Giving back

Teens in the faith-formation classes at Saint Madeleine Sophie and Saint Gabriel parishes have found innovative ways to help their community from home during the coronavirus.

Sister Rosemary Cuneo put out a call to all students to create cards for homebound parishioners and the Manzella family got to work. Sitting around the table equipped with bottles of paint and cups full of brushes, Chris - son of Deacon Al Manzella - along with his children Noah, 17, Renee, 15 and Sam, 12, hand painted and assembled cards that were mailed out people who typically need church outreach more than others. 

“It’s aimed for any of our senior citizens who can’t come to church anymore, the ones that we’ll send bulletins home to,” Sister Rosemary said. “They’ll have community calls, and stuff like that. Within those, it could be someone who is temporarily homebound too.”

Another way teens are participating in community efforts is through Charity Miles, an iPhone and Android app that turns each mile the member bikes, runs or walks into money for their chosen charity. So far there are 16 students on Sister Rosemary’s team, with all proceeds going toward the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. 

“I think it's a very simple way to help people and to show how you can help people so easily,” Sister Rosemary said, “which is one of the things we’ve tried to emphasize.”