PRINCETON — “Welcome to WISJ. The only radio station where second-graders update you about events in second grade at St. John’s School.”
You won’t find that introduction on your car radio, even if you search the AM and FM bands for hours.
Author: Kevin Wondrash
Dodgeville students advance to ‘Odyssey’ world finals
DODGEVILLE — Two teams of students in grades three through five from St. Joseph School in Dodgeville will be competing in the World Finals of the Odyssey of the Mind. The competition is set for May 22-25 on the Michigan State University campus in East Lansing, Mich.
The Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program that provides creative problem-solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college. Team members apply their creativity to solve problems that range from building mechanical devices to presenting their own interpretation of literary classics.
“Our school became involved in it just last year because some parents asked about it, and I had always wanted to get it going,” said Principal Sharon Wimer. “It seemed like a great opportunity to promote creative thinking and originality, and showcase some of our talented students.”
Former members of Diocesan Choir will return for special performance on May 3
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The current Madison Diocesan Choir under the direction of Dr. Patrick Gorman. (Contributed photo) |
MADISON — In celebrating 40 years of music ministry, the Madison Diocesan Choir will present a free spring concert like no other at the Bishop O’Connor Catholic Pastoral Center on Friday, May 3.
The evening concert will include former members in performing favorite, heartfelt hymns of the past, as well as relatively new songs of praise.
Choir will swell to over 100 voices
The choir has more than 70 active members representing parishes throughout the diocese. On this festive occasion, however, its numbers will swell to more than 100 as the former members, some of them founding members, join in singing sacred music, including signature pieces the choir has sung from its beginning.
For Dr. Patrick Gorman, now in his 21st year as director, the biggest challenge may be finding space for them all in the O’Connor Center chapel. Assistant Director Glenn Schuster will accompany the anniversary choir in the concert, which begins at 7:30 p.m. in the chapel of the center, located at 702 S. High Point Rd.
Pregnancy Helpline Sharing Center relocates to CMC, schedules open house
MADISON — The Pregnancy Helpline (PH) Sharing Center has relocated to the Catholic Multicultural Center (CMC), 1862 Beld St., in the lower level.
To celebrate its new location, PH will be holding an open house on Saturday, May 4, from 2 to 4 p.m. All are welcome to attend.
“We are so pleased to be in this beautiful location, partnering with an organization that has a similar mission to ours — to serve all people in a holistic and caring way,” said PH Executive Director Alissa Hirscher.
St. Ambrose student takes third place in state geography bee
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| Justin Hineline, an eighth-grader from St. Ambrose Academy, took third place in the National Geographic state bee. (Contributed photo/Angela Hineline) |
MADISON — Eighth-grader Justin Hineline, who attends St. Ambrose Academy in Madison, recently took third place in the state level of the
National Geographic Bee. It was his second consecutive trip to the competition.
Hineline made it through the preliminary rounds with a perfect score before advancing to the finals.
There, he made it through 14 rounds of play, competing neck-and-neck with the eventual first place winner, Asha Jain, a seventh-grader from Minocqua.
Learning about the world
Justin’s journey began two years ago when he took second place in the school level of the bee as a sixth-grader. His mother, Angela, said Justin “enjoyed the experience so much that he decided to study for the school bee his seventh grade year.”
After months of intense study, including state capitols and major landforms in the United States, Justin won the school geography bee as a seventh-grader. Shortly after that, he tested in the top 100 students to qualify for the state-level bee.
The saints come marching in!
CROSS PLAINS — On Friday, April 12, St. Francis Xavier School, Cross Plains, became a “little Heaven” when the saints “came marching in.”
The fifth graders, under the guidance of their teacher, Jennifer Esser, did research on their patron saints or those they were interested in.
Red shoes, black shoes
Pope Francis’ choice of shoes is not just about his preference of accessories. It’s a statement about the direction he’ll be taking his papacy. There’s a powerful witness in that direction.
That said, lest we get the wrong message (and I think many are), this new direction should not be perceived as a condemnation of his predecessors, nor of the rich symbolism that has always surrounded the papacy.
Joyful news of a new deacon: Scott Jablonski
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
This last weekend in Baraboo I ordained Scott Jablonski to the diaconate and I’m so very grateful to Scott and to Fr. Jay Poster and the faithful in Baraboo for their tremendous welcome and hard work in preparing for the Mass. Here I’d like to recount a few things I shared with our new deacon and the people there, but would address here to all the faithful:
Sons of the bishop
The deacons and the priests of the diocese, in a special way, are all sons of the bishop. And although the ages don’t quite work out for all of the priests and deacons, it works fine with Deacon Scott.
And this is why it’s such a blessing to be a bishop, even with everything else that comes along with the office; it’s so wonderful because the bishop gets to call the deacon or the priest, “my son.”
‘Read. Run. Reach.’ program in full swing at All Saints Catholic School in Berlin
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| The kindergarten class at All Saints Catholic School in Berlin collected food items on Macaroni Monday during its Acts of Kindness Food Drive. (Contributed photo) |
BERLIN — The Community Health Network (CHN) wellness campaign “Read. Run. Reach.” is in full swing at All Saints Catholic School (ASCS) in Berlin.
This campaign began on February 28 as collaboration between the schools in Berlin and CHN as a way to increase awareness of the importance of literacy, physical activity, and being kind and thoughtful in actions.
Facing the effects of same-sex parenting
In March, 2013, the British paper The Independent ran an article entitled, “Children in gay adoptions at no disadvantage: Research confirms same-sex couples are just as good at parenting as heterosexuals.”
The article, based on a study at Cambridge University, concluded there was “no evidence” to support the claim that children’s masculine or feminine tendencies were affected by having gay or lesbian parents, nor were the quality of their family relationships significantly different.