier.

Thank you, everyone!

Annual Advent/Christmas Mass and Party

2011-12-20T22:07:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow we will have our annual Advent/Christmas Mass with the students and staff of Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School over at Saint Anthony Church. Father Richard Dion, the pastor of Saint Anthony and a very good friend of Trinity, will be the celebrant. There will be a special, surprise guest stopping by before the start of the Mass to say hello to everyone.

Following Communion, we will honor Sister Frances Lessard, CSC. Sister Frances was the last principal of Saint Anthony's High School which merged with Bishop Bradley High School and Immaculata High School in 1970 to form Trinity High School. Sister served as one of Trinity's first assistant principal, serving in that role for a few years. This year she celebrates her 65th anniversary of religious profession and we thought it would be nice to honor her for her commitment to the Church, especially Catholic education. Mr. Maurier of our Science Department will say a few words about her and we will present her with a gift. Mr. Maurier was a student at Saint Anthony's and Trinity during Sister Frances' time.

The Mass will begin around 10:30am and all are welcome to join us. Following the Mass, we will bus back to Trinity for a Christmas party in the gym - again, all are welcome.

Christmas in the City

2011-12-18T15:47:00.000-05:00

Today I went down to Boston with Mrs. Bergeron (mother of Maddy '14), Mrs. Bourque (mother of Kasie '14), Christie Cole '13, Erica Fowler '13, Kelleigh Murtagh '13, Kasie Bourque '14, Maddy Bergeron '14, and Meghan Barker '14 for Christmas in the City.

Christmas in the City is an annual Christmas party for homeless children in the city of Boston. It is 100% run by volunteers but is one of the biggest events in the city during this time of year. This year's event was held at the massive convention center in South Boston (fun fact - I was on the floor of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1997 as an intern when they voted to build the convention center). They initially asked us to work outside but it was quite cold and none of us had hats, gloves, etc. so we were greeters as the kids and families came into the party.

The children and families are bused in from homeless shelters from all over Boston and are led into a giant hall that was decorated to the nines and had live music. Here they all ate lunch and danced to the music. Next to this hall was another massive one with bouncy houses, rides, etc. that the kids would go into after lunch. Folks began arriving at 11:30am and so we lined up outside the hall and clapped and high fived the kids as they came in. They were so happy and excited and seeing the joy on their little innocent faces brought tears to my eyes (I am a sucker when it comes to little kids).

It took well over an hour to clap and greet all the kids. Our students were so enthusiastic and fired up. It was so much fun but also sad as it was a stark reminder about the homelessness problem in our nation. The cycle of poverty being what it is, you can't help but wonder if these kids will ever have a chance in life or will they be bringing their children to this party in 20-30 years? Pray God no.

We took some time to walk around the party and then headed out around 1pm. Our students were wonderful and want to make this an annual thing for Trinity. Fine by me!

Go Catholic High School...

2011-12-17T22:05:00.001-05:00

Our new bishop, Bishop Peter Libasci was saying the 5pm Mass tonight at Saint Lawrence Parish in Goffstown so he decided to stop by Saint Anselm College where the Trinity hockey team was taking on the Saints of Saint Thomas Aquinas High School.

We met Bishop Libasci about 45 minutes before the game so he could greet the players from both teams. He first met the Pioneers in the hallway outside their locker room where they presented him with some hockey t-shirts, hats, and jackets. Bishop Libasci then personally greeted every player and coach and took a group photo. He then went over to the Saint Thomas side where he did the same thing.

He watched the game right behind the Trinity bench (the student section) and stayed for almost all of the game - he had to leave about halfway through the 3rd period so he could go to Saint Lawrence for Mass.

It was so wonderful to see the looks on people's faces when he walked in or was walking around. I heard him say to Mr. Mailloux that he wants everyone to know that they matter and will be doing lots and lots of visits to schools, parishes, etc. He is actually heading out to the northern most point in the diocese, the Colebrook area, where he will visit a number of rural parishes on the days before Christmas.

Folks, we're in for a heck of a ride with Bishop Libasci. Get ready!

Prepare the way...

2011-12-17T21:52:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we had our second Advent Prayer service during each of the Theology mods. The theme of the prayer service came from the first reading at last Sunday's Mass - Isaiah 61:1-2a, 10-11 which famously proclaims:

The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor,
to heal the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives
and release to the prisoners,
to announce a year of favor from the LORD
and a day of vindication by our God.

I began by showing the video below which shows how one person can indeed bring glad tidings to the poor and heal the brokenhearted. Be sure to spend some time watching it - it's about 8 minutes and it will move you greatly. Every student yesterday was entranced watching it, they didn't make a peep.

After an opening song, prayer, and the full reading from Isaiah, I offered the following reflection:

In the most recent edition of the Pioneer, the school newspaper, Kasie Bourque quoted something she read online:

First I was dying to finish high school and start college. And then I was dying to finish college and start working. Then I was dying to marry and have children. And then I was dying for my children to grow old enough so I could go back to work. But then I was dying to retire. And now I am dying...and suddenly I realized, I forgot to live...”

There’s a lot of truth to that. We always feel like we are waiting for the next big thing, the next stage in life. What’s next we ask? When will I get out of here? When can I move on? We never live in the moment.

The people of Jesus’ time had been waiting for the next big thing for a long, long, long time. For thousands of years they and their ancestors had been waiting for a savior, someone to free them from foreign powers and to restore them to the greatness God promised them. They were always poor, enslaved, beaten down.

That is why Isaiah, who lived 700 years before Jesus, speaks longingly of one who is to come who will:

Bring glad tidings to the poor
Heal the brokenhearted
Proclaim freedom to prisoners

That savior did come, in the form of a child, 2,000 years ago. His coming was proclaimed by many, including John the Baptist who was the child spoken about in today’s prayer. Jesus Christ spent 33 years on this Earth and ascended back to heaven. He will come again, we believe, to judge us all at a time we do not know. In the meantime, it is up to us to carry on the saving work He began. We - you and I - must bring glad tidings to the poor, we must heal the brokenhearted, we must proclaim freedom to those who don’t have it. Our life’s work must be to be like the man we saw in the video at the beginning of our prayer service.

And you don’t have to wait until you’re old or grown up to do all this. I hope you understand the power you have. Did you see the toys on that stage yesterday? Have you seen the books in Campus Ministry? Have you spoken with the people who have taken part in 25 Days of Service? You are already transforming the world little by little. You are bringing Jesus Christ into this world and into your hearts. Jesus is not here physically, you are. It is your job to carry on His mission.

The people of Israel had to wait for Jesus, we don’t. Jesus already came...and now people are waiting for you.

So what are you waiting for?

Amen.

Welcome Bishop Libasci

2011-12-14T12:38:00.001-05:00

Last week was an historic time for the Diocese of Manchester as we welcomed the tenth Bishop of Manchester, Peter Libasci. Each Catholic school could send two students along with their principal to the installation Mass. Mr. Mailloux went and brought along Allison Doherty '14 and Jon Mercurio '15. All there were blown away by the majesty of the Mass. Jon said "It was easily the most impressive Mass I've ever attended."

Three of the servers at the Mass have Trinity connections - Mike Sartori '06 is a seminarian for the diocese and was the crossbearer, David Gagnon '11 was a server, and seminarian Andrew Nelson (our former Campus Minister) was a candlebearer.

Bishop Libasci is wasting no time getting to know Trinity better. He is attending our hockey game on Saturday night after he says Mass at Saint Lawrence in Goffstown and will say a few words to everyone before our Advent/Christmas next week at Saint Anthony's.

Christmas in the City

2011-12-14T09:55:00.000-05:00

As we wind down our 25 Days of Service, I am getting ready for the one event outside of New Hampshire - Christmas in the City in Boston. It's an annual Christmas party for homeless children in the Boston area which is totally organized and run by volunteers. The event was founded some years ago by Jake Kennedy, a physical therapist in Boston, and his wife Sparky. They are expecting 3,500 children. 3,500! There are 3,500 homeless children in the city of Boston? Are you kidding me?

Mrs. Bourque (mother of Kasie '14), Mrs. Bergeron (mother of Maddy '14) and I are taking 7 students down to volunteer for part of the day. My wife has volunteered at this in the past and raves about it. There was an amazing column in today's Boston Globe about the event which you can read here.

Bro. James Dries

2011-12-11T12:25:00.000-05:00

As you know, Trinity High School is considering affiliating with the Lasallian Christian Brothers, the religious order that founded Trinity and its two predecessor schools - Bishop Bradley High School and Saint Joseph's High School for Boys. Due to declining vocations, the brothers left Manchester in 1978 after over eighty years of service to Catholic education in the city.

If we do affiliate with them again, it will be different from last time. Brothers won't teach at our school and we would still be a diocesan school, we will just "adopt" their spirituality and become part of their global network. It will open up a lot of opportunities for our students and faculty and give us a stronger sense of mission and identity. There will also be fringe benefits such as better opportunities for financial aid at Lasallian colleges for our graduates. They also present amazing conferences and events, like the Lasallian Youth Assembly we went to last summer and an education conference last month in Washington, DC which was attended by Mr. Mailloux and Mrs. Henning.

So, as we and the brothers discern our future together, they have been visiting Trinity and we have been visiting them. Last week, Bro. James Dries, FSC, the Vocation Director for the District of Eastern North America, visited us for two days. He arrived on December 7 and spent some time touring the school, eating lunch with faculty, meeting students, etc. You can tell Bro. James has worked in high schools before - he knew exactly how to talk to the kids, what kind of questions to ask them, etc. He was brilliant. He left around 1pm and spent the night at Saint Anselm Abbey.

He came back the next day and joined us for Mass and spent the day once again meeting the kids and faculty. He gave out brochures, wristbands, and pens which were swopped right up (I even grabbed some). He had a long ride back to New York so he left around 1pm. He plans on coming back in the spring to present to our juniors and seniors.

We have already adopted some of the practices of the Lasallian Christian Brothers. For example, they always begin their prayer with the invocation "Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God." In addition, they end all their prayer, classes, meetings with "Live Jesus in our hearts" to which everyone responds "Forever." I have used these for our morning prayers and our prayer services. It's just a tiny way we can introduce Lasallian spirituality now as we look to the future.

Going forward, we are going to visit Lasalle Academy in Providence, Bro. Ernest Miller, FSC and Mr. Alan Weyland are presenting to our faculty in February, and we plan on visiting some Lasallian schools in New York. It is incredibly exciting for me and our school to be going down this road. Stay tuned!

