When Sr. Carol, Principal of the St. Francis School in Greenwood, Mississippi, came to speak at the Holy Angels Parish in Upton, MA, she could not have realized the impact it would have on her school. She came to speak about the needs of the St. Francis School which is located in an area that has been impacted by Hurricane Katrina. Despite many challenges, the children and teachers at St. Francis are thriving and have found a friend in OLV. Mrs. Joyce Moquin, OLV's 4th grade teacher and a Holy Angels parishoner, heard Sr. Carol speak. They established a friendship which has taught the students of OLV about friendship and giving first hand.
There have been several outreach efforts to St. Francis over the past year. It began with the Jr. Honor Society’s effort to collect 120 sets of math flash cards for a Math-a-thon at St. Francis. The collection effort resulted in a generous donation from an Upton resident of 100 new beanie babies which were attached with prayers and sent to St. Francis. A Red Sox "dress down" day fundraiser raised $180 which enabled St. Francis to purchase a set of Childcraft reference books for their library. Check out the pictures St. Francis sent of the children with the books!
Sr. Carol recently requested pictures of snow since her students have never seen it. Hard to believe when you live in New England. During Catholic Schools Week, classes worked together to compile photos of snow scenes, letters and drawings to send to our friends at St. Francis. The connection with St. Francis is special and one we hope will continue for a long time!