Brother André students to attend canonization
By Vanessa Santilli-Raimondo, The Catholic Register
MARKHAM, Ont. - Select students and staff at Brother André Catholic High School in Markham, Ont., will be celebrating the canonization of their school’s namesake in a special way — by being in the immediate audience close to the Pope at the ceremony in Rome on Oct. 17.On Oct. 10, 18 students from the school will be flying to Italy for a week, along with a couple of staff members and family members, said principal Jim Nicoletti.
“Back in February, when the announcement was made, we were honoured to hear it as a school and we were thrilled,” he said. “We did a little research only to find out that we believe we’re the only high school that’s named Brother André in the province.”
Nicoletti said that because of the significance of the canonization for the school, the community felt it should be memorated in a memorable way.
“It’s a real honour to have your school bestowed sainthood as a namesake,” he said.
But at a cost of about $3,000, Nicoletti said the trip wasn’t readily accessible to everyone.
“I’m sure we could have had more students had the cost been less but we didn’t have any sponsorship for it.”
Lauren Salemi, a Grade 11 student on her way to Rome, is excited to attend the canonization. As a Catholic youth, she said it’s important for her to be there.
“I feel a lot of youth are losing their faith,” she said. “It’s important to keep our faith and to see this kind of stuff to keep us interested. Your faith helps you to be a better person and to be more balanced — it helps you with everything.”
The group will visit Venice, Florence, Assisi and finally, Rome.
The group will also be attending a prayer vigil on the Saturday night before the canonization at Sant’Andrea della Valle Basilica.
Throughout the province, elementary schools with Brother André as its namesake will also be celebrating the Oct. 17 canonization.
At Brother André Catholic School in Ottawa, each class will present a different part of his story at an assembly in front of the entire school body, said Jan Bentham, co-ordinator of religious and family life education for the Ottawa Catholic District School Board. Some of the presentations will include an artistic replica of St. Joseph’s Oratory, which Brother André founded, and a play about his life.
Meanwhile, Brother André Catholic School in Ajax, Ont., will be holding a procession from the school to their church displaying banners representing sacrifices the classes are going to make, said vice-principal Kathryn Hadden.
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