Archdiocesan news briefs
In memoriam
Alfred Rozanski, father of Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, died Dec. 27 in Baltimore, Maryland. He was 86 years old. A funeral Mass was celebrated Jan. 2 in Baltimore.
A retired Bethlehem Steel police officer and former security guard at Allied Signal, Alfred Rozanski was married to his wife, Jean, for 64 years. The two of them instilled in their three sons a strong devotion to the Lord through prayer and raised their family in a working-class neighborhood in East Baltimore. Alfred Rozanski is survived by his wife, Jean; three sons: Kenneth and Albert Rozanski and Archbishop Rozanski; and four grandchildren.
Thoughtful gifts from children
Jacob Jones, a 17-year-old St. Dominic High School student, used his love of light shows to create a flashy annual fundraiser for Sts. Joachim and Ann Care Service. He donates the proceeds of his annual Halloween and Christmas light shows to the local nonprofit that serves individuals and families in crisis. Jones installed a donation box in front of his house, and he has raised more than $2,000 for the Care Service for his displays this year. Thirteen-year-old Isabella Nicolay collected $500 worth of macaroni and cheese for the Sts. Joachim and Ann Care Service Food Pantry and $180 in donations. “It’s been a tough year and I just wanted to try and help,” said Isabella, who is a seventh-grader at Saeger Middle School. Isabella also had a friendly competition with her neighbor Noah Schmitz, who also brought a carload of donations to the pantry. Cooper Hankins, an 8-year-old student at Henderson Elementary School, shot his first deer this hunting season, and he donated all of the meat to the food pantry. “We are so appreciative of these children and their thoughtful gifts to the Care Service,” said Pam Struckhoff, executive director for Sts. Joachim and Ann Care Service. “We are seeing a significant increase in need during the COVID-19 pandemic and every donation we receive has an impact on the families we serve.”
Farm living
The Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help will present a free film, “The Biggest Little Farm,” via a Zoom link at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 12. It’s part of the Franciscans for the Earth Eco Series. The film chronicles the eight-year quest of John and Molly Chester as they trade city living for 200 acres of barren farmland and a dream to harvest in harmony with nature. The Chesters unlock and uncover a biodiverse design for living that exists far beyond their farm, a vital blueprint for better living and a healthier planet. A group discussion follows the film, all via Zoom. To register, email info@fsolph.org with your name, mailing address, phone number, the email address of the device you plan to use, and the number of viewers you expect, specifying the event. Or leave the information in a voicemail at (314) 965-3700, ext, 104.
Roe vs. Wade Memorial Mass
Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski will celebrate the annual Roe vs. Wade Memorial Mass at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 16, at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis. The Mass, organized by the archdiocesan Respect Life Apostolate, will prayerfully remember the Roe vs. Wade and Doe vs. Bolton decisions, and pray for a renewed commitment to building a culture of life. A collection will be taken up for LifeLine Coalition, a network of local pro-life and social services organizations that help more than 10,000 women annually. The Mass is preceded by a rose procession, which remembers those who have been lost to abortion since 1973. After Mass, there will be a Rosary, followed by Benediction. The Mass will be livestreamed at cathedralstl.org.
Petitions
Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending the use of the death penalty in Missouri, is asking people to sign petitions on its website seeking clemency for inmates on Missouri’s death row. The organization is a recipient of a grant from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. Visit bit.ly/3mFEbUF.
Mercy breaks ground on clinic in Ferguson
Construction began Dec. 28 on the new Mercy Clinic Ferguson. The 5,500-square-foot clinic, part of the Health & Homes WestFlo District, will provide improved access to health care with expanded hours and unique features such as a community health worker to support care coordination and address social needs that impact access to health. There will be a community classroom and nourishment center to help better address the social determinants of health needs of the community through focused education and nutrition support. In addition, family medicine and OB/GYN physicians will be onsite to care for patients. Working with community leaders, stakeholders and residents, Mercy also launched a Community Advisory Council to inform plans for space within the clinic and serve as a voice for the Ferguson community.
Tuition assistance
The Today and Tomorrow Educational Foundation has announced that starting Monday, Jan. 11, scholarships are available for the 2021-22 school year for families seeking tuition assistance at all elementary schools in the archdiocese, all Catholic high schools and any private elementary school in the City of St. Louis. One unified online application is available at TTEF-STL.org for all scholarships funded by the Today and Tomorrow Educational Foundation, the Roman Catholic Foundation of Eastern Missouri and the Office of Catholic Education and Formation. For information, call (314) 792-7777 or email ttef@archstl.org.
New executive director at Bridges
Steve Givens has been named the next executive director of the Bridges Foundation, succeeding Linda Leib, who has served in the position since 2018. He will begin working closely with Leib in January and become executive director in the spring. Givens has been a part of the Bridges community since 2015, when he and his wife, Sue (now Bridges’ bookkeeper), made the retreat. Since then, he has served as a board member and chair of the marketing committee, has been active in the Magis program as a participant, presenter and small group facilitator, and is in his second year as a prayer companion. He is a spiritual director who received his training at the Aquinas Institute of Theology and is a widely published writer on Christian spirituality and prayer, including more than 30 years as a contributor to the monthly devotionals Living Faith, Living with Christ and Living Faith Kids. He retired in June 2020 as associate vice chancellor and chief of staff at Washington University.
The Bridges Foundation offers the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola each year at locations throughout the St. Louis metropolitan area. Participation in the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises offers the retreatants the tools to deepen their prayer life and, thus, their relationship with God. Accompanied by a companion schooled in the movements of the Spiritual Exercises, retreatants are guided according to their own personal journey. For more information, visit bridgesfoundation.org.
Gerken named president at Incarnate Word Academy
Sharon Gerken has been named the next president of Incarnate Word Academy. She has spent more than 20 years working in and with education related and non-profit faith-based organizations. Most recently Gerken served as executive director of the Archdiocesan Today and Tomorrow Educational Foundation (TTEF), where she developed a professional team from the ground up, building the assets of the organization from $800,000 to over $14 million over 13 years. At TTEF, she and her team raised millions of dollars in scholarship funds to bring the gift of Catholic education to thousands of children. A 1978 alumna of Incarnate, Gerken also served as alumnae board president (1987-1994) and the school’s development director (1999-2004), leading a capital campaign for a new theater building. She begins her new role July 1.
Leadership award
The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), the anti-poverty program of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, has named Louis Damani Jones of the Diocese of Belleville as the recipient of the 2020 Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award. Each year, CCHD recognizes a young adult between the ages of 18 and 40 who demonstrates leadership in fighting poverty and injustice in the United States through community-based solutions with this honor. Jones is a member of the local CCHD committee in the Diocese of Belleville and a board member of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Saint Louis. He served as a CCHD intern in St. Louis. Jones is working on a master’s degree in social work at Washington University in St. Louis.
In memoriam Alfred Rozanski, father of Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, died Dec. 27 in Baltimore, Maryland. He was 86 years old. A funeral Mass was celebrated Jan. 2 in Baltimore. A … Archdiocesan news briefs
Subscribe to Read All St. Louis Review Stories
All readers receive 5 stories to read free per month. After that, readers will need to be logged in.
If you are currently receive the St. Louis Review at your home or office, please send your name and address (and subscriber id if you know it) to subscriptions@stlouisreview.com to get your login information.
If you are not currently a subscriber to the St. Louis Review, please contact subscriptions@stlouisreview.com for information on how to subscribe.