Service and Ministry

Fifth Graders Share Christmas Spirit with Area Foster Children

This past December, the fifth-grade students at St. Monica School in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, helped make Christmas a bit more memorable for some Milwaukee-area foster children.  The students in Ms. Donna Wulz's classroom decided to undertake the class service project in an effort to spread the Christmas spirit to those in greater need.  The project, “A Christmas to Remember”, was spearheaded by students Tori Ghilardi and Kelly Laskowski.

From the time the students returned after the Thanksgiving holiday through the end of the third week of December, the fifth-graders promoted the service project within the St. Monica School community.  They sought support from students of all grade levels, and the student body responded.  Students of all ages offered gifts, with the donations coming from money saved for favorite video games, money earned from babysitting and sidewalk-shoveling duties, and money deposited into piggy banks.  In total, Ms. Wulz’s class collected a total of $342.00 from the school children. 

On the night of December 17^th, members of the fifth grade class went to Target and Wal-Mart to purchase gifts.  When finished with their holiday shopping, they had filled the back of several station wagons.  While they bought gifts for children of all ages, they also fulfilled a special request for teen items, including several headphones, a Discman, CD player and purses.  It was a fun holiday shopping excursion and one that had special meaning for all who took part.

Later that weekend, several representatives of the fifth-grade class took the gifts to the Children's Service Society of Wisconsin.  The choice of this agency as beneficiary of their efforts had some special meaning for the class, and for one student in particular; recently, Children’s Service Society of Wisconsin had helped facilitate the adoption of Aaron Ghilardi, brother of SMS fifth-grader and class service project leader Tori Ghilardi.

The gifts – and the Christmas spirit – were distributed to children in foster and pre-adoptive homes in time for Christmas celebration.

St. Monica School eighth grade students decided to put their artistic abilities to use to help local needy. At the suggestion of science teacher Carmen Bond and with guidance from art teacher Sue Miller, the students made ceramic bowls for the 6th Annual "Empty Bowls Milwaukee" event held on Saturday, October 9th. This project was a fundraising event to benefit food pantries in the Greater Milwaukee area. For the suggested minimum donation of $15, attendees could select from over 2,000 handcrafted bowls donated by local artists, teachers, and students from Southeastern Wisconsin. The bowls were to be taken home as a reminder that someone's bowl is always empty.

The Eighth Grade Class Trip

As is tradition at most grade schools, each spring the 8th grade students of St. Monica School take an end-of-year class trip. Unlike most other grade schools, their class trip is the culmination of a yearlong spiritual and intellectual journey of service.

Two years ago, Principal Karen Rambadt challenged the school's junior high staff to develop a more meaningful and encompassing class trip. Prior graduating classes had spent several days in Washington, D.C., and while the trip was informative, it lacked the faith-based component embodied in the education St. Monica School students receive. Additionally, Rambadt hoped for more of a "journey" in which students could contribute to the surrounding community as part of their ministry and service focus.

The junior high staff, led by then-teacher and religion coordinator Ann Chrusciel (Chrusciel retired from SMS at the end of the 2003-2004 school year), tackled the challenge and crafted an experience like no other for the students. Instead of a single service project, they proposed a yearlong service project. The project would allow students to work together to benefit others. It would include all aspects of the curriculum and provide students with a wealth of historical knowledge and spiritual experience. It would foster a lasting bond amongst students in the class. Most importantly, it would offer students the opportunity to form a lasting, meaningful relationship with a group of people of different culture and traditions.

Specifically, the project developed by Chrusciel and her colleagues involved the Lakota people living on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. Throughout their 8th grade school year, St. Monica students learned about Native American history and culture; corresponded with students and other tribe members on the reservation; met with various advocates for Native Americans; and involved surrounding communities through fundraisers and supply drives to benefit the Lakota people.

Then, after a year of study, reflection, and action, the students embarked on a four-day trip to the reservation. There, they met with the adults and children with whom they had corresponded. The students carried with them the fruits of their labor: clothing, old watches they learned to repair themselves, school supplies, food, and quilting fabric. As many students later noted in their trip journals, they witnessed a people rich in spirit and proud of their history and culture.

The yearlong journey was a challenging and enriching experience for the students. The experience helped them grow spiritually and intellectually in a way no textbook can. Moreover, it taught them about the importance of reaching out to help others and the value of respecting and celebrating our differences as people of God. What began as a project was actually only a beginning, as each successive graduating class will pass the journey in ministry and service on to the class to follow, building upon the relationships already established.

In June 2003, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee presented St. Monica School with its "Justice and Peace" award. The award recognized the contributions made by staff and students toward justice and peace through their journey with the Lakota people.