Catholic Memorial High School has selected a business entrepreneur and a former Archdiocese of Milwaukee superintendent of schools as its 2024 Legacy Award recipients.

Christopher Rebholz, a member of the class of 1981, will receive the Professional Achievement Legacy Award. He is an accomplished “serial entrepreneur” whose diverse portfolio of companies is a testament to his professional abilities, a Catholic Memorial media release said. Rebholz also supports healthcare and education initiatives with the Rebholz Family Fund, Children’s Wisconsin, Variety — the Children’s Charity, St. Anthony on the Lake Parish, and Catholic Memorial High School. His three daughters also are Catholic Memorial graduates.

Dr. Kathleen Cepelka, who will receive the Memorial Legacy Award, was the Superintendent of Schools for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee from 2010 through 2022. From 1999 to 2007, she was the principal of Catholic Memorial High School. Dr. Cepelka has held numerous positions as a Catholic school administrator, board member, teacher and leader for more than 50 years. Upon her retirement in 2022, she was named Superintendent Emerita for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Dr. Cepelka has been honored with local and national awards. She is an inspiration to all for her kindness, leadership and commitment to Catholic education, the Catholic Memorial media release said.

They will receive the honors at the Waukesha school’s 75th Anniversary Gala on Feb. 17.

A Pro-Life Church Hall Meeting organized by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee last fall included speakers, displays and opportunities for pro-life representatives from parishes and organizations to network. (Photo by Kristen Kubisiak)

Exciting pro-life developments that are in progress or on the horizon in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee took center stage at a Pro-Life Church Hall Meeting in New Berlin.

Respect life and human concerns leaders from across the archdiocese filled the Holy Apostles Welcome Center to learn about new initiatives and report on their recent activities.

Leading the event was Dcn. Jim Matthias, the director of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee Respect Life Ministry. Matthias noted that the dignity and sanctity of human life is at the core of many issues, making them “pro-life.” However, the cardinal issues are abortion, immigration, capital punishment, eugenics, euthanasia, doctor-assisted suicide, domestic violence, human trafficking, post-abortive healing and criminal violence.

“The Catholic Church teaches that abortion is the preeminent issue,” Dcn. Matthias said. “More lives are lost each year due to abortion than due to any of the other causes. So, priority is given to upholding and defending our brothers’ and sisters’ most basic right — to live.”

The leaders shared some ways their parishes amplified and added to pro-life efforts during October, which is Respect Life Month. These included: participating in 40 Days for Life and Life Chain activities, collecting funds for Baby Bottles for Life, hosting baby showers and diaper drives for life-affirming pregnancy support services, offering Holy Hours and the Traveling Rosary for Life, as well as displaying crosses, pink and blue ribbons, banners and a new pro-life flag to raise awareness.

One pro-life milestone announced at the meeting that has been in the works is the establishment of the first modern-day Catholic maternity home in Milwaukee. The residence will be modeled after Mater Filius, which was founded in March 2003 in Mexico City as a nonprofit Catholic apostolate to serve women and their families facing an unexpected pregnancy. Today there are 26 affiliates world-wide of Mater Filius — Latin for “Mother and Child” — including six in the United States.

Edward Sanchez, who is the board president of the Women’s Support Center in Milwaukee and has been involved in the effort, shared some project updates.

“We have received permission from the archbishop to pursue a home, to raise money for it — all in private donations, not taking anything away from the Archdiocese — and we are prepared to begin incorporation.”

Mater Filius homes typically accommodate up to 10 women, who, in addition to having basic needs met, receive medical care, education, emotional support, employment assistance and workshops on topics such as prenatal care and parenting and life skills — all offered in a structured, but home-like, nurturing environment. While Mater Filius is rooted in Catholic tradition, expectant mothers are welcome regardless of their backgrounds or religious affiliations.

“They can be in the home during the whole term of their pregnancy and then eight months afterwards,” Sanchez said. “What we try to do during that time is help them transform their lives.”

There is still much work to do before Mater Filius is ready to begin serving pregnant women and families in the community, Sanchez said, and there are plenty of ways to show support, from volunteering to making a donation. For more information about the evolving project, email edward.sanchez@marquette.edu.

Pro-life Programs for Teens & Young Adults

Representatives from Wisconsin Right to Life and Students for Life shared some ways their organizations have been supporting pro-life education and opportunities for high school and college students.

