Building community and feeding the poor
Students and alumni worked side-by-side at this year’s Magis Helping Hands event. Hundreds took part in this service event held at Christopher Columbus High School on March 24.
The day began in prayer with Mass before the meal preparations. Thirty-two thousand meals were packed for the poorest of the poor in Burkina Faso West Africa. Belen has now participated in the event for four years, and has helped to pack over 100,000 meals. The continued commitment of our Belen Alumni, both in time and treasure, has been the most important factor in reaching the 100,000 meal count in such a short period of time. Overall, it has been a wonderful partnership with the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Relief Services Professional Advisors Board, who year after year support this great event both with their time and resources.
CRS Helping Hands is a Catholic volunteer and formation event that allows participants to serve their brothers and sisters overseas in a tangible way. Together, volunteers package meals to send to people who suffer from chronic hunger as a result of cyclical drought and flooding in the African nation of Burkina Faso. In addition, CRS Helping Hands funds longer term, income-generating projects that allow our brothers and sisters to build a future free from hunger.
A special thank you to this year's new partner, Christopher Columbus High School. The hospitality shown by Columbus students and parents, Alumni Director Barbara Branas, Campus Ministry Director Jerry Gonzalez, Principal David Pugh, and President Brother Kevin Handibode was nothing short of impressive.
The biggest thank you goes out to the kids from those high schools and middle schools, whose example of Christian love was no doubt the biggest take-away for those attending. There is no denying that there are many negative events happening in our communities nowadays, but there are also young men and women in our community who are living out their faith and helping others. They continue to inspire us and their peers.
The schools and organizations that participated are: Belen Jesuit Preparatory School, Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart, Catholic Relief Services Professional Advisors Board, Christopher Columbus High School, Coral Reef High School, Epiphany Catholic School, Knights of Columbus Coral Gables Chapter, Knights of Columbus Miami Chapter, St. Brendan High School, St. Theresa Catholic School.
Click here to watch WBLN’s report. Click here to view the photo album.
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School was founded in 1854 in Havana, Cuba by Queen Isabel II of Spain. The task of educating students was assigned to the priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), whose teaching tradition is synonymous with academic excellence and spiritual discipline. In 1961, the new political regime of Cuba confiscated the School property and expelled the Jesuit faculty. The School was re-established in Miami the same year, and over the next decade, continued to grow. Today, Belen Jesuit sits on a 30-acre site in western Dade County, only minutes away from downtown Miami.