August 14, 2009
Catholic school teachers, administrators get motivated for new year
Mike Patin regales Benedictine Sister Geraldine Hedinger and Steve Barron with a crawfish story from Louisiana following a presentation for religious educators at the Catholic Center in Evansville Aug. 6. Patin spoke in the morning to diocesan teachers and school administrators at Mater Dei High School in Evansville. (Message photo by Paul R. Leingang) Click for a larger version.
By PAUL R. LEINGANG (Message editor)
Mike Patin had 650 teachers and school administrators laughing, talking, discussing ideas and feelings with each other — and if he was successful, he had them motivated and enthusiastic for the young school year.
A standing ovation affirmed his success.
Patin’s website gives a quick bit of autobiography: “I live in Lafayette La. I am a husband, and a dad (one daughter). I spent six years as a high school teacher and coach, and have worked in youth ministry since 1990. Since 2003, I have been speaking around the country to young people and adults on issues of Catholic faith, positive attitude, using your gifts and living life fully.”
Patin spoke to the teachers and administrators Aug 6 at Ma-ter Dei High School in Evansville.
He asked them for words that would help define the term, passion. They gave him their ideas — joy, desire, commitment, enthusiasm, sacrificial, zeal, fiery, love — and he gave them a descriptive definition of passion. It is “no foot on the brake pedal, and no looking in the rear view mirror.”
What steals passion from Catholic school teachers? The discussion included lack of funds, schedules too busy, and parents at the extreme ends of involvment. He cited parents who are uninvolved, who merely drop kids off and pick them up, and parents who are overly-involved who behave “like Martha Stewart on crack cocaine.”
Patin said there would be a “passion crisis” in the schools if people focused on the wrong passion. “We need to focus on Jesus’ passion,” he said, recalling the Gospel account of the Walk to Emmaus after Jesus was crucified. The disciples did not recognize Jesus walking with them until later, but said, “Were not our hearts burning while he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?”
Patin organized his presentation around the image of a plus sign — which has the same shape as a cross. He spelled out PLUS with comments on the need to pray, listen/learn, have unity and serve.
Before Patin took the stage (which he immediately left to walk through the aisles and rows of seats), Donna Halver-son, director of Catholic schools, introduced new principals, new teachers, teachers and staff from the new John Paul the Great High School in Jasper, and then all of the teachers and staff from each of the Catholic schools in the diocese.
“We have been called to teach and that is more than a job,” Halverson said. “It is our ministry.”