Perhaps the reason we won

2011-12-10T14:56:00.000-05:00

As part of our 25 Days of Service, I joined a group of students at the Precious Blood Monastery (which is down the street from Trinity) helping the Catholic War Veterans set up the sister's manger scene. It was fairly easy work - we just had to carry the items from the garage to the front lawn, the assembly was easy. The sisters take care of the statues so were done in less than an hour.

The best part, however, was when one of the sisters, Sister Felicitas, came outside and excitedly asked to see the football players from our group. Sister was holding a little statue of Mary with a football taped to her right hand. Two football players - Sam Rainey '12 and Russell Pallas '13 - were there and went over to her. Sister told them that she had been praying for the football team all year and was so excited when they won the state title. She was a star athlete at West High School so she loves sports. She said she often glances in the direction of Trinity and prays for the football team all the time.

I was so moved by this. Here was this tiny little nun who treated these boys like they were in the NFL. The life of the Sisters of the Precious Blood is devoted to constant prayer. I guess it works!

This was the second time in a week I was at the Precious Blood Monastery. Previously, I had been there once before with our previous Campus Minister, Mr. Nelson, so I don't know the sisters that well. That will change! I am going to help increase our relationship with the sisters however I can. They are a cloistered order so there is not a whole lot we can do with them but I went into their chapel before leaving and saw they have something called The Legion of 1000 Men. Very simply, it's a group of men who commit to stopping by the chapel once a week for a few moments to pray. I think that is something we can do as a school community very easily.

Those who sing, pray twice

2011-12-08T17:19:00.002-05:00

If you've never heard our amazing choir, you can listen to three pieces they sang at Mass today. Listen here.

Mass Podcasts

2011-12-08T16:39:00.000-05:00

The podcast of Father Mark's homily and my reflection from this morning's Mass are now available on our website. You can listen here.

Hail Mary...

2011-12-08T11:29:00.000-05:00

Today our school celebrated the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Father Mark Cooper, OSB, the Vice President of Finance at Saint Anselm College was our presider. Father Mark gave a brilliant homily which will be posted later on our website.

A Lasallian Christian Brother, Bro. James Dries, FSC, is visiting us and told Father Mark that he's been working in high schools for a long time and his homily was one of the best he's ever heard at a high school Mass. Father Mark spoke to the students and really talked about what's going on in their lives, it was fantastic.

This was the first time Father Mark had ever been at Trinity High School, the first time he had celebrated Mass under the new edition, and the first time he had said Mass for high school students!

After Communion, I offered the following reflection:

In 1886, Bishop Denis Bradley, the first Bishop of Manchester, invited a group of men - the Lasallian Christian Brothers - to come to Manchester and teach at Saint Joseph’s High School for Boys, the school that would become Bishop Bradley High School and later Trinity High School. Three years later, in 1889, that same bishop invited the Benedictine monks to come to New Hampshire to start a college on a hilltop overlooking the city of Manchester.

It is quite fitting then, that on this day in which the ninth successor to Bishop Bradley is being installed as our new bishop, that we have among us a Lasallian Christian Brother and a Benedictine monk, the “descendants” of those first men who help pioneer Catholic education in the city of Manchester over 125 years ago.

Catholic schools like Trinity High School and Saint Anselm College exist solely to preach the gospel and to make God known, loved, and served to all people. For us teachers and staff, this school and you students are our vocation. We don’t teach and work here because of the money, we do so because God has called us build up his kingdom in this tiny corner of His vineyard. And it all started with one man, Bishop Denis Mary Bradley, who had the courage and foresight to bring two dynamic religious orders to Manchester. You are I are the legacy of that man.

And so on this day when we welcome Bishop Peter Libasci as our new shepherd, on the great feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we are reminded once again of our call to be holy and perfect like Jesus Christ and His mother Mary. We hope and pray that by being here at Trinity High School, we will be formed to do the will of God the Father. That is, to be more like God the Son, all with the help and guidance of God the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Living Nativity

2011-12-07T08:30:00.001-05:00

Tonight is Trinity High School's annual Choir and Band Christmas Concert. We decided to add a Living Nativity to the concert this year which will take place after the band preforms. Kiersten Photiades '12 and Ian Landry '14 will be Mary and Joseph and Mr. Arnold's son will be Jesus! It will be very simple - the Holy Family will be on the stage and we will open the curtains and read the Nativity story from the Gospel of Saint Luke. Following that, the choir will sing "Away in a Manger" and "Silent Night."

A huge shout out to Mrs. Krassowski and her 2-D Design class for painting the backdrop for our Living Nativity.

Following the concert, we will have hot chocolate and cookies for all! The show starts at 7pm and is free admission. Come one, come all.

25 Days of Service Update

2011-12-07T08:26:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe but Advent is about half way over. One of the ways we've been celebrating Advent and preparing for Christmas at Trinity High School is by performing service. Now of course Advent is not about service but rather preparing our hearts and minds for Jesus Christ. That requires us to conform our lives more and more to Him and one of the ways we can do that is by following His commandment to serve others.

I have had the great pleasure of accompanying our students on some of these service opportunities. Last week I went with a group of students to the food pantry at Saint Raphael's Parish over on the Westside. We were supposed to arrive at 6pm but I got there early, around 5:40pm. The food pantry does not open until 7pm but there were already people lined up. Dorene Turner, who runs the food pantry, told us that people sometimes line up as early as 4:30pm! The service was quite simple - we bagged groceries, organized some donated clothes, and passed out some pastries. What I liked was that we all prayed before we began our work - it highlights the real reason we do this, for the greater glory of God and to be more like Jesus Christ.

Later that week I helped with the dinner service at the Nashua Soup Kitchen with Mrs. Trachim of our Math Department. Unfortunately this was the same night as our semi-formal so no kids were able to join us. It was a small operation and it was very slow (being the beginning of the month, people just got their food stamps and other benefits so they didn't need to go to the soup kitchen) but it was very humbling. The people we served were not homeless but really down on their luck or very poor. But, despite this, they were incredibly kind and grateful to us.

On Monday, a group of students went to the old Saint Joseph's Junior High building to do some light cleaning and to hang school banners in preparation for Bishop Peter Libasci's reception which will take place after his installation Mass tomorrow. Most, if not all, of the students were graduates of Saint Joe's and were so excited to be back in their old haunt. I had only been there once before - it's such a unique building and has a lot of character.

Finally last night, I joined three students (as well as my children Kevin and Erin) at Anne Marie House in Hudson. This is a place for families to live for up to 2 years if they are homeless. They have to save 75% of any income they may earn and do all they can to be able to afford a place of their own. It's a wonderful setting (it's on the grounds of Presentation of Mary Academy and is a former home for the sisters) and very clean and warm. Kevin and Erin were able to play with the toys while we prepared dinner for the residents. We then ate dinner with the residents and did the dishes. I want to bring a group back here to learn more about their work as it's an amazing place. One of our parents volunteers there with her daughter and told me all about it.

This is just a taste of what we've been up to. Our students have done so much more and there is so much more to come.

March for Life

2011-12-04T08:42:00.000-05:00

The deadline for March for Life sign-ups is December 16. The cost for this year's trip (which goes from January 22-24) is a bargain at $95! This includes a bus trip to Washington, DC (with a stop in New York City), a t-shirt, hat, and scarf, dinner when we arrive in DC (pizza), breakfast in the morning, and "lodging" at two Catholic high schools (one for the boys and one for the girls).

Mrs. Henning and Joe Walsh '11 put together this video from last year's March for Life. Check it out and see me if you want to be a part of this year's amazing trip:

Pilgrimage for Life: A Video Retrospective from Trinity High School on Vimeo.

Advent Prayer Service

2011-12-02T15:08:00.001-05:00

Today we had the first of our two Advent Prayer Services in the Saint Basil Chapel. I began by lighting the first purple candle on our Advent Wreath and showing the video I posted below. I liked it as it ties in nicely with our 25 Days of Service. We then did a traditional prayer service with a song, psalm refrain, the reading of last Sunday's Gospel, and a reflection by me. My reflection is below the video.

When we were all younger, the few weeks before Christmas always seemed to last a lifetime. It was torture waiting for Christmas and the time for us to get our presents seemed to drag and drag and drag. Now that I am older - and procrastinate with Christmas shopping - I kind of dread the arrival of Christmas. When I see these Advent candles light up week after week, I get more anxious about the gifts I need to buy and the things I need to do before the big day.

But the reading we just heard reminds us that really, when it’s all said and done - the presents, the anxiety, the shopping doesn’t really matter. The word Advent means “coming.” Over the course of the these four weeks of Advent, we are waiting for the coming of Jesus - both at the end of time and at Christmas. The first few weeks of Advent are devoted to the end of the world when we believe Jesus Christ will come again and judge us all. The last week or so of Advent focuses on the marking of the first time Jesus came at Christmas 2,000 years ago.

And so during these four weeks we have the opportunity to really think about The End. We don’t know when it will happen but eventually this world will come to an end and we will rise from death (if we’re already dead) and live again forever with God.

Or will we.

We don’t know how our story will end. Will Jesus judge us worthy enough to live with Him forever or...well, we know the other option. That is why we must use the time we have on this Earth to prepare ourselves for The End. We must always be ready for that moment as we never know when it will come. Will it happen while we are at the dance tomorrow night? Will it happen when we are cheating on a test? Will it happen when we are gossiping about our friends? Will it happen when we are serving the poor? Will it happen while we are praying? Will it happen when we are spending time with our family?

In the end, nothing else matters but our relationship with Jesus Christ and our willingness to be like Him. Conspire with Jesus Christ and you will have life forever.

Amen.

Decking the halls

2011-11-28T17:20:00.000-05:00

I know, I know...Christmas does not begin until December 25. It's not the Christmas season until then, we are in the midst of Advent. However, as a school, we are never around for most of Christmas and it's important as a school community to celebrate that season when we can. So we will play a balancing act this Advent by focusing on the 4 weeks of preparation while also celebrating Christmas as a community.

So today our big wreath was put up on the front of the school above the main entrance thanks to Mr. Clement and Mr. Poisson of our Physical Plant. Tomorrow myself and Mrs. Tortolini, our administrative assistant, will be setting up the nativity set in the main office display window. I went shopping at Michael's today for some items - if you ever want to see me out of my element, follow me around a craft shop like Michael's. Yikes. I also will be putting up a tree in Campus Ministry with homemade ornaments from our students, playing Christmas music, and showing Christmas movies during lunch.

