Celebrating our Youth

On Sunday, November 13, the Archdiocese of Newark will be celebrating young people who have given outstanding service to the community, school and/or parish.   These are the young people who move us to say "Thank God" for all of their support throughout the year.  


We have two Junior Students at Benedictine Academy who will be receiving the recognition and honor they so justly deserve.  On Sunday,  MARTHA DEVIA and KELLY AMORIM will receive the ARCHDIOCESAN YOUTH RECOGNITION AWARD.   

We congratulate you both and are grateful for all you do and are to our communities.  Our prayer is that God bless you one hundred fold for all the blessings that we and others have received from your good works.

ELIZABETH COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS

The Elizabeth Coalition for the Homeless is celebrating 30 years of serving the homeless and poor of Union County.  One of the events of their celebration is the making of a beautiful quilt comprised of 26 squares, one square for each group that has worked so generously by their side over the years in serving the  needs of the local community.  


Benedictine Academy feels honored and blessed to have the privilege of being part of their tapestry of love.  Our students have consistently responded with joy to their call for clothing and toy drives, Christmas giving tree, babysitting the younger children and tutoring the older children.   Take a peak at our square designed by one of our Student Campus Ministry Leaders, Joyce Mendoza.  


Her message is clear.  At Benedictine Academy, we are a family whose mission is to "listen, learn, lead and love!" 

Eve of All Saints Day

Sister Martin-Elizabeth and our Library Circle of Student Helpers made their traditional visit to the St. Walburga Monastery to spread good cheer and Halloween treats with the Benedictine Sisters in the Infirmary.  It was a wonderful time by all!

One of the distinct features of our school is that our students and their families are part of the Benedictine Sisters extended family! In times of joy and sorrow, we walk together bringing the love of Christ to one another. 

STUDENTS IN ACTION AWARD

We are proud to announce our 1st Students In Action Award for the new school year on a most fitting day of celebration - ALL SAINTS DAY!  As we gathered as one sacred community, our Benedictine Family reflected on the way to bring happiness to others. 

 For the Month of October, there were two key individuals who stood out among the crowds of students and staff who are continuously performing selfless acts of kindness.  They have been our unsung heroes, year after year, in raising funds to help find a cure for cancer.  Whether it be organizing the Annual school-wide Breast Cancer Walk, working tirelessly to get sponsors, or giving from their own pockets to support research that gives hope to all families, Cheila Cardosa ( a Senior) and Mrs. Luisa Rodriguez (Business Plant Manager) are leading the way.   MERCI Cheila and Luisa from your BA family!

Benedictine Academy is a Regional Gold Medal Jefferson Award Winning School.  Co-founded by Jacqueline Onassis Kennedy and Sam Beard 40 years ago, Jefferson Awards joined forces with the Carnegie Corporation andHarvard University to establish what has become known as the Nobel Prize for public Service in America.  This year, Benedictine Academy was recognized in Washington D.C. as the Best new Jefferson Awards Students In Action School in the nation.  We humbly give thanks to God for the privilege, the honor, and the grace to be His instruments of love in the world.

TRICK OR TREAT?

This Halloween we joined forces with Global Exchange to Reverse Trick or Treating.  At a school-wide assembly, the Students In Action Leadership Team spoke out against child slave labor in the chocolate industry:  

"10 years ago, Hershey, along with many other chocolate companies, joined the campaign to stop child labor and many of the other abuses involved in the cocoa industry. 10 years came and went and Hershey has yet to take action against these inhumanities. Imagine if it was your little brother, sister, cousin, or friend, who worked for long hours on cocoa farms performing hazardous work like using machetes, carrying heavy loads, and coming into close contact with toxic pesticides. For thousands of children today that is their daily life. 

You can be part of the fight against child labor for chocolate by raising the bar. Those who signed the petition last year have already begun with one small step, refusing to eat Hershey brand chocolates. Now it is time to take it another step and spread the word starting this very day with Reverse Trick-or-treat.

Every time someone offers you any kind of Hershey candy just give it back. And with it spread the knowledge. That Hershey has not taken action to stop child labor and that there is a better option. Fair trade chocolate, grown in good conditions, by actual farmers, that get paid an honest days wage. Tell people, because knowledge is power. Plus fair trade chocolate is just as sweet as that Hershey bar; perhaps even sweeter.


Any of you who are willing to take this step and reverse trick-or-treat sign the petition today and become an even bigger part of this change. "
Thank You


 For additional information, check  Equal Exchange  http://www.equalexchange.coop/reverse ,
Green America  http://www.greenamerica.org/livinggreen/chocolate.cfm
International Labor Organization    http://www.ilrf.org/stop-child-forced-labor/cocoa-campaign/news/as-profits-soar-chocolate-industry-fails-to-deliver-on-p

Benedictine Academy Child Slave Labor:  http://teacherweb.com/NJ/BenedictineAcademy/Religion-Michalski/apt12.aspx

ALL SOULS DAY

We remembered our loved ones, and the loved ones of our benefactors and alumnae, both at the celebration of the Mass of All Saints and on All Souls Day, as we gathered as one sacred community in prayer.  

                                                                                                 

           If roses grow in heaven,
      Lord please pick a bunch for us,

Place them in our loved ones’ arms,

And tell them they’re from us.

Tell them that we love them

and miss them,

And when they turn to smile,

Place a kiss upon their cheek,

              And hold them for quite awhile.

 We remember our loved ones every day.

          Let them know they will never really be away.

The Book of Life travels between St. Walburga Monastery and Benedictine Academy.  Our prayers are joined together as one family. 

ALL SAINTS DAY

This month we celebrated All Saints Day at the Benedictine Sisters' Monastery Chapel.  We were especially blessed to have Father Dong Yadao from St. Teresa's Parish in Summit.  Father Dong was recently ordained to the Priesthood last May 28, 2011 at the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey.

 During his inspiring homily,  Father encouraged everyone present to know (kilala) Christ more deeply because that is the only way we can spread His gospel of love.  By our baptism,  we are all called to sainthood.  

The Gospel Choir and Sister Karin added their beautiful voices of praise as we chanted the Litany of Saints and asked the Lord to "Open the eyes of our hearts".   At Benedictine Academy, we believe the celebration of Eucharist and prayer are the foundation of "living the good life".