Browning Day 5

Thursday was our day to go to Glacier National Park.  Our day started at the school as usual with basketball (and music for Ms. Byron, Daley, and a self-taught guitar prodigy Benny). Then it was off to class.

At ten we met with the head of the Language Immersion School.  In the mid-80s, the Blackfeet elders decided to fight to preserve their language, about 10 years later they opened a school to teach the language, it began with 1st grade, and now is a 1-8 school.  They now have about 200 Blackfeet speakers, compared to less than 50 thirty years ago.

After our speaker it was time for weekly mass.  The homily reiterated the message against drugs and alcohol, followed by the students answering questions about the Ten Commandments.  What caught our students off guard, was the "generous" sprinkling rite.  The DLSBS students would gleefully scream and laugh has the were hit with the holy water coming off a very large palm frond.

Once mass was over we loaded the bus to Glacier, it is about a 30-40 minute drive to the park near St Mary's, and we actually saw a moose on the road.  Our Immersion leader Jon said it was the first moose he had seen.  We met with two volunteer Rangers, Ross and Erik, who lead us on a 3-mile hike, it snowed off and on, but was warm enough (45 degrees) to not stick.  Along the way we stopped and looked at shrubs nibbled on by deer, a tree with loads of woodpecker evidence, a beaver dam and beaver lodge, and a tree that had been scratched by a grizzly bear.  The main point of the ranger's talks focused on the interconnectiveness of the Eco-system, our students marveled at how much they learned.  The hike ended at St Mary's Lake and stunning views of the mountains. Most of us dipped a finger or toe in the lake, it was the equivalent to taking a dip at Rye Beach or Winnipesaukee in May.  Once again we loaded into the van and drove to a different part of the park, East Glacier or Two Medicine, to eat dinner.  Most of us had bison burgers.  The day and the hike wore a lot of our students out, and a few fell asleep on the bus.

Now it is Friday, the last day we will be here at the school.  The 8th grade is leaving for a class trip to Chicago.  They will spend about 30 hours on a train to get there.  While in Chicago they will meet up with other De La Salle schools.  We will begin our own long journey home tomorrow.  Our students have greatly enjoyed their time here, but will be glad to get home and get some sleep.  They have been really amazing to give up a school vacation to volunteer in a school.  If you are reading this make sure you let them know how proud you are of what they have done this week, I know I am proud of them.

Browning update

Wednesday was, for some the first and last regular school day. Our students have really started to make connections with some of the DLSBS students.  Daley has been sporting a paper clip necklace, and a few of the girls have been getting hugs.

After our school we had many different speakers come to see us, including a Native artist.  A few of us bought paintings, he also donated two to our program to help raise some money for next year's trip.  We also met with a young woman named Martha, who is now a sophomore in high school and a graduate of DLSBS.  She basically was willing to very candidly answer questions our students had, about the DLSBS school, Browning High School, and the community in general.

We had company for dinner, Mr. & Mrs. Ridesatthedoor, so Mr. Sheehan made a gourmet feast.  Stuffed turkey breast, mashed potatoes, carrots, corn, cranberry sauce, and homemade strawberry shortcake for dessert.  Mr. And Mrs. Ridesatthedoor came to speak to us about Blackfeet history, culture, and traditions.  They are both considered healers, and brought along some traditional foods and herbs, things like balsam needles, sweet grass, huckleberries, and rose hips.

Needless to say we were pretty tired and had a lot of clean up to do at the end of the night.  Everyone has been pitching in either with clean-up or cooking.

For your viewing pleasure

Ms. Byron sent along some pictures from the Montana mission trip:

Their turn

As you may recall from a previous post, I spent Monday and Tuesday at a conference in Eatontown, NJ with fellow Lasallian animators from Lasallian schools across the East Coast.  The conference concluded on Tuesday morning and before I went home, I took a ride to Lincroft, the home of Christian Brothers Academy, an all-boys Lasallian high school, and De La Salle Hall, a nursing home for retired Christian Brothers.  I had been to CBA once before as our March for Life pilgrims spent the night there a few years back on our way back from Washington but we were there for less than 12 hours and I never really saw the campus as it was covered in snow.  This time, the campus was in full bloom and is absolutely stunning.  They have tons of fields, a residence for the brothers who work at the school, and a beautiful school building.  