On December 7, our choir and band will perform their annual Christmas concert which will feature a Living Nativity and the reading of the Nativity story from the Gospel of Saint Luke.

For Advent, we will have a couple of prayer services in the Saint Basil Chapel for our students during their Theology classes as well as two Masses (Immaculate Conception and our Advent/Christmas Mass on our last day of school). Our morning prayers will also be Advent "themed" and we will have Advent candles in the chapel. I also switched over the altar cloth in our chapel to purple.

Lots to do in so little time!

25 Days of Service

2011-11-28T16:59:00.001-05:00

You've heard of ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas? Well here at Trinity High School, we are doing 25 Days of Service during the holy season of Advent. Starting yesterday and running through December 21, we will have service opportunities available for our students every day. Sign-up sheets are outside Campus Ministry. Here is what we have to offer:

November 27: New Horizons, 4pm-6pm

November 28: Saint Raphael’s Parish Food Pantry - 6pm-8pm

November 29: Saint Raphael’s Food Pantry, 6:30pm-7:30pm

November 30: CareGivers 3-4pm

December 1: Salvation Army Bell Ringing, Market Basket Hooksett 4pm-8pm

December 2: Salvation Army Bell Ringing, Mall of NH, 4pm-7pm

December 3: Nashua Soup Kitchen, 3pm-7pm

December 4: New Horizons, 4pm-6pm

December 5: Setting up Bishop Libasci’s Reception, 3pm

December 6: B.R.I.N.G. I.T., 5:30-7

December 7: Anne Marie House, 4:30pm-6:30pm

December 8: Students helping at Bishop Libasci’s Mass - 11:30am

December 9: New Horizons, 4pm-6pm

December 10: Southern New Hampshire Services Fundraiser, 8am-10am

December 11: Southern New Hampshire Services Gift Wrapping, 9am-9pm

December 12: Nashua Soup Kitchen, 3pm-7pm

December 13: Henry Wilson School Book Drop off, after school

December 14: Kid’s Cafe, 5pm-7pm

December 15: Toys for Toys

December 16: TBD

December 17: Salvation Army Bell Ringing, Mall of NH 12pm-3pm

December 18: Christmas in the City, all day

December 19: TBD

December 20: Transfiguration Parish Food Pantry - 3pm-4pm

December 21: Trinity Christmas Party

Podcast

2011-11-23T14:23:00.002-05:00

Thanks to our Communications Director, Mrs. Henning, the podcast of today's homily and my post-Communion reflection are on the Trinity High School website. You can listen here.

We give You thanks

2011-11-23T12:26:00.000-05:00

Today we celebrated our annual Thanksgiving liturgy. In addition to our students and faculty, many family members and alumni joined us for the celebration. Father John Bucchino, OFM, the pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Manchester presided (his homily will be posted as a podcast later today on our school's website). Our choir, as always, did a beautiful job leading us in prayer and our students were amazing and prayerful.

It was the final time we had Mass at Trinity with the current edition of the Roman Missal (the 3rd edition of the Roman Missal goes into effect this weekend). To mark this occasion, I inscribed the following in the Sacramentary (the missal the priest uses):

The final Mass celebrated at Trinity High School with this edition of the Roman Missal was on November 23, 2011, the Thanksgiving Mass.

Celebrant: Rev. John Bucchino, OFM - Pastor, Blessed Sacrament Parish

Father John then signed his name under the inscription. We will bury the Sacramentary on the school grounds sometime in the future.

Following Communion, I offered the following reflection:

Each year on the fourth Thursday of November, we gather together with our families around a table to give thanks to God, to share in a meal, and to listen to family lore. It is very similar, if you think about it, to what we just experienced as a school community. We gathered together around this table, the altar of the Lord to give thanks, to listen to the Word of God and to share in the greatest meal known to man- the Eucharist (which literally means Thanksgiving).

Today as we prepare to go our separate ways for our Thanksgiving Break, we should all be very thankful to God for the blessings He has bestowed upon Trinity High School. Despite being a small school of about 420 students:

Our football team is state champs - again
You and St. Joe’s donated close to 500 Thanksgiving baskets for the needy in Manchester
Our Robotics team competes with the best
Our drama club puts on amazing shows
Our choir blows the roof off this gym Mass after Mass

I have asked it a thousand times...why are so many amazing things taking place here at Trinity High School? What is God calling us to do? What does the future hold for this place?

None of us know all the answers to these questions but we do know who to thank. Thank you Lord for these students who are beyond compare. Thank you Lord for our selfless faculty who give so much of themselves day after day. Thank you Lord for the sacrifices our families make to send our students here. Thank you Lord for our alumni and friends whose love and support keeps us going.

Father, we have neither silver or gold to give You in exchange for Your many blessings. We simply can offer You our thanks and ask that You continue to watch over us so that we may continue the work begun by Your Son, all with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

479 and counting...

2011-11-22T08:31:00.000-05:00

The past few days have been ones that make me realize how incredibly blessed I am to be a part of the Trinity High School community. On Friday and Saturday, my son Kevin and I were honored to play a small role in the drama club's production of "Seussical." I played the Grinch and Kevin was Max the Dog. Our scene was in the middle of Act 2 and was only about a minute so we didn't get involved in rehearsals until last week. The students (who did a fantastic job) were so welcoming and happy to have Kevin be a part of the show. He got so many hugs from the girls that when we got home one night, my wife jokingly asked why he smelled so much like perfume and make up. "Were girls kissing you?" she asked. "Yes" Kevin said "They love me."

And then there was yesterday. My day began greeting our students and families who were able to donate baskets to our Thanksgiving Basket Drive. They left the baskets on the front lawn of the school and it was so powerful to see the basket totals grow and grow and grow. At 8:30am, I had the good fortune to go down to WGIR 610 AM to appear on the morning show with Mr. Moriarity (father of CJ '12) to talk about Thursday's Turkey Bowl and the canned food drive that Central High School (with help from Trinity) is putting on at the game to benefit New Horizons. They graciously gave us about 10 minutes to promote the drive as well as the service work of Trinity High School.

And then after school, a caravan of students, parents, family members, an alum (Nick Nalette '10), and Mr. Raczka, the husband of our late beloved Director of Guidance Mrs. Raczka, dropped off the 473 Thanksgiving Baskets to the food pantries of Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration Parishes (we're now up to 479 as 6 more baskets came in today). We gave 105 of the baskets to Transfiguration and the remainder to Blessed Sacrament. We also gave each $150 thanks to a generous donation from PSNH (on behalf of Ms. Kenney, mother of Liam '15).

I went with the group to Blessed Sacrament and they were blown away by the generosity of our families. They said it was the most food we've ever given them. In addition to the food pantry volunteers, the pastor of Blessed Sacrament, Father John Bucchino, OFM and Bro. Charles Gingerich, OFM were there to greet us. Father John will be saying our Thanksgiving Mass tomorrow assissted by Bro. Charles who is also a deacon.

I was so tired when I got home last night but so grateful for everyone at this place. It was so nice to go home to my amazing wife and my two children knowing I have such the best of both worlds - a supportive and loving family and an amazing job working with amazing and supportive people. God is indeed good!

Month's Mind

2011-11-21T12:07:00.000-05:00

Last month, Luke Capistran, a student at Central High School in Manchester, passed away after a battle with cancer. Luke had many friends at Trinity and were devastated by his passing. In the Catholic Church, we have a custom called Month's Mind Masses - Masses celebrated for a person a month after his or her passing.

We will have a Month's Mind Mass for Luke here at Trinity on November 30 at 11am in the Saint Basil Chapel. Msgr. Anthony Frontiero, the rector of Saint Joseph's Cathedral in Manchester, will be the celebrant. All are welcome.

The tradition continues

2011-11-21T10:49:00.001-05:00

For years and years now, our school community has come together every Thanksgiving to help hundreds of families in the city of Manchester have an amazing Thanksgiving dinner.

This year was no exception.

We are still collecting baskets but as of now, we have 400 Thanksgiving baskets on our front lawn to benefit the food pantries of Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration Parishes. Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School donated boxes and boxes of food which will be made into baskets this afternoon by three of our parents which should bring our total to about 450 baskets.

I cannot thank the Trinity High School community enough for - once again - coming to the aid of the most vulnerable. As I always tell our students, this is why we exist and why we do what we do. I found it quite fitting that the gospel at Mass yesterday was the one from Matthew which reminded us that:

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’

Then the righteous will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?

When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Mission to Haiti

2011-11-16T14:30:00.000-05:00

Zach Girard '14 is traveling on a mission trip to Haiti next month with his Church, Shiloh Community Church in Manchester. The director of the Missions Program at Shiloh, Annette Tuttle, explained the purpose of the trip to me:

This particular mission will focus on Sports Evangelism. Zach will be going with 3 professional soccer players, along with several other soccer enthusiasts. We will be flying into Port-au-Prince Haiti, then traveling out to an island off the coast. We will spend several days there conducting soccer clinics, visiting orphanages, villages, and schools, while sharing our faith in Jesus Christ.

Campus Ministry and National Honor Society were happy to help Zach and the Church out and have donated bags and bags and bags of hygiene products such as bandaids, tooth paste, etc to be given to the people to whom they are ministering. I am very grateful to Mrs. Photiades, mother of Kiersten '12 and Kerra '14, who graciously did the shopping for us and got tons of stuff for the people of Haiti, most of whom are still recovering from the devastating earthquake.

Thanksgiving Baskets Underway

2011-11-16T08:39:00.001-05:00

Our annual Thanksgiving Basket Drive to benefit the food pantries of Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration Parishes is well underway. I handed out about 430 or so laundry baskets on Monday and Tuesday and they were all taken! People of course can still donate baskets but they can bring their items in boxes, bags, or even buy a laundry basket.

The amazing students of Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School donated boxes and boxes and boxes of stuffing, instant potatoes, canned goods, etc to our drive. One of our parents, Mrs. Roberge (mother of Ashley '14), and I picked the items up from Saint Joe's yesterday. In addition, another one of our parents, Mrs. Korzyniowski (mother of Alex '15), donated 50 pounds of carrots and 50 pounds of potatoes! Our cafeteria staff has agreed to donate some baskets and many Student Council members agreed to donate at least two baskets.

I am pretty convinced we will meet our goal of feeding 500 families this Thanksgiving. God bless everyone for their generosity!

Mass Changes

2011-11-15T10:39:00.000-05:00

Back in the 1960's, the Catholic Church made some dramatic changes to the Mass. The entire "format" was changed and the Mass could now be said in the vernacular. People around the world scrambled to translate the "new" Mass into their native tongue and in the late 1960's, the Mass of Paul VI was promulgated.

