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JANUARY 6, 2009
The last day of classes
before Christmas was Thursday December 18. However, it was
not the last day of school. Friday December 19 was a school
excursion - a ski day on the slopes of Horseshoe Valley
Ski park, just north of Barrie, together with the Ontario
home-schoolers. It just happened to be the day of a heavy
snow storm, and the conditions were ideal, all the children
having a great time, many of them learning to ski down hill
for the first time.
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Father
May, Mr. Couture and some of the altar boys
have fun snow tubing on December 27.
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Father
Wegner and another group of altar boys
on the same slope their tubes all tied together.
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On Sunday December 21
the first baptism for Our Lady of Mount Carmel took place.
It was of the newly born Jacinta Papania, the seventh child
of Joseph and Jessica Papania, four of whose children are
already in the school.
Then came the two week
Christmas break, which was nevertheless not without all
activities. On the feast of St. Stephen, December 26, Father
Scott performed the first ceremony of reception of altar
boys as members into the Archconfraternity of St. Stephen
at the chapel of the Holy Canadian Martyrs in Orillia. This
ceremony had been prepared by careful study and practice,
and written examinations. Four boys were received as Junior
Acolytes, one as a Senior Acolyte and four as Masters of
Ceremonies at the Offertory of the High Mass sung at the
chapel. The next day, Saturday December 27, was the day
for an excursion for the altar boys from all the chapels
in Ontario - snow tubing, again at Horseshoe valley, this
time with Fathers Wegner and May. A great time was had by
all.
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Father Scott says the prayers for
the four new
MCs in the Archconfraternity of St. Stephen
at Holy Canadian Martyrs chapel in Orillia.
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The prayers of the ceremonial
for the four new Junior Acolytes.
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Final prayers, requesting that all
nine altar boys
be true ministers of the altar, following the example
of St. Stephen, and attain to everlasting glory.
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After
the ceremony, the nine altar boys surround (and dwarf)
the priest they serve, in front of the beautiful altar
of the Canadian martyrs. |
School resumed on Monday
January 5, with the children making a last effort to practice
the songs for the Christmas play. There was no school on
Tuesday 6th, feast of the Epiphany, but after the High Mass,
the blessing of the chalk in honor of the three Kings, and
a pot luck, the Christmas play was performed, following
a script based upon Sacred Scripture. All the children participated,
both school children and homeschoolers, including our youngest
parishioner, Jacinta Papania, just three weeks old, who
played the infant Jesus with some suitable whimperings due
to hunger during the play.
Meanwhile the work
on the chapel remodeling project continued right throughout
the Christmas period. The floor was restained, and then
sealed several times. Trim was installed around the floor
and the door ways. The confessional was completed and the
platforms for the sanctuary and the altar. All was done
by Saturday January 3rd. It remained, however, to work on
the kneelers of the pews, and to install them, the altar
and the organ, all of which was not yet done by the feast
of the Epiphany, but is to be done by the end of the week.
Parishioners have so far donated $20,400 to this chapel
remodeling project, which cost $25,860.22.
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sanctuary and altar platforms
in the school chapel as they were being worked on. |
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Father May discusses
with the workers the staining
of the floor, that it be constant and even. |
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A close view of the new confessional, installed on
the new ceramic floor,
next to the organ platform.
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| A view
of the finished chapel
looking towards the front and the sanctuary platform. |
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The finished chapel,
looking towards the back,
showing the new lights, fans, floor finish and confessional.
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