Student Retreats…
What
Does it
Mean to
be a
Dragon?
Beginning with the Freshmen retreat, Ropes and Rituals, students begin to answer the question What Does it Mean to be a Dragon?
Campus Ministry works along with the student Big Brothers to help students begin the first steps in their journey on the road to becoming Christian men of faith. Together the Freshmen work to develop leadership, communication, and teamwork skills by participating in a ropes course at Carondalet Park.
 The second day of the retreat involves reflection and rituals designed to physically represent the spiritual journey toward manhood. Through discussions, games, presentations, and activities, the freshmen not only get to know their classmates better but gain a better understanding of themselves as well. Over two days the Freshmen class, through the leadership of upperclassmen, builds community and a better understanding of what it means to be a student at St. Mary’s High School.
For students, Sophomore year can be a time of great changes. There are often many new pressures from school, jobs, and peers. At St. Mary’s the Sophomore Class attends a one day retreat at the Maria Center led by the NCADA, National Council for Drug and Alcohol Awareness. Through presentations and activities the leaders help students to discuss the many issues they face helping them to make informed and value based decisions.
Juniors at St. Mary’s are required to attend an overnight retreat. They can choose between a Kairos Retreat or a retreat led by the staff at the Marianist Retreat Center. This retreat team uses large and small group activities and discussions to lead students to a deeper understanding of themselves and their faith. Students are given time for group activities and personal reflection. The retreat works to build community among the members of the Junior class.
Seniors are invited to share their faith with the community by providing leadership at religious functions. Seniors plan and lead all school liturgies. They also serve as student leaders who share their faith and experiences on the Freshmen, Sophomore, and Junior retreats.
Kairos: Time of the Lord
Starting in the fall of 2001 we began offering Kairos as a retreat for the Juniors and Seniors at St. Mary’s . Currently, we host a Kairos retreat each winter that is led by Seniors and attended by Juniors. The Kairos retreat is an experience of Christian community with a series of talks given both by the ten student leaders and by the six faculty leaders. Prayer and the sacraments are an essential part of the program as well as the participants' involvement in discussions and other exercises. The purpose of Kairos is to allow the students to see the value of their Christian faith as lived and experienced in community. With the support of that community, they can effectively look within themselves and find their true worth in relationships with God, family, and friends.
Marianist Influence…
St. Mary’s is unique in the Archdiocesan High School system because of its Marianist heritage. Having been formed in the Marianist tradition and currently having lay Marianist communities of faculty, the charisms and attitudes of Mary, the mother of Christ, fill the hallways of St. Mary’s. This affiliation allows students to opportunity to attend Marianist LIFE Camp and other conferences with Marianist schools across the country. St. Mary’s students are involved in the Marianist LIFE Community, which is a student led faith sharing group. The MLC sponsors Tuesdays with Mary each week, where students gather for faith sharing, prayer and hospitality. Each year in January, St. Mary’s celebrates Marianist Heritage Week. During this week we celebrate the Feast of our founder, Blessed William Joseph Chaminade, with an all school litugry. We recognize students who live out the Marianist charisms with awards. During this week the freshmen participate in a one day retreat designed to teach them about the Marinaist charisms and our schools Marianist history.
Opportunities
for Service
Junior Service Project...
To graduate from St. Mary’s, each student must participate in the Junior Service Project. This consists of two weeks at the end of the junior year during which students do service all over the St. Louis area. Students can be found volunteering in area hospitals, day care centers, homeless shelters, nursing homes, and many other places. Students are challenged to reflect upon their experience by keeping a daily journal. The two weeks are concluded with the Celebrate Service Dinner , where the students, their parents, and the faculty gather in the cafeteria to celebrate the success of the service projects.
Service to St. Mary’s…
The Campus Ministry Office also arranges for students to earn hours of service for St. Mary’s. Each student must complete at least 25 hours of service to the St. Mary’s High School community in order to graduate. The purpose of this requirement is to teach students the value of community and that the effort of everyone is necessary for a community to function successfully. Hours can be earned by volunteering at St. Mary’s events like the auction or Night at the Races. Students can help teachers, coaches, or work in concession stands.