One initiative that has been especially successful is the Teen Impact Box Subscription. The subscription is offered by Wisconsin Right to Life, an organization that has saved 201,308 lives from the threat of abortion in Wisconsin since 1987 and continues to change hearts, minds and policies in the state.

Chelsea Duffy, who represented the organization, explained that the boxes were first launched during the pandemic as a way to connect with pro-life teens when live events and programs were prohibited. Since then, subscriptions have increased from 100 to 600.

“Our Teen Impact Subscriptions Boxes give pro-life teens who need to be edified the facts about the pro-life movement, as well as the resources they need to learn how to express their beliefs to peers,” Duffy said.

Each box focuses on a different topic, including pro-life apologetics, euthanasia, prenatal development and supporting pregnant students.

“Our students absolutely love these because they get that feeling of involvement right in the comfort of their own homes,” Duffy said. “But they’re also empowered with the tools to take this out into their community.”

Educating high school and college students about how to effectively and positively contribute to the pro-life conversation is critical, said Matt Murphy. Murphy spoke on behalf of Students for Life, an organization that focuses on empowering students to start pro-life groups on college, high school and graduate campuses.

“Basically, there are two ends of the pro-life spectrum,” he said. “On one end, you have pro-lifers who can be adamant to the point of coming across as completely insensitive to the needs and desires of those who are most vulnerable in our society. On the other end, you have pro-lifers who are hesitant to speak out at all because they fear the controversy it will create and they don’t want to ‘poke the bear.’”

Murphy provides pro-life apologetics resources and training to help students “embrace the controversy” while engaging with compassion and kindness.

Wisconsin Right to Life also offers programs, such as the five-day Teen Impact Camp, to educate youth about the pro-life movement. Duffy, who attended the camp in 2010, called it “transformative.”

“There are speakers, and we have a day at the Capitol where we meet with legislators and learn more about the legislative process and how they can get involved,” Duffy said. “They build deep relationships with their peers. I am still friends with people I went to camp with back in 2010. There are also water balloon fights and other fun activities one would expect to find at a summer camp.”

Duffy and her family have established the Ewan Duffy Scholarship (in honor of her deceased son) for teens who would be otherwise unable to attend due to financial reasons.

“I feel very passionately about the future of the pro-life movement, and we want to make sure no kid is turned away,” she said.

Pro-Life Programs in the Parishes

Other pro-life advocates from around the Archdiocese of Milwaukee at the Church Hall event reported on the programs that have been successful in their specific parish communities. These included The Gospel of Life Study Series, Walking with Moms in Need and Heavenly Babies.

Gospel of Life Study Series

The Gospel of Life program is a six-part study series based on the papal encyclical Evangelium vitae, written by St. John Paul II while he was pope in 1995 to reaffirm the value and inviolability of every human life and make an appeal to all people to respect, protect, love and serve every human life.

Kevin Gilpin, who serves on the Respect Life Committee at Holy Apostles, presented the study two years ago at his home parish, then most recently brought the program to St. John Vianney in Brookfield.

“The program consists of six sessions, one per month, on each of the topics of the study series,” Gilpin said. To provide additional context, Gilpin augmented the study with research dating back to the early 1800s on the history of contraception and techniques of abortion, also noting other encyclicals written by popes throughout history. Each session requires about 20 pages of reading, except for the first and last.

Gilpin offered to help anyone who’d like to bring the program to their parish. He can be reached at kevin_gilpin@yahoo.com.

Walking with Moms in Need

On March 25, 2020, the Church celebrated the 25th anniversary of Evangelium vitae. At that time, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Pro-Life Activities invited parishes to join a nationwide effort called Walking with Moms in Need.

Dr. Patrick Lehman, a pediatrician in Brookfield, has been leading the effort at St. John Vianney, organizing volunteers to help build an archdiocesan resources list for pregnant women in need.

“I see moms every day that are just fighting the good fight,” he said. “Moms that have troubles, moms that have babies that have very difficult medical conditions. I am here today because I want to be able to support those moms, but also moms in the community.”

The goal of Walking with Moms in Need is to identify and aggregate a list of all of the services and resources in a community so that any parish located in that community can easily connect mothers with the help they need — should they seek it. Lehman and his volunteers have been doing this in Waukesha County but would like to see the same effort take place in Milwaukee and Racine Counties so a comprehensive list of resources is available.

