Priest finds being sheriff’s department chaplain quietly uneventful
By Lon Medd
The Catholic Weekly
BAY CITY — He does not have a gun, handcuffs, or Tazer, but he does carry a badge — one that says chaplain.
A year has passed since Fr. Craig Albrecht was sworn in as the first-ever chaplain of the Bay County Sheriff’s Department. The job has been uneventful to this point and as far as Fr. Albrecht is concerned, it is best that it remains that way.
“What you would see me doing is being on hand to administer to deputies and families in the event of an emergency,” said Fr. Albrecht, who is the pastor at St. Mary of the Assumption in Bay City.
Diocese reacts to pope’s decision to resign
SAGINAW — The decision on Monday, Feb. 11, by Pope Benedict XVI to resign at the end of this month sent ripples of reaction throughout the Diocese of Saginaw. Here is what some people thought of the decision, the pope’s legacy, his greatest accomplishments and what they hope from the next papacy:
“Yes, the announcement was a great surprise — I literally jumped out of bed to verify the news story I had just heard on the radio. The surprise was so great because he has not suffered any major health setbacks and remained very active and productive.
“I think only time will surface Pope Benedict XVI’s true legacy and greatest achievement but his loving care of the Church and willingness to resign may set a precedent for the future. I think he will be remembered as a calm and steady hand during a time that could have been very reactionary. Benedict called us to remember our roots and firmly operate out of the Gospel.
“I hope our next pope is a competent and clear theologian who will continue to engage our global culture and help us to live as true Christian witnesses. The next pope will need to help us in the West to receive the faith with the same joy as it is in Africa and Asia, where the faith is growing. In other words, we need a pope who can help us receive the faith of mission lands and who helps us give proper place of honor and influence to the new Catholic majority. Most of all I want the Holy Spirit to guide, lead and sustain us as we prepare, select and install the next successor of Peter.”
Fr. Andy Booms
director of Vocations,
pastor of St. Michael/St. Edward parishes, Port Austin
MOUNT PLEASANT — To test your own wits against those of the high school students in this year’s Catholic Quiz Bowl, try on these questions used in the competition on Friday, Feb. 1, at Sacred Heart Academy:
Q: Name the feast that is celebrated on Jan. 1 every year.
A: Mary, Mother of God.
Q: Name the feast celebrated on Dec. 26 each year.
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Teams from Bay City All Saints, Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart Academy and Nouvel Catholic Central high schools competed Friday, Feb. 1, in the the Catholic Quiz Bowl at Sacred Heart. Mark Haney/Catholic Weekly
By Mark Haney
The Catholic Weekly
MOUNT PLEASANT — This year, the smartest kids attend Bay City All Saints Central High School.
That school’s team won the second annual Catholic Quiz Bowl on Friday, Feb. 1, at Sacred Heart Academy.
The team of Justin Gasta, Scott Campbell, Theresa Grekowicz, Logan Brissette, Nolan Rochelle, Adam Kuczynski, Ben Christe, Julia Weller, Kirah McLean and Matthew Broughton bested the team from Saginaw’s Nouvel Catholic Central and Sacred Heart in the event. All Saints scored 575 points to the 430 of Nouvel and the 400 of Sacred Heart.
Scott Campbell (center) and the Bay City All Saints team discusses a question.
“I thought it was fun, a good time,” said Scott Campbell, a senior from Bay City All Saints. This was his first experience in this kind of competition.
ALMA —Bev Zalewski of Marshall joined members of the Religious Sisters of Mercy for a week-long November session on calligraphy with Harvest Crittenden and Jed Gibbons at the motherhouse in Alma.
These were her impressions of the class:
“It wasn’t a long way to drive for a class offering this special. I felt so lucky to be able to take a class like this so close to home in Michigan. I did stay in a guest house (of the Religious Sisters) for the whole week. It was a great experience!
Calligrapher brings art, faith to works of her hands
By Mark Haney
The Catholic Times
HOWELL — Thanks to the Gila River reservation, Harvest Crittenden is a great artist.
If she had enjoyed her year teaching at the Arizona reservation, she
might still be doing that, or serving as an art therapist.
Instead, she said, “it was miserable.”
So she left there and moved to Flagstaff, Ariz.
“I so missed being in an art class with other people,” said Crittenden, who majored in art at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, “that I just signed up for a calligraphy class out of the blue, thinking it was something that would not require a big amount of commitment in materials and things. By happenstance, I happened to get one of the best calligraphers in our country (Dick Beasley, who has since died).
“I just fell in love with the art form. And he really pushed me to keep going with it. He really nurtured the skills and mentored me. From that day on that is all I have done.”
By Lon Medd
The Catholic Weekly
SAGINAW — Heroes and students met Thursday, Nov. 15, at St. Stephen Church.
That’s when the school’s 22-member student council hosts its annual Veteran’s Day Mass.
“We invite any and all veterans and really enjoy the event,” said teacher Jennifer Caylen, one of three student council advisors. “The student council stayed after Mass to mingle and talk to the veterans about their experiences. They also delivered handmade cards and gratitude.”
By Anne Seebaldt
The Catholic Weekly
GRAND RAPIDS — Sr. Jean Karen Woloszyk, O.P., is the last of her kind, at least for a while.
The Grand Rapids Dominican is marking her 50th jubilee this year and has spent 46 of those years in education, with nearly 40 of those in the Diocese of Gaylord.
But she has retired from teaching, the last sister to teach in Gaylord Catholic schools.
“She’s a wonderful lady and is particularly skilled at (and a proponent of) teaching in multi-age classrooms,” said Charles Taylor, Gaylord’s superintendent of Catholic schools. “With her retirement, we no longer have any religious sisters teaching or as an administrator in our schools. It marks the end of an era since nearly all of our schools initially were begun by religious communities.”
By Lon Medd
The Catholic Weekly
SANFORD — When Ken Lancaster retired at the age of 58, he knew there was a lot more to be done.
But now it was time to help others.
So Handy Helpers was formed at his parish, St. Agnes Church in Sanford.
Lancaster grew up in a close-knit community in Alpena and remembered how everyone looked out for one another and helped each other.
“I grew up doing stuff like this,” he said. “The whole neighborhood was your family.”
From the stage at the Lansing Center, members of a Diocese of Saginaw teen contingent dance and invite the teens gathered at the Diocese of Lansing’s annual youth Jamboree to attend the Michigan Youth Exchange event on Saturday, Aug. 10, at Saginaw Valley State University. Mark Haney/Catholic Weekly
By Mark Haney
The Catholic Weekly
LANSING — A year ago, Bishop Joseph R. Cistone and Mark Graveline, the director of youth ministry for the Diocese of Saginaw, came to Jamboree, a once-a-year gathering for the youth of the Diocese of Lansing.
This year, Graveline returned. With a number of youth from the Saginaw Diocese.
They came for two reasons: to participate and to promote the Mid-Michigan Youth Exchange, a first-ever event scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 10, on the campus of Saginaw Valley State University.
They advertised it in the Jamboree program, in a video shown during the event in the black t-shirts most of them wore.
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