Unfortunately in the English speaking world, the translation into English was not very precise. For example, the phrase "Et cum spiritu tuo", which literally means "And with your spirit" was translated as "And also with you" in the English. In the year 2000, Pope John Paul II asked the English speaking world to make some changes to the words to make them more faithful to the Latin. That work has been completed and one week from Sunday, the First Sunday of Advent, the new translation of the Mass will go into effect in the United States.

The last time we as a school community will use the current translation is next week when we have our Thanksgiving Mass. We will process out of the Mass carrying the Sacramentary, the missal the priest uses, to symbolize the change. We will later bury the Sacramentary outside the windows of the Saint Basil Chapel. We will use the new translation, the Roman Missal, for the first time as a school community on December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. We will process in with the Roman Missal and have a special blessing over the book by our celebrant, Father Mark Cooper, OSB.

I met with all of the Theology classes yesterday in the Saint Basil Chapel to explain the changes and to go over the new words. We purchased nice pew cards for our students and faculty to use during our Masses as we adjust to the new words. I for one am looking forward to the change as the language is more lyrical, beautiful, and scriptural.

Service Galore

2011-11-09T17:38:00.000-05:00

Over the next couple of months, we are going to be kicking our service initiatives into mega high gear. Here is just a taste:

1. Thanksgiving Basket Drive: November 21
2. Canned Food Drive at Turkey Bowl: November 24
3. 25 Days of Service: Advent
4. Book Drive for Henry Wilson School: December 13
5. Canned Food Drive Competition against Bishop Guertin: late January

By far, the biggest of these is our annual Thanksgiving Basket Drive. My goal is for us to raise 400-500 baskets which will benefit the food pantries of Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration Parishes. I will be giving laundry baskets to all the students on Monday and ask that they fill them up with the following:

2 cans of turkey gravy
5 pound bag of potatoes
2 bags of fresh carrots
1 package of dinner rolls
1 box of stuffing mix
2 cans of cranberry sauce
2 cans of green beans
1 can of coffee
2 cans of fruit cocktail
Assorted desserts
Anything else you may want to add

400-500 baskets is very ambitious but the need is greater than ever. See how here.

The Human Experience

2011-11-09T17:29:00.001-05:00

As you may recall, over the summer, Miss P and I took five students to the annual Lasallian Youth Assembly in Philadelphia. During one of the evenings we all watched a movie called "The Human Experience" which recounted four guys' search for God, the truth, and what it means to be human. The guys took part in three experiences: sleeping outside in the winter, visiting a children's home in Peru, and visiting a leper colony in Ghana.

It was an incredibly powerful film and was the inspiration for our Cardboard City event. I showed the movie on our sophomore retreat and the juniors watched part of it in their Theology classes and came away as moved as we were this summer.

Students listen to Jeffrey Azize via Skype in Campus
Ministry

Miss P got in touch with the producers of the film to see if they would host a screening at Trinity. It didn't work out but they did offer to Skype with our students and that happened today in Campus Ministry! Jeffrey Azize, the leading man of the movie was the one who Skyped with the kids. The kids were very excited, especially since he is, how shall we say, easy on the eyes. I could only stay for about 20 minutes of the Skype but he answered many questions from the kids and was very insightful and complimented a lot of what we have been teaching our kids vis a vis love, morality, service, etc. It was amazing.

You can read more about "The Human Experience" here and here. It is now a staple of Trinity High School and I look forward to delving deeper into it as we go on.

Pilgrimage for Life 2012

2011-11-08T14:54:00.000-05:00

One of the great traditions of Trinity High School is the annual Pilgrimage for Life to Washington, DC. Held every January to mark the sad anniversary of Roe v. Wade, it is the largest (I believe) annual march in Washington. Since 2006, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of Trinity students have taken part in the march to stand up for the dignity of all human life.

Thanks to some generous donors, the cost of this year's trip is very low - $95! We can only take 200 students so be sure to see me as soon as possible. We could also use a few hardy parents to serve as chaperones. Please email me if you feel you may be able to help.

Our agenda is as follows:

Sunday, January 22, 2012

4:30am: Students arrive at Trinity

5:00am: Departure

10:00am: Arrive in New York City for Mass and lunch

1:00pm: Depart New York City

7:00pm: Arrive at Elizabeth Seton and DeMatha High Schools

Monday, January 23, 2012

5:30am: Wake-up call, shower, pack up, etc.

6:00am: Breakfast

6:30am: Depart for Verizon Center

7:30am: Youth Rally

12:00pm: March for Life

3pm-6pm: Site seeing and dinner

6:30pm: Depart Union Station

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

4:00am: Arrive back at Trinity

4:01am: Breathe

Pioneers of Action

2011-11-03T09:54:00.001-04:00

With November upon us, our thoughts invariably turn to Thanksgiving and Christmas. The spirit of giving and service is very much alive during this time of year and Campus Ministry is proud to sponsor three major service/giving programs in the months of November and December:

1. Thanksgiving Basket Drive: In conjunction with Saint Joe’s Junior High, our goal is to raise 400-500 baskets to benefit the food pantries of Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration Parishes. The baskets will be collected and delivered on November 21. Additional information, as well as laundry baskets, will be provided to the students in the coming weeks.

2. Book Drive: In an effort to promote literacy, the Henry Wilson School (K-5) in Manchester has asked if we could partner with them to provide each of their students with a book for Christmas. Both of our schools have about the same number of students and each of our grade levels will be assigned a corresponding grade level at the Wilson school. The gift wrapped books will be due at Trinity on December 12. After Christmas, our students are invited to go to the Henry Wilson School and read the books to the younger students.

3. 25 Days of Service: During the holy season of Advent, we will provide our community with daily service opportunities. Each day from November 27-December 21, groups of 5-10 people from Trinity will perform service at various sites in the area. I will post a calendar of opportunities in the coming weeks.

I am excited about these opportunities and hope and pray that all members of our school community - students, families, faculty, and staff - are able to take part. I also pray that by taking part in these service opportunities, we may all be brought closer to God.

New Horizons

2011-11-03T09:52:00.001-04:00

One of the beneficiaries of our Cardboard City event was New Horizons. Their executive director, Charlie Sherman, asked if some of our students could come down to New Horizons to see their facility and to get a sense of what they do. So yesterday, I headed down there with five students who took part in Cardboard City.

Charlie gave us a great tour and we came away very impressed with what they do. New Horizons has four components:

1. Food pantry (which feeds 900 people a month)
2. Soup kitchen (which feeds 200 a day)
3. Shelter (room for about 70)
4. Medical facility

I was happy to see that one of our graduates from the class of 1977 is a case worker there and another, a parent of a graduate of the class of 2011, works in their development office.

We hope to do a lot of service with New Horizons, especially in their soup kitchen. They prepare a homemade meal every night (last night was sloppy joe's!) and they serve the guests restaurant style. New Horizons prides itself on treating their guests with dignity and respect and to give them a place to come that is warm and inviting, not institutional and cold.

Pray for us

2011-11-01T18:02:00.000-04:00

Unfortunately because of the weather and widespread power outages, we haven't had school this week. That meant we could not have our school-wide Mass for today's Feast of All Saints. But, we were not forgotten.

The Alliance for Catholic Education at the University of Notre Dame asked if any Catholic school would like to be remembered and prayed for at Notre Dame's grotto so I submitted our name. The name of all the patron saints of the schools were placed at the grotto today and were remembered in the prayers of the ACE staff.

Below is a picture of the list of schools (note we're listed as the Blessed Trinity):

Earlier today, on the Feast of All Saints, ACE Staff Members visited the grotto with the list of patron saints submitted to us last week. We ask these saints and the entire communion of saints to pray for our Catholic schools and the students they serve. "All you holy men and women, pray for us." - from the ACE Advocates for Catholic Education Facebook page

12 Virtues

2011-10-29T10:37:00.000-04:00

Saint John Baptist de la Salle, the founder of the Lasallian Christian Brothers, was a pioneer in the field of Catholic education and teacher formation. He once listed the 12 virtues of a good teacher which are:

1. Gravity (seriousness)
2. Silence
3. Humility
4. Prudence
5. Wisdom
6. Paitence
7. Reserve
8. Gentleness
9. Zeal
10. Vigiliance
11. Piety
12. Generosity

Earlier this year, Mrs. Trachim of our Math Department began organizing weekly faculty breakfasts on Mondays before school and I thought it would be nice to follow her lead and have a weekly faculty prayer service on Fridays. That way, we begin and end our weeks together as a faculty. I decided to devote the first 12 prayer services to the 12 virtues. The prayer services are very brief - 10 minutes - and follow the same format every week:

1. Opening song
2. Praying/reading passages from scripture, writings, or quotes that relate to the virtue of that week
3. A reading from a book of reflections by Catholic school teachers
4. Intentions
5. The Teacher's Prayer by Saint John Baptist de la Salle

I enjoy preparing these and look forward to them every week. Hopefully it's a nice way for us a faculty to have the opportunity to pray together and to reflect upon our common vocation as Catholic school teachers.

Speaking of which, I came across this video today. It is a good reminder of why we do what we do:

Prepare for the coming of the Lord...

2011-10-29T10:16:00.000-04:00

It's hard to believe but in a few short weeks, we will begin the season of Advent. Advent is a four-week period of preparation for two events:

1. The second coming of Jesus Christ at the end of time
2. The celebration of the first coming of Jesus Christ at Christmas

The first part of Advent is devoted to the second coming and on December 17, the focus shifts to the celebration of Christmas.

Churches around the world mark Advent and the coming of Christmas by Advent Wreaths with 3 purple candles and 1 pink candle. A purple candle is lit on the first, second, and fourth Sunday of Advent while the pink one is lit on the third Sunday. I think it would be awesome if we had a huge Advent Wreath outside our building. Mrs. Tortolini had a great idea to get four tree stumps and paint four pieces of PVC pipe and put them in the stumps. To "light" them we would have some sort of lighting system.

Now, I am completely uncreative and not handy at all. My wife does all those kinds of jobs around the house. In fact, when we got married, my parents gave her a tool set for Christmas while I got books! So, needless to say I am reaching out to folks to see if they may be able to lend a hand with this project. I think it will look superb. Please email me if you think you may be able to help in some way.

