February 4, 2011
Serra Club honors youth who vocations projects
Among honorees at the Serra Club luncheon are MacKenzi Potts, from Sts. Peter and Paul School, Haubstdt, and Haley Decker and Megan Sensmeier from Holy Cross School, Fort Branch. (Message photo by Diane Csukas) Click for a larger version.
Editor’s note: Information for this article was provided by Theresa Forster and Thomas Ryder, from the Evansville Serra Club.
Emily Arabia, a student at Holy Rosary School in Evansville, wrote an essay about an ordained deacon, John McMullen. Emily’s classmate, Emma Tisserand, wrote an essay about Richard Leibundguth, a man who is preparing to be a deacon.
The two girls were among 42 students representing 20 parishes in the diocese, who were recognized recently at the Serra Club’s annual luncheon on Vocation Awareness, which was held at the Catholic Center in Evansville.
The eighth grade students from parish religious education programs and schools were selected by teachers for their projects on vocations within the Church, with special emphasis this year on the Cardinal Virtues. The other participants were awarded certificates at their home parishes.
Lacie Folz, from Good Shepherd School, created a scrapbook showing her research on patron saints of priests, deacons, nuns and monks; on wedding vows, and on the scripture readings commonly used during the Sacrament of Marriage.
Melissa Mueller, also at Good Shepherd, created a trifold display on marriage.
Marriage was also the topic of the project created by Eva Traylor from Corpus Christi School. She created a threedimensional display of a wedding cake, with rings and other symbols of marriage.
From Holy Redeemer School in Evansville, Jacklyn Gries created a PowerPoint presentation on marriage.
At Holy Spirit School in Evansville, Johny Wargel wrote about the Little Sisters of the Poor.
Various projects were undertaken by the students, including essays, reports on interviews with relatives and religious about their vocations, posters and Power Point presentations. Others created a trifold, a three dimensional mobile and a three dimensional wedding cake about marriage. And, some created coloring books, scrapbooks, pamphlets and poems about vocations
The vocations program is conducted each year by the Serra Club to encourage the students to give serious consideration to their own vocations. The students participating were from the deaneries of East and West Evansville, Newburgh and Princeton.
Father Alex Zenthoefer, director of Vocations for the Diocese, spoke to the students, their parents and teachers about “the call to religious life.” He said it isn’t always something dramatic. In fact, often it’s just the opposite.
He emphasized the need to listen for it, especially today in its culture of noise.
Those representing their parishes were:
- Christ The King Parish — Annie McCool and Rachel Oeth
- Corpus Christi — Eva Traylor and Megan Pritchett
- Good Shepherd — Lacie Folz and Melissa Mueller
- Holy Cross — Megan Sensmeier and Haley Decker
- Holy Redeemer — Meredith Daunhauer, Jacklyn Gries and Monica Scofield
- Holy Rosary — Emily Arabia and EmmaTisserand
- Holy Spirit — Johny Wargel and Devyn Haas
- Resurrection — Trevor Dale and Micah Smith
- Sacred Heart — Brian MacGregor
- St. Agnes — Justin Lyons and Hannah Morrow
- St. Benedict — Michael Trice, Maggie Mehringer and Dannie Henton
- St. Bernard, Rockport — Kara Varble and Taylor Market
- St. Boniface — Brendan Scheller and Aurelia Solis
- St. James — Allyson Schneider and Grant Ziliak
- St. John the Baptist, Newburgh — Kate Marburger and Katelyn Bueltel
- St. Joseph, Vanderburgh County — Paige Niemeier and Evan McDonald
- St. Phillip — Briana Schoettlin and Jessica Weinzapfel
- St. Theresa — Angela Becker and Anna Bradley
- St. Wendel — Amanda Blankenberger, Megan Reker and Samantha Luigs
- St. Peter and Paul — Delaney Spindler and MacKenzie Potts