St. John the Beloved band ‘superior’ in national festival
WILMINGTON – The advanced band at St. John the Beloved School received a rating of “superior” at the National Catholic Band Festival, which was held April 21 at Villanova University.
About 40 bands participated, according to Ray DiVirgilio, the band’s instructor. Each band was given 15 minutes to perform, which was followed by comments and suggestions from a panel of judges. The panel follows the score as the band plays to see how well it is followed in terms of tone production, tempo, blending and articulation, he said. Ratings included good, excellent and superior.
There are 11 members of the St. John the Beloved band. It includes a flute, bell player, clarinets, drummers, French horn and also sax.
St. Mark’s students earn first at Delaware History Day
WILMINGTON – St. Mark’s High School juniors Haley Schweizer, Mary White, Jaclyn Harkins and Tara Zdziech were honored for their work at the 2012 Delaware History Day competition, which was held April 21 at Delaware Technical and Community College. The quartet earned both the Hagley Museum and Library Special Prize for Business and Technology in History and first place in the group documentary category.
Schweizer, White, Harkins and Zdziech were recognized for their work, “Revolution, Reaction & Reform of the Telephone. The first place award makes them eligible to attend the Kenneth E. Behring National Contest, which will be June 10-14 at the University of Maryland.
Juniors Katie Kempski, Carleen Krajewski, Jessica Pivonka, Annie Reidinger and Shaina Sutton also were honored in the group documentary category, earning third place for their entry, “Prohibition.”
Ursuline hosts lacrosse tournament
WILMINGTON – Students from four Ursuline schools gathered April 20-21 in Wilmington for the sixth annual Sister Schools Lacrosse Tournament at Serviam Field. The tourney included the host school, along with Ursuline Academy of St. Louis, the Ursuline School of New Rochelle, N.Y., and Ursuline Academy of Dedham, Mass.
During the visit, the students accompanied their counterparts from Ursuline Academy in Wilmington in classes.
The tournament began in 2007 in St. Louis and rotates to a different city each year. There are 24 Ursuline schools across the country.
CYM brochure keeps high school grads linked to faith
Wilmington — With high school graduations around the corner, Catholic Youth Ministry is offering assistance to keep the students connected to their faith. CYM is making copies of “Eleven Suggestions for Living Your Catholic Faith After High School” available.
To order the brochure, go to www.cdowcym.org/forms/brochurepostcardrequest.
CYM is also reminding students to log on to www.catholicsoncampus.com and enter information that will keep them connected as they enter college. Those who complete entries are eligible for a weekly drawing of a $25 iTunes gift card beginning May 1 through June 30.
Ursuline class part of Wilmington Art Loop
WILMINGTON – Ursuline Academy and Salesianum School students, inspired by “word art by” Robert Indiana and Ed Ruscha, have designed their own words to depict where they are in the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Their work will be part of the school’s Word Art Exhibit, which will take place at the 23rd and 5th Advertising Agency on May 4 from 5-7 p.m.
The students are part of Ursuline’s Art Forum, an exchange class that includes boys from Salesianum. All 12 students are seniors, “so the words about growing up are very relevant to their lives,” teacher Erin McNichol said.
The exhibit is part of Wilmington’s Art Loop, which takes place on the first Friday of each month.
Padua junior performs Shakespeare in New York
Wilmington — Veronica Slater, a junior at Padua Academy, performed a sonnet and monologue from Shakespeare at the annual English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition, which was held April 23 at Lincoln Center. Slater, who lives in Newark, placed as a semifinalist.
Slater was Delaware’s representative as the winner of the ESU Delaware Branch regional competition. Fifty-eight winners of regional events participated in New York.
Brick prayer garden dedicated in Ridgely
RIDGELY, Md. – A brick prayer garden is in place at St. Benedict Church in Ridgely, Md., thanks to the work of a Boy Scout.
Angus Richardson, a junior at Ss. Peter and Paul High School in Easton, Md., designed the prayer garden for his Eagle Scout project. The garden path contains more than 100 bricks engraved with memorial and honorary messages surrounding a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary that has been on the church property for many years. Father Hilary Rodgers, the pastor of St. Benedict and its mission, St. Elizabeth of Hungary in Denton, Md., dedicated the garden on April 15.
Richardson, a member of Troop 165, was assisted by Rex Landscaping of Denton, Md., and numerous volunteers.
Salesianum selected for Jefferson Award
WILMINGTON – Salesianum School has been selected the first Ambassador Level school by the Jefferson Awards-Deloitte Students in Action, which recognized the Wilmington school’s level of public works and service by its students.
The Ambassador Level was established last summer for schools that had won their regional competitions for two years and were seeking a higher level of commitment and competition, according to Salesianum.
Salesianum’s Jefferson Awards team sought to promote the Students in Action program this year and focused on the goals of the ambassador level: partnership, mentorship and collaboration. Salesianum recruited two high schools to the Jefferson Awards-Deloitte Students in Action program: Concord and Unionville (Pa.). It also partnered with Padua Academy to establish a leadership conference for middle-school students. In March, Salesianum hosted the first Students in Action Summit.
This year, the Jefferson Awards team at Sallies added a fundraiser for Nativity Preparatory School and established a mentorship program at Warner Elementary School, located on nearby 18th Street. Thirty-one Salesianum students are on the Jefferson Awards team.