Buffalo wing party

2011-10-27T20:09:00.000-04:00

Our principal, Mr. Mailloux, is of course also the principal of Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School in Manchester. Last month he asked me to stop by Saint Joe's to visit with the students. The 8th grade classes were studying Saint Peter and the early Christians in Rome so I was able to share with them some things from my trip this summer to Rome, including seeing the bones of Saint Peter.

Somehow - as it usually happens with me - the conversation turned to buffalo wings. It turned out that some of the students (and one of the teachers, Ms. Cuff) had never had buffalo wings.

The horror.

So I promised the 8th graders that I would return sometime and we would have a buffalo wing party! Yesterday was the day. Billy's in Manchester, home of the best buffalo wings in the city, graciously made me 60 buffalo tenders at 9:45am (and gave us a $20 discount) and I brought them by Saint Joe's. There are three sections of 8th grade Religion and they all meet in a row this week. I first visited Mrs. Hamel's class and then both of Ms. Cuff's classes. The kids were very excited and they LOVED the tenders. Some were so taken by them that they went to Billy's that night and got some more.

I really enjoy spending time at the junior high. They aren't much younger than our students but it's kind of neat to spend time with another age group. Hopefully our schools will be able to work together on some projects, namely our Thanksgiving Basket Drive and other service events.

Thanksgiving Baskets

2011-10-24T18:11:00.000-04:00

As the calendar gets ready to turn to November, it's time to start thinking of the greatest holiday known to man - Thanksgiving! I love this holiday - no presents, lots of football, and plenty of food. Unfortunately, many people will not have the same kind of meals the students and staff of Trinity High School will have on Thanksgiving. The times are tough and more and more people in Manchester do not have the resources to have a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.

Thus, for many years now, our school has had a Thanksgiving Basket Drive to benefit the food pantries of Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration Parishes. We always provide all of the fixings except for the turkeys and year after year after year, our students come through. Unfortunately, the food pantries are having a tough time now even affording the turkeys so we will try to help with that. Thanks to a generous parent and her employer, PSNH, we will soon be receiving a donation of $300 to benefit this project. I think it is appropriate that we donate the monies to the food pantries to help them buy turkeys. If anyone else would like to donate to this, please feel free to email me at bflaherty@trinity-hs.org

We are going to join forces with Saint Joseph Regional Junior High School this year so we hope to collect 400-500 baskets! I know we can do it. The need is greater than ever and the people of Manchester need our help.

We will collect the baskets on Monday, November 21 and will donate the baskets to Blessed Sacrament and Transfiguration after school that day. I will be passing out laundry baskets to every student and staff member of Trinity and Saint Joe's along with a "shopping list" in the next couple of weeks. Just imagine the front lawn of Trinity filled with hundreds and hundreds of laundry baskets filled with food to benefit the hungry of Manchester. Even better, imagine the joy you will bring to hundreds and hundreds of needy families in Manchester.

Vivat Jesus

2011-10-24T17:53:00.000-04:00

One of the most amazing and generous Catholic organizations in the world is the Knights of Columbus. I myself am a proud 4th Degree member, joining while a student at Saint Anselm College. Some of my fondest memories and closest friends from college came from my time in the Knights of Columbus at Saint Anselm. I am still a member of the Knights but of my local council.

Every year for the past several years, Council 5260 has made a sizable donation to Campus Ministry. They run a BINGO program and use the proceeds to assist Catholic schools and other charities in the area. This past year they raised $100,000!

Today Ted Kielar of the council stopped by to drop off their donation to Campus Ministry which will go a very long way to help us carry out our work of Prayer, Service, and Community!

A huge thank you to the wonderful men of Council 5260 for all they do for Trinity High School and the Catholic Church in Manchester!

Cardboard City totals

2011-10-24T17:40:00.000-04:00

I have received all of the donations for Cardboard City and our amazing students raised a grand total of $3,141 to benefit New Horizons and Families in Transition. We are happy to donate $1,570.50 to both of these worthy organizations who do so much to help the homeless in Manchester.

A huge thank you to all of the students, parents, and donors for their unbelievable generosity.

Let's do it again!

Saint Raphael's

2011-10-23T20:44:00.000-04:00

It was still kind of the middle of the night when I headed for school on Friday - 3:45am! I was meeting 6 students and Mrs. Trachim of our Math department at 5am to head down to Saint Raphael's Academy in Pawtucket, RI. Saint Ray's (or Saints as they called it) is a Lasallian Christian Brothers school and I want us to visit a few as we discern whether or not we want to affiliate with Lasalle.

We made great time and were at the school by 6:45am. We met up with Mrs. Benoit and Mrs. Murphy, both of whom help out in Campus Ministry. They had plenty of food, coffee, and juice waiting for us and then took us on a tour of the school. Saints opened in 1923 and has expanded over the years to 6 buildings - two of which are down the street. They have two classroom buildings, three office/administrative buildings, and a gym/wellness center. The school has less than 400 students and the population is pretty diverse. Their former president is Lasallian Christian Brother Daniel Aubin, FSC who is a graduate of Bishop Bradley High School!

At 8am, Mrs. Benoit and Mrs. Murphy showed us a slideshow of their work in Campus Ministry and spent time going over all their work. Our 6 students were then each paired up with a student from Saints and they spent a few hours sitting in on classes and touring the school. Meanwhile, Mrs. Benoit took me and Mrs. Trachim around the school to meet folks. Everyone was incredibly kind and took a genuine interest in us and why we were there. When the Drama advisor heard we were doing "Seussical" next month, he showed me some backdrops they used when they did the play and said we could borrow them for our play! We had great conversations with folks and were incredibly impressed with the work being done there.

After lunch (I had an amazing buffalo chicken wrap and my students know how much I love buffalo chicken) we headed to the gym for the final assembly of their Spirit Week. They asked one of our students to be one of the judges for the musical acts ("Saints Got Talent) which were punctuated by games which pinned class against class. It was a lot of fun and gave me some ideas for our Trinity Week.

We were back on the road around 2:50pm and one thing I forgot to do before we headed back was fill up the gas tank! Around Needham, MA I heard a sound and noticed that we were comletely out of gas. Thankfully I used to work in this area and knew there was a gas station right off the exit we were near. We had enough fumes (or momentum) to cross over three lanes and take the exit. However, as I went to turn into the Hess Station, the wheel locked up and the car stalled. We were all praying the Hail Mary hoping the car would make it but to no avail. Our front tires were in the gas station lot but the back part was in the street. Mrs. Trachim and the kids jumped out and pushed the car in despite the major honking and yelling from the other cars we were blocking. It made for quite the memory.

Anyway, it was a fantastic day and it really helped us all gain a better understanding of the larger Lasallian world and to see a Lasallian school in action. The folks at Saint Raphael's were beyond hospitable and helpful and ensured we had a pleasant and comfortable day. A huge thank you to everyone there! Next stop - Lasalle Academy in Providence.

Lasallian Week

2011-10-19T13:03:00.000-04:00

As I've mentioned in previous posts, our school is discerning whether or not we want to re-affiliate with the Lasallian Christian Brothers, the religious order that founded Trinity, Bishop Bradley, and Saint Joseph High Schools. By affiliating, we would "adopt" their spirituality, become a part of their global network, have an ethos, etc. We should still be a diocesan school, just with an enhanced/defined identity and culture.

As part of this process, Bro. Ernest Miller, FSC, the Associate Director of Mission and Ministry for the order's District of Eastern North America, visited our school yesterday. A group of us met Bro. Ernest this summer at the Lasallian Youth Assembly and were very excited that he asked to come and visit. When he arrived, I introduced him to some folks and showed him Alumni Hall, which was the Brother's House from 1961-1978.

Bro. Ernest then had lunch and some nice conversations with students. He took a genuine interest in them and asked them a lot of questions about Trinity. Following lunch, he and I had a discussion about Trinity, our thoughts on affiliation, next steps, etc. He is very excited that we are talking with them and taking part in this process. He left around 3pm and headed home to New Jersey.

This Friday, Mrs. Trachim of our Math Department, and I are taking 6 students to a Lasallian Christian Brothers school in Pawtucket, RI - Saint Raphael's Academy. We are going to see a Lasallian school "in action" and to introduce other kids and teachers to this process. I met folks from Saint Raphael's at Lasallian Youth Assembly and they want to work with us on projects and help us with our discernment.

Stay tuned!

Cardboard City totals

2011-10-19T10:42:00.000-04:00

I am still waiting to receive a couple of more donations in the mail but it looks like our students raised just under $3,000 during Cardboard City this weekend! Those funds will be donated equally to New Horizons and Families in Transition.

Great work everyone!

Cardboard City

2011-10-16T20:47:00.001-04:00

As it started to get dark on last night, students of Trinity High School began descending upon the school to set-up cardboard homes for the night. These students would spend the night sleeping outdoors to raise money and awareness of homelessness in Manchester. 80 students (130 signed up) sacrificed their Saturday night, their bed, and their comfort for one night to gain a better appreciation and understanding of what it means to be homeless.

After setting up their "homes" for the night, the students moved into the gym at 8:30pm where we prayed and watched the Will Smith movie "The Pursuit of Happyness" (sic). I liked this movie as it shows that homelessness can happen to anyone, not just those who suffer from mental illness or substance abuse. At 10:30pm, the students went back outside for the evening and were settled in by midnight or so. Most students got some sleep but some decided to stay up all night. There were many teachers and parents who gave up their night to watch over the students and to make sure they stayed safe. Everyone took a 2 hour shift and there were 3-4 adults awake at anytime. Some, like Mr. Mailloux and Mrs. Henning, slept in boxes, while others, like Mr. Gibbons (father of Mo '12 and Brenna '14) and Mrs. Masci (mother of Christine '14) slept in their cars. Mr. Bielik slept in a sleeping bag on the ground while Mr. and Mrs. Puchacz (parents of Jessica '14) crashed on the couches in Campus Ministry. Ms. Girard and Mr. Lindh (father of Haley '14) went home for a couple of hours and came back while Mr. Pascucci (father of Jessica '14) and Mr. Smith came at midnight for a couple of hours.

I took the 12am-2am shift and I tried to sleep from 2am-4am. I made camp on the side of the building next to the faculty parking lot with a blanket and my jacket as a pillow. I drifted in and out of sleep and at about 3:30, I was awoken by some students near me who saw a spider (I have these boys in one of my classes, ha ha, revenge is sweet - just kidding, sort of) and I was shivering something fierce (I haven't been feeling well) so I went inside and slept in one of the pews in the chapel for about 20 minutes.