Service Learning…
Throughout the curriculum students are involved with opportunities for service. Through religion classes, clubs, and sports teams, students may be asked to create their own small service projects, participate in fund raisers, or use their talents  to help others. For example, students are involved in teaching at area elementary schools through Hi-Step and Eco-Act. The basketball teams collect and deliver toys to children with cancer at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital. The football program participates in a walk-a-thon to raise money for children with autism. During the 2007-2008 school year, the Technology Club is raising money to send laptop computers to poor students in Africa. Each year St. Mary’s High School works with Notre Dame High School to collect cans for a local food pantry. This year over 6,000 cans were collected by the two schools.
St. Patrick Center Key Player Initiative
This past August students in Catholic schools throughout the Archdiocese were asked to participate in a program to help end homelessness in St. Louis. The St. Patrick Center Key Player Initiative is a way for students in Catholic schools to work creatively to raise money to help the center. The goal for the Archdiocese was $100,000. On April 22 nd , 2008 students from St. Mary’s were asked to take part in presenting a check to the St. Patrick’s Center for over $200,000! Over twenty grade schools and high schools throughout the archdiocese participating. Schools hosted everything from Penny Drives  to silent auctions. There is one schools whose principal agreed to sing Christmas carols from the roof of the school if they exceeded their goal – She had to sing for over an hour! The students at St. Mary’s sponsored an awareness day for homelessness. Students were asked to donate money to be allowed to dress out of uniform. The administration agreed to match money collected by students. St. Mary’s raised over $500. Pictured below at the news conference with Archbishop Burke are Juniors Nick Hacker and Jacob Clancy.
Solomon Project
 This year, St. Mary’s adopted the Solomon’s Project as its community wide service project.
Dragons have faithfully worked on houses in the North Grand neighborhood at least one Saturday a month since the beginning of the year.
This project has enabled students, teachers, parents, and even alumni to work together to help improve a local neighborhood.
During the Advent season, students raised over $250 to support a single-parent family in this neighborhood.
For more information about Solomon Project go to www.ngns.org or to see about getting involved contact Joe Miller at millerj@stmaryshs.com .
All parents are invited to join us – no prior construction skills are needed.
School Liturgies
and Celebrations…
List of Scheduled Masses/Celeberations
Students and faculty gather in the gym to celebrate Mass as a community once a month. The music, readings, and reflections are student and faculty planned and led. Community Masses help to not only deepen our faith but create a greater sense of community. Masses are used to celebrate events like Spirit Week and Student Council Officer Induction. During the seasons of Advent and Lent, Masses are celebrated by classes in the chapel.
We have a special Ring Mass for the Juniors to commemorate their getting class rings and also to celebrate their transition to the leadership roles of Senior year. Junior parents are invited to celebrate this Mass with us and to share refreshments in the cafeteria afterwards. Each year a Senior Baccalaureate Mass is held in the St. Mary’s chapel to give the students, faculty, seniors, and their parents a chance to celebrate their students’ completion of high school. The Mass is followed by a dinner and an awards banquet during which the Seniors are recognized for their many contributions to St. Mary’s over the pervious four years.
During the Lenten season students are given the opportunity for personal reflection and the sacrament of Reconciliation.
Prayer Service - This year St. Mary’s has been faced with tragedies that necessitated us gathering in prayer. Earlier in the year a former student was involved in a dangerous incident that seriously threatened his health. Students came to Mrs. Koenen and asked if we could hold a prayer service. With the help of Fr. Brad and Mrs. Koenen the students planned and led the service.
Last month when a current student was killed in a car accident we again gathered in prayer. This time we invited members of the entire St. Mary’s community to join us. Many St. Mary’s parents and students from other schools joined us as we grieved the loss of one of our own, Mike McMahon. Both services were powerful testaments to our faith in a loving God that supports us through hard times.
The Office of Campus Ministry works to develop a deeper faith and a greater sense of community among the faculty, staff, students, and parents at St. Mary’s High School. We work to facilitate growth in faith through experiences of prayer, retreat, service, and reflection. Through the office of campus ministry, St. Mary’s High School sponsors many activities designed to deepen one’s sense of self, one’s understanding of the Marianist tradition, and one’s recognition of God’s presence in our world. |