Postal Service salutes Kateri

To mark Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha's 350th birthday, volunteers at two shrines in the Albany Diocese have arranged a collectible gift: pictorial postal cancellations issued by the U.S. Postal Service.

According to shrine volunteer Theresa Schweigert, the cancellations are issued by the USPS to "recognize a particular event or milestone."

A temporary postal station will be set up at the Shrine of the North American Martyrs in Auriesville and the National Kateri Shrine in Fonda, where Post Office employees will hand-cancel envelopes. The cancellations will be done on July 2 and 9, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Cachets

The cancellations take the place of normal postmarks that detail the time and date a letter is processed. The two Kateri cancellations will be made manually with rubber stamps.

In addition, the shrines will sell "cachet" envelopes to exhibit the cancellations, featuring original artwork of Blessed Kateri by Joe Izzillo of Florida and art teacher Bob Renaud of Carthage, N.Y. Each envelope costs $2.

Those who cannot get to the shrines can call the Tekakwitha League, 853-3153, or the National Kateri Shrine, 853-3646, after the events to buy cachet envelopes and special cancellations.

First chance

The July 2nd event at the Kateri Shrine in Fonda will feature Mr. Renaud's artwork, showing Blessed Kateri at the Cross.

The date coincides with the annual Tekakwitha Shrine pow-wow, a Native American cultural festival bringing together vendors, dancers and musicians from July 1-4. Members of Kateri's Mohawk people will be in attendance for the event, which includes Mass, food, fellowship and Native American craft exhibits.

"When I was younger, my parents brought me to the shrine," Mr. Renaud said. "Kateri has always been in the background in my head. About eight to ten years ago, I read a book about her life, and it made an impact on me. Having the connection of being in the same area as her has always made an impact on my life. She's a wonderful saint and role model for young people. Since I'm a teacher, that connection is there, too."

Second chance

The July 9th cancellation will occur at the Auriesville shrine on Blessed Kateri's feast day. It will feature art by Mr. Izzillo, whose portrait of the saint-to-be hangs at her tomb in Canada.

The art for the Auriesville rubber stamp comes from her "positio," the official paper submitted to the Vatican regarding her sainthood cause.

Mrs. Schweigert hopes that the cachet envelope and cancellation stamp will become collector's items.

"We're celebrating her birthday in a very different way," she explained, "and we see this whole idea as a bridge for evangelization. It will be an honor for Native Americans; people who have never heard of Blessed Kateri will hear of her: stamp club enthusiasts, hobbyists, artists. We want people to know about Blessed Kateri and grow closer to God through her."

(Mrs. Schweigert, a former postal service employee, came up with the idea of the postal cancellation after hearing about one in memory of St. Isaac Jogues, who was martyred near Auriesville. "We thought this is just tailor-made for her," she said.)

(6/22/06) [[In-content Ad]]