At 4am, Mrs. Henning and I got the gym ready for Mass and we then woke everyone up at 5:45am with a bell I found in my office. The students were not amused! Father Richard Dion of Saint Anthony's Parish celebrated Mass for us in the gym which was con-celebrated by Father Patrick Kariuki Njau, who lives at Saint Anthony's and is the chaplain at Elliot Hospital. The Mass was very simple but it was a wonderful way to end our time together. Thanks to some generous parents like Mr. and Mrs. Boisvert (parents of Margaret '15), Mrs. Gibbons (mother of Mo '12 and Brenna '14) and Mrs. Curran (mother of Brian '14), we had a nice assortment of breakfast food and drink waiting for us after Mass.

I don't have the exact total that the students raised for New Horizons and Families in Transition but I think we surpassed the $2,000 mark! Thank you to those students who took part and made this event so memorable and meaningful. Many students said we should do it again. I am game if you are.

May the souls of all the faithful departed, rest in peace...

2011-10-15T17:25:00.000-04:00

In the Catholic Church, the month of November is a time set aside to remember in a special way those who have died. I am not 100% sure why we pick November but I bet it's because winter is settling in, the trees are bare, life in the natural world is dying, it's getting darker and colder, etc. November is a reminder, I guess, that we too will die someday and we will need all the prayers we can get. We believe as Catholics that when we die, our soul enters into Purgatory for a period of time before going to be with God forever in heaven. Our prayers are that the souls of the dead will soon enter into eternal glory in heaven.

As a school community, we will pray for all of our relatives and friends who have died during the month. I invite you to submit the names of your beloved dead here and at our Mass on All Saints Day, we will place all the names at the altar. After that, we will place the names in our chapel where they will be remembered in our daily prayers. Students will also be given a card to take home and fill out and those names too will be remembered at our Mass and prayers.

May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

"Be sealed..."

2011-10-15T16:59:00.000-04:00

Last month, on the same day our new bishop visited Trinity, Cameron Pichette '11 stopped by to say hello. Cameron joined the Marines after graduating from Trinity and was on leave until he had to head to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. He used the occasion to thank Trinity for everything we did for him during his time here and he asked Bishop Libasci and Bishop McCormack if he could be baptized before leaving for his next assignment! Bishop Libasci turned to Mr. Mailloux and said, "What more could you ask from a Catholic school?"

Bishop McCormack happily agreed to let Cameron receive the three sacraments of initiation - Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist - without having to go through the traditional process of RCIA and waiting until Easter. After working for a bit on the basics of the faith with Mr. Carnevale of our Theology Department, Cam was ready and today was the big day.

The Mass was held in the beautiful chapel at Saint Joseph Cathedral with Father Jason Jalbert presiding. In addition to Cam's immediate family, seven Trinity faculty members were there - Ms. Risdal, Ms. Kudrick, Mrs. Trachim, Mrs. O'Gorski, Mr. Carnevale, Mrs. Lennon-Morf, and myself. As luck would have it, a four member choir was singing at a Mass earlier in the morning and when they heard about Cameron's Mass, they asked if they could sing at it! As they were going over the music, they said they would like to sing the Prayer to St. Michael as the final hymn. Father Jason asked why they chose that hymn and they said they had just learned it and thought it was beautiful. What they didn't know was that Cameron picked the name Michael as his Confirmation name and Saint Michael is the patron saint of the military.

The Mass began outside to symbolize Cameron literally entering into the Church. Cameron was dressed in the formal Marine uniform and looked very sharp (his father said he lost 15-20 pounds since entering which made me wonder for a split section if I should sign up too). The Mass proceeded inside as usual and his baptism and confirmation came after Father Jason's homily. As Cameron was being baptized, all of the Trinity teachers (including yours truly) began to cry tears of joy. It was so moving to see him embrace Jesus Christ and become a disciple. Cameron went on to be confirmed and receive Communion.

As I was sitting there, I said to myself, "This is why we do what we do." This is what it's all about folks and is why we sacrifice so much to work at a Catholic school. God is so good.

Welcome to the Church, Cameron Michael Pichette and Semper Fi!

Below is the Prayer to Saint Michael:

Saint Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host -
by the Divine Power of God -
cast into hell, satan and all the evil spirits,
who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.

Amen.

Cardboard City

2011-10-11T13:19:00.000-04:00

This past summer, I had the good fortune of seeing the movie "The Human Experience." The movie chronicles a number of young guys who are searching for the truth and what it means to be a human. During one part of the movie, the guys spend a week living on the streets of New York City to experience what it means to be homeless.

I showed the movie at our sophomore retreat and as I was re-watching it at home with my wife, she suggested we do something similar. I figured why not! So I proposed to the sophomores that we sleep on the front lawn of the school some night to raise money and awareness of homelessness. They were all enthusiastic about it and so far over 130 of our students have signed up!

We are going to have the Cardboard City event this Saturday night. The kids will be setting up their homes for the night anytime after 6pm. At 8pm we are going to watch "The Pursuit of Happyness" (sic) in the gym and then head back outside for the night around 10pm. At 6am the next morning, Father Richard Dion of Saint Anthony's Parish is going to say Mass for us after which we will have a light breakfast.

Each student was asked to raise at least $25 to benefit Families in Transition and New Horizons, two major charities in Manchester. It should be a powerful, yet simple, way to help raise some money for some wonderful organizations in Manchester.

Service Galore

2011-10-05T19:14:00.000-04:00

With the school year in full swing, the service opportunities are starting to come in like mad. Here is a sample of what is currently available through Campus Ministry:

1. Volunteer at Kid's Cafe in Manchester on the second Wednesday of every month (next up: Oct. 12)
2. Help out at CareGivers in Bedford
3. Tutor, play soccer, or teach dance to kids in grades 4-8 at Hillside Middle School
4. Volunteer at Mt. Carmel Nursing Home in Manchester
5. Rake leaves for Manchester seniors in November
6. Wrap presents at Barnes and Noble to benefit Southern New Hampshire Services
7. Wait tables at Applebee's during a flapjack fundraiser for Southern New Hampshire Services
8. Help get the old St. Joe's ready for Bishop Libasci's reception following his installation Mass
9. Tutor kids at Henry Wilson School in Manchester
10. Buy a book for students at Henry Wilson School as part of Toys for Tots (this will be a school wide project - more to come)

There is something here for everyone! See me for more information.

Junior Retreat

2011-10-03T21:11:00.005-04:00

Every year, each class goes away for the day to spend sometime in prayer and in reflection. Today it was the junior classes chance to go on retreat, the last of the four classes. It was a raw and rainy day, unlike the original date of our retreat. We were supposed to have the retreat last Monday but the forecast called for tons of rain so I put if off until today. Of course last Monday turned out to be gorgeous and today was bad.

We began the day in the gym at which I gave a reflection on the retreat theme (holiness) and retreat patron (Blessed John Paul II) - you can read my reflection at the end of this post. We then headed over to Mt. Uncanoonuc in Goffstown for Mass and a hike (see my talk to understand why we did a hike)! The "mountain" is only 1,300 feet high but we only had to hike about 650 as the parking lot was already in high elevation. We began our time at the base of the mountain with Mass celebrated by Father Anselm Smedile, OSB of Saint Anselm College. Father Anselm graciously stepped in at the last minute as our initial celebrant, Father Matt Mason, could not make the rescheduled day. Father Anselm began the Mass by joking how happy he was to be my second choice.

Most of the students stood for the Mass as the ground was wet and in the spirit of John Paul II, we used a canoe as an altar. Before he was pope, John Paul II would often take young people hiking and canoeing and would stop to say Mass using the canoe as his altar. The readings for the Mass focused on the two great stories about mountains in the Bible - the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. I felt these were suitable readings as they were about God showing us, via mountains, how we are to be holy. The Mass was very brief but also very reverent given its setting. During the Eucharistic Prayer, a local dog strolled into our worship space and Father Anselm was worried that the dog may mistake the canoe/altar for a bush! The dog was quite friendly and actually followed us up the mountain and then all the way back.

At about 10:30am, we began our ascent up the mountain. I thought it would take a group this large about an hour to get to the top but they all made it up by 11:15 or so. There are a number of cell towers and electricity wires at the summit and each is monitored by security cameras. The security people saw all these people coming up and called the local police who drove up the auto road wondering why were all there.

It was raining as we were hiking and once at the top, the flood gates opened. It wasn't horrible but enough to get you soaked and cold. We hung around for a bit and I decided to skip the last part of the retreat and head down early. Of course as soon as we began heading down, the skies cleared and there were amazing views of Manchester from the lookout.

The buses picked us up early and we were all back at Trinity by 1:45 or so. All in all, a rewarding day and a nice experience (I hope) for our juniors. By the way, Junior Emilee Thompson took the pictures in this post and you can see more of her pictures from the day here.

Below are my remarks at the start of the day:

On August 12, 1993, a helicopter piloted by a Vietnam veteran tried to land inside Mile High Stadium in Denver. There were over 90,000 screaming teenagers in the stadium going insane to see the person in the helicopter. The screaming created so much turbulence that the pilot had a tough time landing. It was similar, he said, to his experience being under fire in Vietnam.

The person that was being dropped off inside Mile High Stadium to a throng of 90,000 screaming teenagers? John Elway? Bono? No. It was the 73 year old Pope John Paul II. He was there as part of World Youth Day, an international gathering of young people with the pope held in various places around the world every couple of years.

Why would 90,000 teenagers (and later for the final Mass 500,000 people) gather to listen to a 73 year old pope? And why would they scream and yell as if they were welcoming a rock star?

Pope John Paul II, who died in 2005, loved young people. And he understood young people. He didn’t see young people as people waiting for their time in the sun as adults but rather people who were needed now. He believed in you, he loved you, he wanted you to be saints. He wanted you to be holy, that is, to be perfect like Jesus Christ. He said:

I have great confidence in you, I have great pride in you; I am filled with encouragement, I am overflowing with joy" (2Cor 7,4).

These are not words of empty praise. I am confident that you have grasped the scale of the challenge that lies before you, and that you will have the wisdom and courage to meet that challenge. So much depends on you.

And he never gave up on calling all people to embrace holiness, that is, to be like Jesus Christ. John Paul II was an athlete and an avid skier and mountain climber but he had his health issues - he was run over by a Nazi during World War II, he was shot and almost killed in 1981, and later in life he developed Parkinson’s Disease. He was so ill and frail at the end that you could hardly understand a word he was saying. He was slumped over, drool coming out of his mouth, hardly able to stand or walk...but he never gave up, he kept going until his last breath on April 2, 2005. And as he laid dying in his room in Rome, hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Saint Peter’s Square, including tens of thousands of young people. Told that there were thousands and thousands of young people outside his window, Pope John Paul II said:

“I have looked for you. Now you have come to me, and I thank you."