The nursing home is located behind the school complex and is a beautiful location surrounded by loads of green space.  Our good friend Bro. John McMahon, FSC works at De La Salle Hall and invited me over for a tour and a delicious lunch.  It was heartening to see all these good brothers being taken care of after devoting their lives to education and their religious community.  The nursing home is quite homey and they receive around the clock care.  Bro. John is one of three brothers on staff and he is responsible for the spiritual life of the house.  There are 32 brothers who live in the nursing home, the oldest being 103!

The visit to De La Salle Hall was a nice way to end my time in New Jersey.  Bro. John joked that I certainly get around to Lasallian ministries.  In thinking about it, I've been fortunate to have visited the Mother House in Rome, St. Raphael's Academy in Pawtucket, Manhattan College in New York, LaSalle University in Philadelphia, St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute in Buffalo, CBA and De La Salle Hall in Lincroft, La Salle Academy in Philadelphia, and Ocean Tides School and Christian Brothers Center in Rhode Island.  God is indeed good!

Browning Day 3

On their 2nd day in the classroom our students were feeling a bit more comfortable.  They felt they were beginning to make some connections with the DLSBS (De LaSalle Blackfeet School) students.  

After school we had our first speaker, the school social worker. She spoke about some of the struggles of the students, and the community in general.  Browning is a remote and relatively desolate area, and unemployment is extremely high.  The statistics for drug/alcohol abuse (even among students),  rape, and accidental death among young people was shockingly high.  She also spoke briefly on history and genealogy, her belief is that if you know where you (and your ancestors) are from you will better be able to determine your path in life.

Last night, over a dinner of homemade chili, cornbread, tacos, brownies, and ice cream, we asked each student why they decided to come on the trip.  Answers included; wanting to help people, seeing other parts of the country, and wanting new experiences.  After the dishes were washed and the table was cleared we had an hour long dance party filled with lots of laughter.

We are hoping eventually for some nice weather as it has been cold and rainy all week. Many of the paths are very muddy, and the river by the property is running very fast. Parents should have the washing machines ready for when we return.

Browning Day 2

The kids certainly had an eye-opening day yesterday in the classroom.  Some of the students at the school are here to keep out of trouble, not necessarily because they want an education.  Many live with grandparents or other relatives, some were born addicted to drugs or alcohol.  The school day is long, we arrive at 7:30 and leave at 4:30, so our students were pretty tired yesterday.

Tim and Isabella enjoyed their hike with the 8th graders.  They used what they learned from Mr. Maurier to reconstruct a bear skeleton.  The guide was impressed with how quickly they were able to put it together.  Alex and Cam are going on the same trip today with the 6th graders.

Once we got home everyone helped to make dinner - pizza. Calie and Cam each made a BBQ chicken (Cam's had Ms. Byron's homemade spicy BBQ sauce), Megan made a cheese pizza, Isabella a cheeseburger, Oliver a meat lovers, and Ms Byron a pepperoni.  Morgan and Natalie made cookies for dessert.  Alex, Daley, and Tim helped to clean up.  Mr. Sheehan baked some chicken and turkey for our sandwiches.

Just as we were quieting down, our res dogs, Jack & Jill sent up the alarm.  It was too dark too see, but they were keeping us safe.  Eventually we all fell asleep, and the dogs greeted us on our way out.

Animators conference

Each spring, the District of Eastern North America for the Christian Brothers holds a conference for local "animators."  Animators are those individuals in Christian Brothers' schools who are responsible for animating the Lasallian mission.  This year's conference began yesterday at the Double Tree hotel in Eatontown, NJ and ends this morning.

