APRIL 12, 2024
mississippicatholic.com
St. Richard opens new Early Learning Center By Joe Lee
JACKSON – Several years in the making, the St. Richard Early Learning Center (ELC) opened its doors in mid-March to rave reviews from parents and great relief from ELC director Ilana Schuetzle after the first week went well. “It was trial and error the first day, teachers and children getting to know one another in a completely new environment, checking those little things off that may have been overlooked,” Schuetzle said. “All in all, I couldn’t be happier with the staff in helping make (the opening) go as smoothly as possible.” The ELC began with 17 littles, as Schuetzle calls them, and more have been added each week. The busy ELC director is giving tours to prospective parents almost daily and noted that once enrollment reaches capacity at 88, a waiting list will begin. They serve infants from six weeks to two-year-olds, with the three- and four-year-olds at the elementary school.
JACKSON – Father Joe Tonos, Doug Ward, Bishop Joseph Kopacz, Ilana Schuetzle, Andre DeGruy, Thaddeus Dexter Hoover, Susan Eastus and Ashley Johnson are pictured after a blessing of the facilities on Sunday, March 17. (Photo by Rachel Patterson)
“We’re in a renovated part of St. Richard church directly behind Banner Hall,” Schuetzle said. “The ELC campaign began before Covid. Work began on the ELC last spring. We’ve had a lot of interest from people who work in the hospitals or downtown area, as well as those who already have children attending St. Richard School.” “I learned of the ELC from a friend whose children currently attend St. Richard’s,” said Anna Moss. “I called and booked a tour with Ilana within days of learning of the Center. My son, John Nicholas, is six months old. He has been attending for about a month. We were there on opening day to meet the teachers and staff.” The ELC is associated with St. Richard Parish and School and falls under Diocese of Jackson guidelines, offering a continuation of decades of Catholic administration and formation from the diocese and parish.
– Continued on page 6 –
Families of workers who perished in bridge collapse feel ‘inexplicable sadness,’ pastor says By MARIeTHA GÓNGoRA V.
the pain, the tears, the questions. It’s hard to explain.” Father Walker said the families are receiving official information from differBALTIMORE (OSV News) – Ever since the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapsed in the early hours of March 26, Redemptorist Father Ako Walker ent agencies such as the police, the fire department and the Maryland Departhas been acting as a spiritual support to the families of six Hispanic construction ment of Transportation. They’re trying to assimilate the news and cope with the tragedy in the best way possible, he added. workers believed to have perished in the tragedy. “I am feeling the faith in everything because there are people suffering deepThe pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus/Sagrado Corazón de Jesús in the city’s Highlandtown neighborhood serves a largely Spanish-speaking parish and is ac- ly and some seem to be accepting the reality of the situation that after so many hours, they may not find their relatives alive. So, it is a mixture of emotions,” he tive in supporting new immigrants in the Baltimore area. “I am here with them as a spiritual presence during this difficult time,” Fa- said. Father Walker said he hoped to be able to hold a service or a Mass in the next ther Walker told the Catholic Review, Baltimore’s archdiocesan news outlet. “They all have questions and can’t find the right answers to this situation, so I few days so the community can honor the workers and show solidarity with the am here as a presence if anyone needs prayer or anything like that, I am avail- families through prayer. He hopes they can find comfort in the midst of their grief and can be surrounded by the support and affection of their community. able to help them.” Officials from the U.S. Coast Guard and the Maryland State Police announced late March 26 that due to the length of time and – Continued on page 6 – the cold temperature of the Patapsco River waINSIDE THIS WEEK ters, the six workers were presumed dead. On March 27, the bodies of two of the six missing workers were recovered. They were identified as Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, 35, of Baltimore and Dorlian Ronial Castillo Cabrera, 26, of Dundalk. Two other workers who had been on the bridge at the time of its collapse were rescued, with one of them sent to the hospital. “There is a very, very strong reaction, a sadness that the only word I can use is inexplicable, Youth 18 Holy Week/Easter 7 a sadness that is affecting them,” Father Walker From the archives 12 said about the families of the workers, known to Youth photos from around Pope Francis washes feet of Delve into the diocesan be from Mexico and Central America. “And I can the diocese prisoners on Holy Th ursday archives with Woodward imagine the emotional scars they are suffering,