That idea of holiness is the theme of this retreat and Pope John Paul II is our patron or model. The quote that will guide this retreat, and hopefully your junior year is:

“God became man so man could become God.”

God became a man 2,000 years ago in the person of Jesus Christ to show you and me how to be perfect and how to fix our sinful ways. That is, how to be God. YOU AND I ARE CALLED TO BE GOD. Now we are just people...God is calling us to something greater, to become Him. The goal or reward if we do? Eternal life forever with God.

The road to us becoming God is hard and very difficult, full of trials and difficulties. It is a lifelong process and we won’t know the results until we come face to face with God in heaven. So it is up to us, over the next 70, 80 years that we have on this Earth to conform ourselves more and more to the perfect man - Jesus Christ, God made man.

And that was the life long goal of Pope John Paul II. He spent his life as a priest, bishop, and pope trying to help people, especially young people, discover how to be holy - how to be like Christ.

You might wonder why we are going for a hike today. Mountains have always been a symbol of the path to holiness. It is long, hard, we run out of breath, we lose hope, we want to give up, we want to turn around, we want to go back. But if we persevere, if we make it to the top, we get our great reward - amazing, breathtaking views, and complete satisfaction.

The mountain we are going to hike is not much of a mountain, it’s about 1,300 feet up but we just have to hike about 650 feet since we’re already up part of the mountain in the parking lot. And I will admit - the views are nice but they may not be breathtaking. But as we’re hiking and as you run out of breath and wish you were somewhere else and your legs hurt and you want to turn around, keep thinking of how this is a metaphor for your path to holiness, your path to heaven. So if you ever lose hope, if you ever want to give up on Jesus Christ, think of the reward for it will indeed be great in heaven.

Amen.

Pease Greeters

2011-10-02T10:21:00.001-04:00

Mr. O'Leary, our Latin teacher, is a Vietnam Veteran and oftentimes speaks of the ways in which he and his fellow veterans were treated when they came home (and it wasn't pretty). Now, 40 plus years later, it is the goal of the Pease Greeters to make sure our troops are never treated like that again.

At the start of the school year, senior Nicole Fell came to me asking if we could do something for troops coming home from overseas. I had heard about the Pease Greeters and told her that once they have a flight on a weekend or after school, we would absolutely go. This morning was our first opportunity and man was it powerful.

I met Nicole, 6 other students, and two parents at Trinity at 5:45 this morning! We caravanned out to Pease Tradeport in Portsmouth arriving around 6:30. I really had no idea what to expect in terms of people but the place was full of about 100 people! These people go to Pease no matter the time or the weather to welcome troops home or to wish them well as they head off. Today we were meeting a plane of troops heading overseas.

One of the greeters gave us a tour of the airport pointing out some of their mementoes, including a flag from the Battle of Guadalcanal, pictures of every group of troops that have come into Pease, and a room full of phones where troops can call home for free. We mingled for a bit and then lined up to welcome the troops. We all began clapping as they processed in and they seemed so happy to see us. The procession only lasted a few minutes and we all then went into another room for food and conversation.

The students struck up a conversation with a troop from Minnesota. She said they had come in from Fort Dix in New Jersey and were then off to Iceland, Europe, Southeast Asia, and then their final destination (she never said where). She was very nice and took a real interest in our students. After this, we all went into a big hall for the troops' picture and a brief ceremony which consisted of the National Anthem, a prayer, and some remarks from folks.

I get all teary eyed at these types of things and this was no exception. As the troops went back outside to get on the plane, we all clapped again and the troop from Minnesota waved a mini-American flag at our students which really touched them.

It was a very simple event but yet so profound. I can't wait until we go again.

Newest blogger

2011-09-29T17:56:00.002-04:00

A hearty Blogosphere welcome to Ms. Girard. The focus on her new blog is her summer trip to India! Amazing stuff, see it here.

Thanking our troops

2011-09-29T10:12:00.001-04:00

For years now, a group of dedicated men and women have been going to Pease Tradeport in Portsmouth at all hours of the day and night to welcome home troops coming back from overseas (or wishing them well as they head off overseas). These people, called Pease Greeters, are always there to greet the troops no matter the time or weather- it is an amazing gift they give to our men and women in uniform.

Senior Nicole Fell was inspired by the TLC show "Surprise Homecoming" to do something for the troops coming home to New Hampshire. So a group of us will be going out to Pease to join the greeters whenever we can to welcome our troops home or to wish them well. Unfortunately many of the flights are during school hours but there is one coming up this Sunday at 7:30am. Anyone who wants to join us should meet at Trinity at 5:45am. Yes, it's very early but think of the sacrifices these men and women are making for us. Does getting up a little early on a Sunday even compare???

Now the flight schedules can change at any moment so be sure to see me before Sunday in case anything changes.

Blessing of the animals

2011-09-29T09:54:00.002-04:00

This Tuesday, October 4 is the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. Saint Francis loved animals and for many years on this day, we have had a wonderful tradition of blessing our animals!

So please bring your cat, dog, hampster, lizard, snake, whatever you got to the frontlawn of Trinity at 6pm for a special blessing.

Father Paul Montminy from Saint Catherine's Parish will be presiding.

Back to the Future

2011-09-25T21:37:00.001-04:00

The prayer of every Lasallian

About two years ago, a group of teachers, staff, administrators, and board members of Trinity had a series of meetings to discuss our school's mission. Out of those discussions arose an enhanced mission statement as well as our current media efforts led by Mrs. Henning. We also talked about how as a diocesan school, we don't really have a spirituality or charism that permeates our school. A school like Bishop Guertin High School has a spirituality as they were founded and are run by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart. We haven't had a religious order working in our school since the Lasallian Christian Brothers left in 1978.

Around the same time, we were celebrating our 40th anniversary. As we looked back at our history and planned our anniversary events, we reconnected with our founding order, the Lasallian Christian Brothers. A few of the brothers came to our school last winter to visit and some discussions ensued about perhaps Trinity and the brothers working together again on some projects. Our summer trip with 130 Lasallian high school students from the East Coast has been the real highlight of these discussions and one of the biggest influences on us. One thing led to another, and we started asking ourselves if we wanted to adopt (again) the Lasallian Christian Brothers spirituality as our own and become a part of their network in some way shape or form. We're not talking about becoming a school run by the brothers but rather a school that is in a way affiliated with them, their spirituality, their history, and their network of schools and ministries.

As part of our discernment, we have been talking and meeting with the brothers and other folks who work in their schools and ministries. Yesterday, as part of those discussions, myself, Mr. Mailloux, Ms. Risdal, and Mrs. Henning headed down to Narragansett, RI to meet with Bro. John McMahon, FSC (who taught at Trinity and Bishop Bradley from 1967-1972) and others and to see their work down there.

The chapel of the Brother's residence
in Narragansett, RI

We pulled onto their beautiful property around 10am and Bro. John was out front waiting for us. He treated us to coffee and muffins and then took us around the grounds. They have a brother's residence, a wonderful chapel, and a school called Ocean Tides. Ocean Tides (which gets its name from a Shakespeare play) is a school for delinquent high school boys who are court ordered to seek help for their wayward ways. They stay at the school for about a year before being reunited with their families and their old schools. It's a very successful program and one of the best rehabilitation facilities for high school boys in the state of Rhode Island. The president of Ocean Tides is Bro. Brendan Gerrity, FSC who taught at Bishop Bradley in the 1960's.

After a great tour, we had lunch with the community (about 12 brothers live there) and a group of brothers and Lasallian Volunteers from New York City who were in town for the weekend. We then headed over to the brother's retreat house about a mile down the road where we had some nice discussions with Bro. John and the New York City crew about Lasallian life and spirituality. We then took a quick ride to the ocean and then walked around the community's cemetery where Mr. Mailloux saw the graves of many brothers who taught at Trinity/Bradley (including the one who gave him his only F). We then topped off the day with a wonderful social and dinner with the community.

Bro. John McMahon, FSC (left) and Mr. Mailloux over-
looking the Atlantic Ocean at Port Judith in Narragansett,
Rhode Island. It was Bro. John who inspired Mr. Mailloux to become
an English teacher!

I can't tell you how excited we all were taking part in this day and meeting these amazing people. My hope is that many other faculty and students will take similar trips to get to know the brothers and their schools. The folks from New York City invited us to visit them and spend time at their schools as have folks at the Lasallian high schools in Rhode Island. There are dozens and dozens of Lasallian schools on the East Coast so the opportunities to visit and learn are endless. The future is indeed bright and full of hope.

Mass with Mr. Mailloux

2011-09-25T20:57:00.000-04:00

Today we began a new tradition at Trinity High School - monthly Mass and breakfast with Mr. Mailloux. Nine students and Miss P. joined Mr. Mailloux for the 11am Mass at Saint Anthony's Parish in Manchester today and then had a nice meal at Belmont Hall. The pastor of Saint Anthony's is Father Richard Dion, a good friend of Trinity High School and a member of our Advisory Board.

Mr. Mailloux will be going to Mass with 10 students on the last Sunday of every month at a different parish in the area. It's a way for the students to pray with Mr. Mailloux and to spend some time getting to know one another.

If you're interested in taking part in next month's Mass, please see me or Miss P.

Coverage of Bishop Libasci

2011-09-19T20:37:00.000-04:00

Our amazing Media Team, led by Mrs. Henning, has posted a special page on our website devoted to Bishop Libasci's visit to Trinity today, including audio of his (and Mr. Mailloux's) remarks and video of him putting on a Trinity sweatshirt.

You can see it all here.

Welcome Bishop Libasci!!

2011-09-19T13:01:00.001-04:00

Bishop Libasci shows off his new Trinity sweatshirt

Today Pope Benedict XVI appointed Bishop Peter Libasci of the Diocese of Rockville Centre (New York) as the 10th Bishop of Manchester. He replaces Bishop John McCormack who has retired.

Bishop Libasci had a press conference at 10am at the cathedral in Manchester and then came right over to visit Trinity High School. We found out around 7:30am that he wanted to visit so we all sprung into action. Everyone came together to get the gym ready for a special assembly, to make a special card, to put signs up all over the school, to decorate bulletin boards, etc. The bishop arrived around 11am and after meeting some students and administrators, he came into the gym to a THUNDEROUS ovation from all of our students. They clapped and clapped for about 2 minutes.