I left my house yesterday at 4am as I wasn't sure what the traffic would be like around New York City.  Luckily I only hit a little bit of traffic somewhere in Connecticut and other than that, it was smooth sailing, so smooth that I got here 3 hours early!  So I decided to get breakfast at a local diner and then drove out to the beach and walked around for a bit.  I then drove around a bit and drove along a sort of island called Sandy Hook which goes up to the tip of the shore and then checked out some sites at a nearby high point which had beautiful views of the ocean and New York City.

I came back to the hotel and the conference began at noon.  There are about 20 of us here from around the district - Florida, New York, Detroit, Philadelphia, Providence, Ontario, Washington, and New Jersey.  The conference began with lunch followed by a number of talks and presentations including one on an exciting partnership with Catholic Relief Services.  After a nice break and dinner, we had two evening presentations followed by a social.  Our good friend Bro. John McMahon, FSC lives about ten minutes away so he came by for the social and I am going to visit him briefly after the conference wraps up this morning.  This morning we have morning prayer followed by presentations, including one on social media.

It's been nice to get away for a day and to spend time with my fellow Lasallians who are in the field.  It's nice to share ideas, war stories, and concerns and to know there are others out there sharing in the same joys and struggles.

Browning - Day 1

Throughout this week, Ms. Byron will be sending along daily updates about the trip in Montana.  Here is their first update:

We had a relatively quiet day of traveling on Saturday.  We were all pretty tired when we  finally unpacked, bought our groceries, and ate our dinner.  

On Sunday we were able to spend a little time in the town of Browning after church, the congregation was very welcoming, imparting a special blessing on all of us, a few came to talk to us and welcome us.  We did our major grocery shopping for the week.  There are a lot of prairie dogs, birds, and horses around the property.  We also have two friendly “res dogs”  Jack & Jill, that live outside at the mission.  The kids walked to the river, explored an old barn and visited the mission church.  The Christian Brothers and the other volunteers treated us to dinner that night.  

Today we are spending our first day in the school.  Meg and Natalie are in the 4th grade, Oliver and Callie are in the 5th grade, Cam and Alex are in the 6th grade, Morgan and Daley are in the 7th grade, and Tim and Isabella are in the 8th grade.  They have been helping in the classroom and doing one on one tutoring.  Tim and Isabella went on a Boone/Crocket trip with the 8th grade, they will send send a report on that tomorrow.  Cam and Alex get to go on that trip tomorrow.  I think we will have some tired kids tonight.  

Browning or Bust

Our Montana pilgrims arrived in Browning yesterday afternoon.  They flew from Boston to Denver and Denver to Great Falls.  From there, they were picked up and drove over 2 hours to their home for the next week in Browning.  Browning is located in the Northwest corner of the state, at the base of Glacier National Park.

The trip is being led by Ms. Byron of our social studies department and Mr. Sheehan '79 of our math department.  Ms. Byron said she will send me daily updates for the blog so do stay tuned.

Prayer of the day

As we conclude Trinity Week and our prayers to the Trinity, our prayer today was the great "Glory Be":

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.  As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.  Amen.

Prayer of the day

Today the Church marks the feast of Saint Anselm.  Many of our faculty and staff (including myself) attended Saint Anselm College so our prayer today came from one of his prayers:

O Lord my God, teach my heart this day where and how to find You. You have made me and re-made me, and You have bestowed on me all the good things I possess, and still I do not know You. I have not yet done that for which I was made. Teach me to seek You, for I cannot seek You unless You teach me, or find You unless You show Yourself to me. Let me seek You in my desire; let me desire You in my seeking. Let me find You by loving You; let me love You when I find You. Amen.

Prayer of the day

Throughout this Trinity Week, our morning prayers have related to the Holy Trinity.  Today's prayer comes from Mark's gospel:

It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John.10On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him.11And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

Prayer of the day

Continuing our prayers to the Trinity in honor of Trinity Week:


I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through a confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation

 - St. Patrick

Prayer of the day

This week our school community marks Trinity Week, a week-long celebration that includes daily dress-down day themes, a daily assembly, and a night activity.  Trinity Week is a long-standing tradition here and is always the week before April vacation.

