As Janet Miranda lay bleeding on the sidewalk after a fall near her home on Oct. 29, two uniformed first responders arrived to render aid, but they weren’t firefighters or paramedics. Still, Miranda was familiar with their attire. These rescuers wore the uniform of St. Gregory the Great Catholic Academy, her home parish’s school.
For many people, having a sibling who mirrors their every move might seem more frustrating than comforting. However, for two sets of twins in New York City, their shared bond has profoundly strengthened their faith and spiritual lives. The lives of Father Mark Amatrucola and Father Chris Lawton are intertwined not just by being twins, but by their shared journeys into the priesthood.
The City Council voted to approve a bill on Dec. 19 to allow small, non-public schools to be reimbursed by New York City for the cost of hiring security guards — just as larger schools are. Specifically, the bill will expand the number of non-public schools eligible for the city’s reimbursement program. That program, established in 2015, allows schools with an enrollment of at least 300 students to qualify. The new bill lowers that threshold to 150 students.
When Crystal Wolfe left Indiana for New York several years ago, she thought she had a job as a newspaper reporter waiting for her, only to find out that the position was no longer available once she arrived.
Rosemarie Vaquero fondly remembers that whenever she walked through the neighborhood with her friend, Father Ruskin Piedra, C.Ss.R., people would stop them to thank him and shake his hand.
The Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Academy community came together for the feast of Epiphany with a chalking ceremony on Jan. 6 to celebrate the coming of the Wise Men and the close of the Christmas season.
Reflecting on the “horrendous” state of Haiti, Michele Guerrier said the Haitian Independence Day Mass at St. Jerome Church was a powerful show of solidarity to her homeland from the Diocese of Brooklyn.
Bishop Robert Brennan ushered in the Jubilee Year by celebrating two Masses on Sunday, Dec. 29 — first at the Cathedral Basilica of St. James and then at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph — and leading the faithful in a procession between the two churches as he held the monstrance containing the Blessed Sacrament aloft during the mile and a half journey.
Frank Macchiarola left an imprint on New York City when he helped steer the near-bankrupt city out of stormy financial waters in the mid-1970s and by serving as the public schools chancellor from 1978 to 1983.
Father Francis Passenant credits his parents for his dedication to the Bright Christmas Fund.
