(Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash)
MONROE — One of the most commonly-used words during the Advent season, as everyone looks ahead to Christmas, is “tradition.”
Some of the images associated with that word are of Nativity scenes, Christmas carols, and Christmas trees.
Every year for about the last 40 years, there is a day of tradition that keeps people coming back to make new memories and remember the old ones.
On December 6, the feast day of St. Nicholas, the Diocese of Madison’s Apostolate to the Handicapped held its annual Advent/Christmas party at Monroe High School in Monroe.
Hundreds of disabled and elderly guests filled the gym for a morning of music, Mass, lunch, and enjoying each other’s company in a large Christmas party.
“It does something to me, it really does,” said Lillian Rood from Monroe, who has been coming to the party for more than 30 years. Rood, though not Catholic, said she enjoys the music and the message every year. “I love to listen to the way they talk and what they talk about,” she said.
Rood has made it a habit to bring friends with her every year to share in the fun.
One of them this year was Luella Lewis, who attended the party for the first time.
“It’s very overwhelming or comforting to know that people care about what goes on in the world and they would be willing to do this,” Lewis said about the party and all the efforts that go into putting it on.
Volunteer help
The tradition of the Christmas party is not only looked at fondly every year by the guests, but by the dozens of volunteers as well.
Students from St. Ambrose Academy (SAA) in Madison stood by the doors of the high school ready to greet guests, escort them to the gym, and later serve them lunch.
“It’s been really joyful because all the people are just super happy,” said SAA freshman Mary Donohoe, volunteering for the first time.
“It’s pretty good,” said SAA freshman Sam Galvin, who has volunteered for the past three years. “It’s fun to interact with the different people.”
“It’s really fun; you feel really good about yourself after you do it,” said SAA middle schooler Naomi O’Leary, who also volunteered for the past three years.
Event gets underway
As guests entered the gym before Mass, they were entertained by annual party regular Hugo, performing Christmas songs with his guitar, his voice, and a plethora of electronic accompaniment.
As Mass began, Bishop Robert C. Morlino of Madison processed in, along with Fr. Larry Bakke, pastor St. Clare of Assisi Parish in Monroe and Brodhead and director of the Apostolate to the Handicapped, along with more than a dozen concelebrating priests from the Diocese of Madison.
Bishop Morlino welcomed everyone, thanking them for coming.
“Your presence, your love, the invitation to love that you are for all of us makes this a holy place this morning,” Bishop Morlino said. “Today is in a very special way your day.”
Later in his homily, Bishop Morlino compared the day’s first reading — from the book of Isaiah, reflecting on God in the Old Testament as a “hidden” teacher, later to be revealed in Christ though the Incantation — as an “interesting comparison” to many years ago when people with disabilities were “hidden.”
“We thank God for the progress that we’ve made in recent years,” Bishop Morlino told the guests. “You’re all here . . . we can see you and we can receive the beautiful teaching that Lord has given you to offer the rest of us.”
“You can teach us not to take the abilities that we have for granted or rather to use those abilities, whatever they are, with joy, and to accept whatever other disabilities we might have with a smile,” Bishop Morlino added.
The bishop also thanked his “brother priests” for participating in the Mass, and acknowledged the music led by the Madison Diocesan Choir and the Monroe High School Band.
He also acknowledged all the work Father Bakke does for the apostolate, which was met with thunderous applause.
Later in the Mass, the concelebrating priests distributed the Eucharist through the gym, taking the Body of Christ to those receiving where they were seated.
‘What a joy’
At the end of Mass, Father Bakke spoke, saying “what a joy” it was that the Christmas party has been around for four decades.
He also said, “It’s so nice for me to be able to see your beautiful, wonderful, handsome faces, than just seeing them through the three television cameras on Sunday mornings.”
Father Bakke presides at the weekly Apostolate to the Handicapped TV Mass Sunday mornings on WISC-TV Channel 3. He encouraged everyone, if they’re unable to make Mass on Christmas, to watch the Christmas TV Mass with Bishop Morlino at 6 a.m. on Christmas Day.
Father Bakke also took a moment to remember Msgr. Thomas Campion, who started the apostolate in 1967, and was the director until his death in 2010.
After Mass, Hugo continued his musical performance while volunteers, including those from the Monroe High School Future Farmers of America, served the guests lunch.
Santa and Mrs. Claus also made their annual appearance stopping to take standard pictures and selfies with everyone.
It was a day of tradition that will keep many coming back next year and the years after.
For more on the Apostolate to the Handicapped, visit https://apdmadisondiocese.com/