By Ms. Robyn Julianne Castro
The intermittent rain could not stop the yearly celebration of Mercy Day at Santa Barbara Catholic School on September 23, 2016. Coinciding with the annual Archbishop’s Pastoral Visit, the Mercy Day mass was presided by Most Reverend Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai, SDB, Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Agana. Concelebrating the liturgy were: Santa Barbara Pastor Fr. Dan Bien, Parochial Vicars Fr. Joel de los Reyes, Fr. Joseph Anore, and Fr. Gerry Hernandez. Also present at the liturgy were the Sisters of Mercy, SBCS benefactors, family member of Sisters Jeanette Marie, and other special guests.
“With you today, it seems like Heaven,” Archbishop Hon shared to the children to open his homily. This being his first time to visit SBCS and meet the students, Archbishop Hon expressed his appreciation for the warm welcome he received from the school family.
During the liturgy, the Sisters of Mercy recited the Act of Consecration to Our Lady of Mercy, in solidarity with other Sisters of Mercy around the world who are celebrating this special day, the Feast of Our Lady of Mercy.
Following the Eucharistic celebration, Archbishop Hon gladly posed with several classes, faculty and staff, and guests for a photo-op, then he proceeded to the faculty room where lunch was served. While his visit to SBCS was brief, Archbishop Hon was able to make a quick tour of the campus, stopping by the K4 classroom where he was entertained with a song and dance number by the cute K4 students.
In the afternoon, the school family gathered in the Petrie Gym to entertain Sister Jeanette Marie Pangelinan, Sister Maria Rosario Gaite, and Sister Mary Cabrini Taitano in the spirit of the double-celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Mercy and Sister Jeanette Marie Pangelinan’s Feastday and Birthday on the 24th.
The 4th graders led the opening prayer through the song, “Thankful.” The 6th graders performed their song writing projects, where they changed the lyrics of popular songs to match a given theme with positive, Christian values. The 8th grade students presented a hand bell number of the songs “Morning Has Broken” and “Colors of the Wind” led by Mrs. Tara Franquez, Music teacher and Honor Choir director. She also conducted the Honor Choir numbers, “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee,” and “For The Beauty of the Earth.” After the classes gave their gifts to Sister Jeanette Marie, Sister Maria Rosario Gaite, and Sister Mary Cabrini, the 5th graders ended the program with a dance number.
Although selected classes offered thoughtful gifts, cards, and letters to the Sisters that day, all the classes offered a Work of Mercy in the name of the Sisters of Mercy to complete their gifts. Many of these works preceded and followed the Mercy Day celebration itself, making mercy alive with the ever-present call for it and its ripple effects on the giver and receiver.
The celebration was launched the day before on the 22nd with a school-wide act of mercy – a dress-down day where the donated money for dressing down would go to Feed25, a movement in the Philippines to end hunger, one meal at a time. There, a meal is equivalent to twenty-five cents. Each child donated one dollar, feeding at least four children per donation. They also made creative cutouts shaped like four children out of magazine or colored paper, which were offered at the Mass. The theme for the dress-down day was graphic t-shirts that spread messages in line with Mercy and the Critical Concerns of the Sisters of Mercy. Students dressed with messages in support of cancer survivorship that read “Join the Fight,” and “Believe There is Hope”, those that spread positive messages and support for creation such as “Peace and Love,” “I love Guam,” and even “I love Sharks.”
Previously on September 14, the 8th graders cleaned and recycled items found in Lencho Park and Dededo Skate Park. On September 21, the 1st grade and Kindergarten classes donated paper towels, soap, and other toiletries to the Northern Adult Day Care of the Catholic Social Service.
On September 22, the K4 class donated old clothes and diapers to Guam Moms Helping Moms. On September 29, Class 2A and the 3rd graders gave “from to heart” to those who “served us first,” according to 3A Homeroom teacher Mrs. Salas, by donating toiletries and supplies to the infirmed Sisters of Mercy residing at Mercy Care Center.
On September 23, the 4th and 5th graders donated books and school supplies to Alee Shelter, and on September 29, the 6th and 7th graders sponsored and served meals at the school for the clients of Guma San Jose Homeless Shelter.
On this Jubilee Year of Mercy, Santa Barbara Catholic School has recognized itself as both a giver and receiver of Mercy, all part of the experience of, as Archbishop Hon expressed, “bringing a touch of Heaven to Earth, despite the hardships and struggles of this day.”