I thought in honor of Trinity Week, our daily prayers will pertain to the Holy Trinity.  Today's prayer came from the Mass:

Through Him, with Him, in Him, O God almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is Yours, forever and ever.  Amen.

Off to Montana

For the fourth year in a row, we are sponsoring a mission trip this April vacation to the De La Salle Blackfeet School in Browning, MT.  We have also sponsored a mission trip the same week to the Fransisco Coll School in Guatemala City but there wasn't much interest this year.  I went on the Montana trip our first year (2013) along with Ms. Foley, formerly of our theology department.  For the past two years, Mr. Arnold of our math department has run the trip along with Ms. Foley but this year he has reluctantly passed the reins to Ms. Byron of our social studies department and Mr. Sheehan '79 of our math department.

Ms. Byron and Mr. Sheehan will be bringing 10 juniors who will spend the week working as teacher's aides in the grades 4-8 school.  The school was founded 15 years ago to serve the Blackfeet Indian population in Browning.  It is quite small (about 70 students) and the tuition is about $500 a year.  The school raises something like 90% of their budget and most of the teachers are volunteers who receive a small stipend, housing, and health insurance.  The school groups that volunteer at the school spend the week as teacher's aides but also as role models for the students, many of whom may not see the value of education.

Please keep our chaperones and the following students in your prayers as they depart next week:

Calie Bourque '17
Alex Conway '17
Isabella DiZillo '17
Megan Evans '17
Daley Frenette '17
Morgan Giguerre '17
Cam Miclette '17
Natalie Noury '17
Oliver Thomas '17
Tim Zepf '17

Together again

Sr. Frances (looking at camera) and Bro. John

Last week, as you know, we celebrated Mass for the feast of St. John Baptist de la Salle.  We also used the occasion to mark our annual Grandparent's Day and to honor our local men and religious (rescheduled from a snow day in February).  Our good friend, Bro. John McMahon, FSC joined us for the Mass as did our founding assistant principal, Sr. Frances Lessard, CSC.  Bro. John taught here from 1967-1972 and Sr. Frances from 1970-? (I'm not sure when she left but it was around 1973 or 74).  They hadn't seen each other in over 40 years so it was so nice to see them reunite.



Unfortunately, Sr. Frances' memory isn't what it once was so she didn't remember many people but to have these two founders together again was quite moving.

Youth and Government 2016

Each spring, the YMCA sponsors New Hampshire Youth and Government, a mock government experience for high school students from across the state.  For three days, the students get complete access to the State House, the Legislative Office Building, and the Supreme Court as they debate bills written by their fellow students.  This is the 68th year of New Hampshire Youth and Government and Trinity has had a delegation for about 10 years.  I have had the honor of being the advisor for the past 8 years and look forward to these three days every year.

The Trinity delegation

The first day, called the Pre-Legislative session, took place on March 19.  This was more of an organizational day when the students elect the officers (governor, speaker, Senate president, editor of the newspaper, and chief justice) and learn about their roles.  One of our students, Kate Barker '16, was picked to the editor of the newspaper, a first for Trinity.  Another student, Augustine Duffy '17, is serving as a committee chair in the House of Representatives.  We have 20 students in all from Trinity taking part this year (there are 260 overall from across the state).

We came back to the State House yesterday for the first of the final two days.  The day consisted of committee work and debates on the floors of the House and Senate.  It was a marathon day going from 10am-8:30pm with day two today from 9am-4pm.  This is a wonderful experience for all the students and an opportunity to learn the in and outs of government and politics.  They also got to hear remarks from Gov. Maggie Hassan yesterday afternoon.

I for one also enjoy spending time with my counterparts from the public schools, many from the North country.  While the students are in their chambers, the teachers hang out in the cloak rooms or in the galleries.  It's a lot of fun to swap war stories and to hear about their schools.  One teacher, from a very northern school, is only one of two social studies teachers in the whole school (which is 6-12) and the total population of the school is 150.  My goal for next year is to try and get the other Catholic schools in the state to participate.  Trinity is the only private school here and the only school from our area, expect for Nashua North and Campbell in Litchfield.  

