FALL RIVER, MASS.
VOL. 45, NO. 44 • Friday, November 16, 2001
Southeastern Massachusetts' Largest Weekly • $14 Per Year
Diocese's chaplains ready when the local calls come Parish in New Bedford; Father Marc P. Tremblay, pastor of St. Patrick's Parish in'Somerset; Father John J. Perry, pastor of St. Joseph's in Fall River; and Father Michael Racine, parochial vicar at St. Mary's in South Dartmouth. By DEACON JAMES N. DUNBAR Other chaplains inelude Father David A. Costa, pasNEW BEDFORD - The horror 'that was Man- tor of Sacred Heat Parish in North Attleboro, a police hattan and Washington, D.C., and the thousands in- chaplain; and Father Gerard A. Hebert, parochial vicar eluding public safety personnel killed in the Septem- at St. George's in Westport, a chaplain to fire and pober 11 terrorist attacks make the historic, tragic fires lice. in the mill towns of southeastern In recent weeks The Anclwr did a feature story on M~husettspaleincompariDeacon David P. Akin of St. Pius X Parish, South son. Yarmouth. , Nonetheless, when the A former fire chief and now chaplain to the Dennis FIre Department, Akin is a member of catastrophes strike they impact everyone and become the "call team" of Massachusetts Fire Chaplains and ministered at ground zero at a time when whole .families, often whole the World Trade Center in Manhatcommunities are tan after the terrorist attacks. found grieving. Probably the most seaThat's when the ofsoned chaplain is Msgr. Harrington. ficial, --.- and unofficial chaplains to the various fire and po"When the late Falice departments whose members put their ther Thomas O'Dea, lives on 'the line every day, receive the call. New Bedford Fire DeThey are ready to respond at all hours. ofthe day and: .piIrtinentcltliplain for 30 years was slowing down about night to minister as a priest and as a fellow humari ~1975, Ibegariserving there. hvas ordained in 1964. I being. '?'~ • had already been fire chaplain in Taunton for eight In the Fall River diocese, a number of priests - as years, and before that in the 1960s was fire department well as a deacon - are currently dedicated to serving chaplain in Hyannis," said Msgr. Harrington. as chaplains to area fife and police units. He says he also "~ollabo~~-,w,j,$:Jlwlegendary, Among them are Msgr. Thomas J. Harrington, pas- late Father JoM R. Folstei,'d~lm.n pf dle Fall River tor of the Holy Name of the' Sacred Heart of Jesus' Tu';'; to page eight~ Chaplains',: ~
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,Grountlbreaking for "St. Pit,is X 'School" s~heduled!or-lolnrQrrow "\'
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Priest-ehaplains self-less service and presence heightened by September 11 ~ tragedies. '
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Diocesan teachers meet, listen and renew "
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. New $6 million elementary school in South Yarmouth soon to be built.
By DEACON JAMES N. DUNBAR SOUTH YARMOUTH .Groundbreaking ceremonies for the proposed St. Pius X Catholic elementary school are to be held tomorrow afternoon at 3 p.m., and the public is invited to attend. According to an announcement by Msgr. John 1. Smith, pastor of St Pius X Parish, $4.5 million has been raised in the past year-and-a half ''thanks to the generosity of parishioners and friends. We are now ready to begin the building of the school." Augustinian Father William T. Garland, diocesan director of education, confirmed that about a yearand-a-half ago, Bishop Sean P. O'Malley, OFM Cap., requested that a Catholic elementary sChool be built in Yarmouth. "Indeed it has been the bishop's desire to built a Catholic high school on the Cape because many children there have to travel many miles to attend various Catholic high
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schools;' Father Garland explained. "But after an extensive study that involved the Advisory Committee on Catholic Education on Cod, it. was found that we ,needed two more elementary schools in that region to make sure we had the student numbers fora Catholic high school;' Father Garland added. ' 'This school at St. Pius X is one of the two schools it was felt are needed, and so the outlook is very bright;' the director said. He told The Anclwr that he and Superintendent of Schools James A. McNamee had visited the parish and met With the parish committee. The task of raising the estimated $5 million to $6 million to build the new school fell to Msgr. Smith. A parish committee was formed whose major responsibility was the soliciting bf pledges to be paid over a five-year-period. After countless hours in meetings, on the phone and visiting businesses and parishioners, the committee reported that its fund-raising has SUPERINTENDENT OF Diocesan Schools James realized $4.5 million. "We invite all on the Cape to McNamee with 'guest speaker Notre Dame Sister Barcome and share this day of great joy bara Markey at the Educational Professional Day at with us;' Msgr. Smith said. Bishop Connolly High School. (AnchorfGordon photo)
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By MIKE GORDON ANCHOR STAFF
FALL RIVER - Hundreds of teachers, administrators, principals, religious education directors and catechists gathered at Bishop Connolly High School November 9 for a Diocesan Educational Professional Day. They participated in focus groups, shared lesson plans and had the opportunity to listen to several guest speakers who addressed the topics of curriculum, respecting life and cohabitation. Notre Dame Sister Barbara Markey addressed the topic of cohabitation. Sister Markey said she was there to show high school teachers how to help students form better relationships with one another as well as address the issue of cohabitation. "One of the risk factors of cohabitation is that the couples who marry and Tum to page J3 - Teachers