St. Francis Solanus
TOTUS TUUS AND MONUMENT
Parish Youth Share in Faith, F
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hen school lets out for the summer, learning doesn’t end for our children. In turn, learning about Christ and growing in love for Him doesn’t stop either. “Just because it is summer doesn’t mean that kids stop learning about their faith,” says Mike Holbrook, our former Director of Religious Education who retired from his position this past May. “This is a great opportunity to learn in a fun and meaningful way by attending Totus Tuus and Vacation Bible School.” This summer, the children of the parish are invited to take part in these two fun opportunities for fun and learning. This year, things will look a little different as St. Francis Solanus and St. Peter Catholic Church are working together to put on these two events for the children of the parishes. St. Francis Solanus will be hosting Vacation Bible School and St. Peter will be hosting Totus Tuus. Parishioners David and Lydia Spillman previously served as Totus Tuus missionaries. Now they volunteer to help put on this event for the parish. “There is a team of four college students who put on the weeklong program,” David says. “This program is so beneficial for kids because it meets the kids exactly where they are at in the summer. They don’t want to go back to school! This is not a school environment. It is more of a fun and engaging environment where they can interact. The missionaries engage them and teach them with fun activities.” The Totus Tuus day program is for kids going into first through sixth grades. The evening program is for seventh through 12th grades. “The day program is really filled with fun, but in my three summers of being a missionary, I truly found the teen program to be more fruitful,” David says. “Many of the students arrive the first evening not wanting to be there. They came because their
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