Mr. Mailloux gave some words of welcome (which I posted below) and then Bishop Libasci gave a beautiful (and completely off the cuff) talk about the power of Jesus Christ (we should have the audio up later). Bishop Libasci weaved in the idea of what it means to be a pioneer which meant a lot to the students.

Bishop Libasci visits Campus Ministry
photo credit: Diocese of Manchester

Mr. Mailloux presented the bishop with a card signed by all of the students as well as a Trinity High School sweatshirt. The bishop put it on to the chant of Li-bas-ci by our students. Powerful stuff. The choir then sang a wonderful song during which the bishop bowed in prayer. Bishop Libasci spent a lot of time talking with students, taking pictures, and touring some of our school.

We should have pictures, audio, etc. up on our Facebook page soon. In the meantime, below are Mr. Mailloux's words of welcome:

Welcoming of Our New Bishop

Bishop Peter Libasci to Our Diocese and to

Trinity High School

I want to welcome a longtime friend and a new one to Trinity High School. Today, Bishop John McCormack turns over the reigns of our diocese to his successor, Bishop Peter Libasci. Bishop McCormack has been our shepherd and a very dear friend to Trinity since 1998. We have much to thank him for and will miss him dearly. Thank you, Bishop John, for all that you have given us and for always believing in the mission of our Catholic schools.

It is a great honor for Trinity High School to have been selected as the first school in the Diocese of Manchester to welcome Bishop Peter Libasci who comes to us from the Diocese of Rockville Centre, NY, where he has most recently served as auxiliary bishop.

Bishop Libasci, I know I can speak on behalf of all your schools when I say we stand ready and mission-bound to work toward the vision you bring to Catholic education in our diocese and ready to do our part toward building the future of the Catholic Church in New Hampshire.

Our students prove to us every day that they are ready to learn and to live as individuals empowered by the knowledge, skills and, most importantly, the values of Christian life. They leave our school with aspirations to change the world. We, at Trinity, call ourselves pioneers in the spirit of the religious orders who came to our diocese many years ago to bring Catholic education to generations of daughters and sons. Today, Bishop Libasci, we call you “Pioneer” and welcome you as one of us who continue in the spirit that mission.

On behalf of everyone in the Trinity High School Community, I welcome you, Bishop Libasci, and look forward to the future of our schools and our diocese under your leadership. It is with great honor that I present the Trinity High School Community to you!

Father Jerome's homily

2011-09-15T16:22:00.000-04:00

Here is a link to Father Jerome's homily from today's Mass of the Holy Spirit.

You can also view pictures from the Mass at our Facebook page.

...and renew the face of the Earth

2011-09-15T13:30:00.001-04:00

Today we had a very nice opening liturgy thanks to Father Jerome Day, OSB. He gave a wonderful homily which will be podcasted later today. Our choir, as always, sang beautifully and added so much to our worship. Father Jerome went through the crowd after communion and blessed each class with holy water.

I offered a very brief reflection at the Mass following Communion which is posted below:

I’ve heard it said a number of times lately - this is an amazing time to be a part of Trinity High School:

The Pope owns a Trinity High School t-shirt
The freshmen have iPads
Our girl’s soccer team is undefeated
We had an amazing reaccredition visit last spring
Our faculty is fired up and ready to take Trinity to the next level
We’ve, in a way through Mr. Mailloux, taken on Saint Joe’s
This year we celebrate and honor Mr. Gorski’s 50th year as a teacher at Trinity/Bradley

For those of us who have faith, the amazing things that have taken place during the past couple of years have not been coincidental. There is something very powerful at work in these walls and this place is truly on the cusp of greatness. I honestly believe that God has a special plan for Trinity High School and all of us here are going to play a role in the renewal of Catholic education in the city of Manchester, if not the entire state!

And so it’s appropriate that we stop today, on the threshold of a new academic year and pray to the Holy Spirit and ask Him to bless us and to renew us in our work. Without God, we can do nothing and with God we can do everything. As a Catholic school, especially one named after God, we can never forget why it is we exist and why it is we continue to thrive. We are here to build up the kingdom of God the Father in this tiny corner of His vineyard and as long as we keep our eyes and our focus on God the Son, and ask for the help and guidance of God the Holy Spirit, we will never fail.

Come Holy Spirit and renew the face of the Earth.

Come Holy Spirit and continue to renew Trinity High School.

Amen.

Come Holy Spirit...

2011-09-14T17:35:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow our school community will celebrate its first Mass of the year. Traditionally, schools celebrate a Mass of the Holy Spirit to kick off a new academic year and that is what we will be doing. Father Jerome Day, OSB, the pastor of Saint Raphael Parish, will be our presider. We will also use the occasion to debut our new pulpit, pre-Mass music by Miss P., a holy water font (albeit a temporary one until our permanent one is ready), and a special blessing for our teachers and students.

We will also be recording Father Jerome's homily and podcasting it for those who may want to be a part of our Mass who cannot be there in person.

The Mass begins at 9:50am and all are invited to join us. We will have a light reception following the Mass for Father Jerome and parishioners from Saint Raphael's, graduates of Saint Benedict Academy, and anyone "related" to Saint Anselm College, where Father Jerome is a member of the monastic community.

10 Years Later...

2011-09-09T16:49:00.002-04:00

Today the Trinity High School community marked the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. As many of our students may not remember that day, we wanted to do something special and on a grand scale to commemorate that horrible, tragic day ten years ago.

This morning before the first mod, on a beautiful day similar to that of September 11, 2001, our community gathered on the front lawn of the school. Bishop John McCormack led us in a beautiful and poignant prayer after which Mr. Ray Clement and Mr. Eddie Poisson of our Facilities Department raised the school flag. During the the raising of the flag, the school chorus sung a wonderful rendition of the National Anthem. Following this, Manchester Mayor Ted Gatsas led us in the pledge of allegiance.

The high point of the ceremony was when Bishop McCormack and Mayor Gatsas processed down to the granite Trinity sign and placed two 4x6 American flags on either side. Throughout the day, Trinity students and teachers would place 2,974 more flags in the ground- one for each of the victims of September 11. Megan Menard '13 then played "Taps" on her trumpet as Mr. Clement lowered the flag down to half mast.

During each of the mods, students came into Campus Ministry from their Theology classes to get about 7 flags each along with the names of 7 victims. They went outside and placed their flags into the ground and then gathered in the Saint Basil Chapel where they read the names aloud and prayed for each victim.

At 2:20pm, we gathered outside one final time where Mr. Mailloux put the final flag into the ground followed by the choir singing "Amazing Grace."

All of the students should be applauded for the graceful and solemn way in which they conducted themselves today. They prayerfully entered into the spirit of the day and did an amazing job honoring those who lost their lives on September 11.

You can see some pictures from the day on our Facebook page by clicking here.

May the souls of those who lost their lives on September 11, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

41 Years Later...

2011-09-08T16:43:00.001-04:00

We had a great day today marking the 41st anniversary of Trinity High School's founding. Campus Ministry treated the faculty to a breakfast before school (which the students gladly polished off) and there was some amazing cake for the students in the cafe during lunch (I didn't even get a taste, they devoured three full sheet cakes in what seemed like seconds). We also had old yearbooks laid out in Campus Ministry for students to peruse and Mrs. Henning put together a wonderful picture montage which looped during the day in Campus Ministry.

It was the first of what hopefully becomes a new tradition at Trinity - Founder's Day.

Happy Birthday Trinity High School. Here's to many more years of Pride, Spirit, and Tradition.

Prayer of the Day

2011-09-08T08:00:00.000-04:00

Today we begin a new tradition at Trinity High School - Founder's Day. It was 41 years ago on September 8, 1970 that Trinity High School opened its doors for the first time, the product of three schools merging into one.

We are having a number of events today to mark the occasion but as always, we begin in prayer:

God our Father,

When this school opened its doors for the first time as Trinity High School on September 8, 1970, there was much hope but also some doubt.

Could this school - which was made up of three former schools - survive?

What did the future hold for Trinity when so many other Catholic schools were closing around the country?

But Lord, you had other plans for this place. You called people like Mr. Gorski, Miss Kudric, Mr. Maurier, Mr. Mailloux, Mrs. Trachim, Mrs. O’Gorski, and so many others to lead this school, to carry out its Catholic mission, and to make disciples of thousands and thousands of young men and women.

We thank you for the past 41 years, we thank you for the men and women who built Trinity High School, for those who have sustained it, and for those who are to come.

God our Father - Please continue to bless our faculty, our administration, our staff, our students, our parents, our families, our alumni, and our benefactors.

God our Son - Please help us to always be like You and to be your disciples.

God the Holy Spirit - Please help and guide us all as we work to build your kingdom in this tiny part of your vineyard.

Amen.

Prayer of the Day

2011-09-07T08:48:00.001-04:00

Today's prayer was written some years ago by an alumnus. I found it in a folder with other prayers Mr. Andrew Nelson had students write when he was Director of Campus Ministry at Trinity. I found this prayer to be appropriate as we continue to pray for the recovery of Mr. Phil Nelson who recently had open heart surgery:

God,
There are so many people in the world who are sick or about to get sick.
There are so many people who don't have anyone to pray for them, to care for them.
Please God, I ask you to numb their pain.
I ask you to lift their hopes and will to overcome their sickness.
Lessen their struggles, their worries, for nothing is worse than being burdened by extraneous things when one is sick.
Let them know that they are loved no matter what sickness they have been dealt as you love me no matter what I do.

Amen.

Prayer of the day

2011-09-06T12:00:00.002-04:00

Jesus,
Help us to accept you as our savior and our Lord.
Help us let you into our lives and trust Your guiding hand.
Amen.

By a senior

Prayer of the Day

2011-09-01T09:31:00.000-04:00

God help us to bring your light to this dark world.
Help us to do your will,
and help the world through you.

By a freshman

Prayer of the Day

2011-08-31T20:21:00.000-04:00

Today we began a new tradition at Trinity High School where the morning prayer is composed by a member of the school community. Today's prayer comes from Mrs. Tortolini of the main office:

Oh Lord, How shall I thank You?
You have blessed me with so much.
My family, my friends, my health
My freedom, my abilities, my spirituality,
My safety, my self.
Your gift is a generous one and I thank you
From the bottom of my heart
I worship you, I follow you, I adore you,
I praise you, I love you.
I pray that my expression of thanks is worthy of you.