A group of four students from the Art and Chaplaincy Club at St James’ Catholic High School Barnet in Colindale have received Million Minutes’ Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati Award, in recognition of their hard work promoting the common good in their community.
Victoria (aged 12), Rebeca-Elena (aged 13), Jade (aged 14) and Clara (aged 14) were all nominated by their teacher Miss Lucy Gardener for their extra-curricular work as part of the Art & Chaplaincy Club. This group of young women have been actively involved in the running of our School's Foodbank, by creating posters and speaking in assemblies to promote awareness of the need of families in our community particularly during the pandemic.
The girls have also been using their talents to design tote bags to sell to friends and families to raise money for the school's Cameroon Project (raising money and awareness for a sister school in Cameroon). They have also been involved in the rebuilding of our School's Peace Garden which provides students within our school an area in which they can go to for quiet reflection. These young women have also shown great initiative, approaching teachers with the idea of setting up a school foodbank and establishing the different community projects.
In making the application for the award, their teacher Miss Gardener said: ‘Rebeca-Elena, Jade, Clara and Victoria are are constantly working and thinking of others selflessly and living by our school mission statement "I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full". It would also mean a lot to the School's wider community when it would highlight the hard work that they have done and the Christian ethos behind it.’
The nominees themselves have said: "I enjoy coming to our club because I like drawing and showing my creativity. I have also participated in many projects to help raise money for charity for those who are less fortunate in our community. At the moment we are designing bags to sell to raise money for our School's Cameroon project. I have also done some building in the peace garden. I really enjoyed doing all of those activities."
Another winner added: "I enjoy coming to our club because you can share ideas and express yourself freely without judgement. I also use my artistic skills in order to help others such as the less fortunate in our school community."
Million Minutes launched the Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati Award in 2020, to recognise the work of young people during the pandemic specifically, and is endorsed by Cardinal Vincent Nichols.
Like all of Million Minutes’ work, the Award was established to attempt to heed the Holy Father’s call for the Catholic Church to better minister and empower young people. In the words of Pope Francis in Christus Vivit #299:
‘Dear young people, my joyful hope is to see you keep running the race before you, outstripping all those who are slow or fearful. Keep running, attracted by the face of Christ, whom we love so much, whom we adore in the Holy Eucharist and acknowledge in the flesh of our suffering brothers and sisters. May the Holy Spirit urge you on as you run this race. The Church needs your momentum, your intuitions, your faith. We need them! And when you arrive where we have not yet reached, have the patience to wait for us.’
Huge congratulations to Victoria, Jade, Clara and Rebeca-Elena for their hard work. May they continue to be inspired to serve their community!
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