The Heart of the Matter

40 Years as a Catholic School Teacher: Pam Jackimiec

One of our teachers not feted today at the Archdiocesan Educators' Appreciation Banquet was Pam Jackimiec who has taught in Catholic schools for 40 years.  It's not an oversight, because the Office of Catholic Schools of the Archdiocese of Denver celebrates special anniversaries of teachers who have taught in the Catholic schools in our own Archdiocese.  Pam taught in the Archdiocese of New Orleans for many years before she came to Boulder.  It all adds up to 40 years and I want to celebrate her as well.

Pam brought to our school the zest of someone deeply committed to the Lord and desirous of helping our school children grow in their relationship with the Lord.  As our religious education coordinator for our school, she has worked zealously to move our children to worship with joy and with a deeper understanding of what we do when we gather for the Eucharist.  The school Masses here are something to behold, thanks be to God and to Jam Jackimiec!

Catholic School Teacher: What a Vocation!

Tomorrow (Friday, February 1st) we celebrate the teachers in our Catholic schools at an appreciation banquet.  It's a big banquet for all the teachers in all of the Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Denver.  At this annual event the teachers marking special anniversaries in their careers as Catholic school teachers are celebrated in a special way.  We have 5 teachers who deserve our acclamations and praise:

1. Anna-Marie Berger is celebrating 25 years as our school librarian as well as being a teacher of various subjects.  Kudos to you Mrs. Berger and thank you for giving our children a desire to read. 
2. Susan Zimmer, our middle school mathematics teacher, celebrates 20 years.  Thank you, Mrs. Zimmer for helping hundreds and hundreds of children excel in math.  And thank you for taking extra time with gifted students to help them stretch and achieve way beyond their grade level.
3. Susan Weinzapfel celebrates 20 years as a middle school teacher of religion and social sciences.  Our graduates point to Mrs. Weinzapfel as the one who helped them know more about their faith than anyone else they've run into.
4. Patrice Wilmot, our school's art teacher, marks 10 years as a Catholic school teacher.  That's ten years of helping expand our students perceptions of what they can do with ordinary materials and express themselves artistically.
5. And Janet Montgomery, one of our first grade teachers, celebrates 5 years of teaching in a Catholic school - our school!  A very gentle soul who loves to give our young ones a very big love for a life long learning process.

Congratulations to these 5 teachers and all of our other teachers as well.  What a wonderful vocation they have, of being able to help their students grow academically and in these very important aspects of a good education: character formation and faith development.

A parish school is a microcosm of parish life

A parish school is a window into the life of what happens in the homes of the school children.  If adults are loving, their children will know that they are loved and will be loving, or at least kind, to their classmates.  If adults are competitive, so will their children be.  If adults know how to make things right after an argument or a blow up, then their children will also recognize when they need to repair some damage done by thoughtless or hurtful words or actions.  If adults call their children "stupid" when their parenting skills are stressed, then their children will believe they are stupid and will act stupidly by calling a classmate stupid or worse.  If adults pray, their children will pray.  If adults think that Sunday Mass can be dispensed with, they teach their children that something is more important than God, which is idolatry: something has become a false god.  The greatest challenge for a parish school is to create among the school families a sense of belonging to the kind of community that encourages the virtues of the Christian life.  In that kind of environment there will be no bullying.