Spring prayer service

About two years ago, we launched a tradition to kick off each sports season with a prayer service and blessing of the coaches and athletes.  The ceremony is quite brief and consists of a liturgy of the word, a brief reflection by me, prayers over the coaches and athletes by Mr. Mailloux '72, and a presentation to the coaches.  This year we are presenting icons of St. John Baptist de la Salle to the coaches (last year we gave medals of St. Sebastian, patron saint of athletes).  We also give a prayer book from the University of Notre Dame to all new coaches.

Our spring prayer service was yesterday afternoon after school.  Here is the reflection I offered:

Earlier this morning our school celebrated four things:

The feast of St. John Baptist de la Salle

Grandparent’s Day

We honored local men and women who have given their lives in service to God and His Church

We recognized the boy’s lacrosse team for their 2015 state title

And now this afternoon, we gather to pray and to ask for God’s blessing on our spring athletes and coaches.  This is one of those days in which we remember how much of a community our school truly is - a community of faith, a community of learning, and a community of service to others.  You as athletes and coaches here at Trinity High School are indeed servants for our school community.  You give up countless hours in practice, game prep, travel, and playing to represent our community around the state of New Hampshire.  You aren’t playing sports here because you are going to go off and play Division I in college sports or go pro but rather to represent Trinity and yourselves on the fields and courts.  You epitomize our school’s pride, spirit, and tradition.  

Your achievements bring our school closer together.  Think of how united Villanova and UConn are after their amazing victories this week.  While people will remember the names Kris Jenkins and Breanna Stewart for many years to come, the reality is, throughout history people will talk about Villanova winning the game at the buzzer and UConn winning four straight titles, not the individual players.  That’s what a community is and that is what Trinity High School is.  As we read this morning in the first reading, we are a community of believers with one mind and one heart.      

In just a moment, Mr. Mailloux will present each head coach with an icon of our patron saint, St. John Baptist de la Salle, whose feast we celebrate today.  May they be permanent reminders to our coaches of the powerful vocation they have to form our athletes into young men and women of faith, scholarship, and character.  In return, may our athletes let their light shine on the courts, the diamonds, and the fields this spring and help bring glory to God...and the Pioneers! 

May God the Father bless our coaches and players this spring season, as they look to imitate God the Son, all with the help and guidance of God the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Grandparent's Day 2016

This past Thursday was the feast of St. John Baptist de la Salle, the founder of the Lasallian Christian Brothers.  As we have begun to re-associate with the brothers, we decided to mark the day with Mass. We also elected to use the day as an occasion to honor local men and religious as well as our Grandparent's Day celebration.

We were originally scheduled to honor the local men and religious at our Catholic Schools Week Mass in February but that day got snowed out.  Yesterday about 30 sisters and 2 religious men joined us including the original assistant principal of Trinity High School, Sr. Frances Lessard, CSC.  Sr. Frances was the inaugural recipient of the Bishop Leo O'Neil Award in 2011 and this year will mark her 70th anniversary of religious profession.  We recognized her and our good friend Bro. John McMahon, FSC, who also joined us and proclaimed the first reading, before Mass began.

Our Grandparent's Day is typically celebrated on the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord but our seniors will be at an event that day this year so we moved the celebration to yesterday.  We had many, many, many grandparents and special friends with us, it so much fun.

The Mass was celebrated by our superintendent of schools, Fr. John Fortin, OSB.  He generously agreed to celebrate the Mass on Monday as our chaplain, Fr. Richard Dion, had a scheduling conflict come up at the last minute.  Fr. John did a masterful job talking about St. John Baptist de la Salle in his homily, quoting a famous line of his that teachers are called to be "ambassadors for Christ."

Following the Mass, the students took their grandparents around the school while we turned the gym over for lunch.  Thus, our students had the chance to pray and spend time in fellowship with their grandparents.  It was a lovely morning, made extra special by the presence of the religious, our grandparents, and the celebration of the feast of St. John Baptist de la Salle at Trinity for the first time in decades!