PROVIDENCE - Black History Month was celebrated Feb. 24 at St. Michael Church, with a Mass followed by dinner and a reception.
During the Mass, awards were presented to the winners of the annual Black History Month Essay Contest, sponsored by the diocesan Black Catholic Ministry office, coordinated by Patty A. January. This year's theme was "What Can Catholic Children Do To Help People in Africa."
The following is a list of the winners:
Grades 7 and 8
1st Place, Allison Unger, from St. Peter School, Warwick
2nd Place, Jenna Tramonti, from Blessed Sacrament School, Providence
3rd Place, Faustina Nimneh, from Holy Ghost School, Providence
Honorable Mention:
Nick Paul, from Good Shepherd Catholic Regional School, Woonsocket
Suenai Duncan, from Holy Ghost School, Providence
Gabriela Gutierrez, from All Saints Academy, Middletown
Chelsea Brennan, from Good Shepherd Catholic Regional School, Woonsocket
Grades 4, 5 and 6
1st Place, Victoria Agbelese, from Bishop McVinney School, Providence
2nd Place, Anna Tanalski, from St. Mary-Bay View Academy, East Providence
3rd Place, Kenneth Richards, from Blessed Sacrament School, Providence
Honorable Mention:
Tara Jean, from Holy Ghost School, Providence
Gabriela DiNobile, from Cranston/Johnston Catholic Regional School
Helen Hanley, from Cranston/Johnston Catholic Regional School
Selina Gomes, from Msgr. Clarke Regional School, Wakefield
Shane Davidson from St. Rose of Lima School, Warwick.
Following is one of the winning essays.
By Allison Unger
St. Peter Church
Throughout Africa there is disease and hunger. Some children don't even live to be one year old. It is amazing that people could live in such conditions, but they somehow find a way to survive. However, they need help.
Some people might feel it is pointless to help, but it is important that we try. The diseases and conditions they suffer are HIV/AIDS, malaria, yellow fever, West Nile, rabies, small pox, blindness and the list goes on.
Catholic children can help people in Africa more than most people think. We can send money and food through food drives. Setting up clothing and food drives can get a whole community involved and many people listen to children. We can pray and hope that God takes care of them as much as we're trying to. It also helps to be more aware of their problems and teach others about what we know, too.
Many people probably think to themselves, "What difference would one coat, one dollar or one can of food make?" But, they don't realize that is one person who can have money for a better life; one person who is not hungry; and one person who has proper shelter and can rest easy at night, is one less person to help. All of the clothing with holes, the useless pennies, and extra food cans can make a difference in a world where people are trying to survive.
All of these things can be done by Catholic children because we understand how important serving the needy is. We also have the most important thing - our faith. With God guiding us to do the right thing, the children of God can definitely make a difference and help the suffering in Africa.
(This article originally published in The Providence Visitor)