To help, contact Lehman at patrick.lehman@gmail.com.

Heavenly Babies

Heavenly Babies is a ministry that provides mothers in need with a “baby shower in a bag.” It’s a program that has a long history at St. Paul Catholic Church in Genesee Depot and is currently led by Susan Fine.

“In the late ’60s and early ’70s, a lady from our parish went to a baby shower and saw all the nice items that this new mom was receiving. And all of a sudden, this seed was planted, and she said, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if everybody got a baby shower in a bag, or baby shower items like this mom is getting?’” Fine said. “The woman came back to the church, and they came up with the ministry.”

Today Heavenly Babies provides baby supplies to 12 different agencies and is made up of 20 volunteers.

For more information about Heavenly Babies, contact Fine at sfine56038@aol.com.

The next Pro-Life Church Hall Meeting is tentatively set for March. To be notified when details are available, contact Dcn. Matthias at matthiasj@archmil.org.

Many Catholic schools have 2024 open houses set for January or February as part of National Catholic Schools Week.

ALL SAINTS
4400 22nd Ave., Kenosha, 53140
262-925-4024
allsaintskenosha.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

BURLINGTON CATHOLIC – ST. CHARLES
449 Conkey St., Burlington, 53105
262-763-2848
ourbcs.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, Mass at 8 a.m., 9 a.m. to noon

BURLINGTON CATHOLIC – ST. MARY
222 W. State St., Burlington, 53105
262-763-1515
ourbcs.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, Mass at 8 a.m., 9 a.m. to noon

CATHOLIC EAST
2461 N. Murray Ave., Milwaukee, 53211
2038 N. Bartlett Ave., Milwaukee, 53202
414-964-1770
catholiceast.org
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 3:45 to 5 p.m.

CHRIST CHILD ACADEMY
2722 Henry St., Sheboygan, 53081
920-459-2660
christchildacademy.com
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 6 to 7:30 p.m.

CHRIST KING
2646 N. Swan Blvd., Wauwatosa, 53226
414-258-4160
christkingparish.org/school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9 a.m. to noon

DIVINE MERCY
695 College Ave., South Milwaukee, 53172
414-764-4360
divinemercysmschool.org
Thursday, Feb. 1, 4:30 to 7 p.m.

DIVINE SAVIOR
305 Fredonia Ave., Fredonia, 53021
262-692-2141
dsoll.org/DSCS
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

HOLY ANGELS
230 N. Eighth Ave., West Bend, 53095
262-338-1148
haswb.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

HOLY FAMILY
4849 N. Wildwood Ave., Whitefish Bay, 53217
414-332-8175
hfparishschool.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

HOLY TRINITY
305 Main St., Kewaskum, 53040
262-626-2603
htschool.net
Sunday, Jan. 28, noon to 1 p.m.

HOLYLAND CATHOLIC SCHOOL
N9290 Highway W, Malone, 54935
920-795-4222
holylandcatholicschool.org
Sunday, Feb. 4, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

JOHN PAUL II ACADEMY
2023 Northwestern Ave., Racine, 53404
262-637-2012
johnpaulacademy.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

LUMEN CHRISTI
11300 N. St. James Lane, Mequon, 53092
262-242-7960
lcsaints.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10 a.m. to noon

MARY QUEEN OF SAINTS
1227 S. 116th St., West Allis
414-476-0751
mqsca.org
Thursday, Feb. 1, 5 to 7 p.m.

MOTHER OF GOOD COUNSEL
3001 N. 68th St., Milwaukee, 53210
414-442-7600
mgcparish.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

NATIVITY JESUIT
1515 S. 29th St., Milwaukee, 53215
414-645-1060
nativityjesuit.org
Thursday, Feb. 8, 5:30 to 7 p.m.

NORTHWEST CATHOLIC
7140 N. 41st St., Milwaukee, 53209
414-352-6927
nwcschool.org
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 8 to 10 a.m.

OUR LADY OF GRACE
1435 Grove Ave., Racine, 53405
262-833-7100
ologa.org
Thursday, Feb. 1, 5 to 7 p.m.

OUR LADY QUEEN OF PEACE
2733 W. Euclid Ave., Milwaukee, 53215
414-672-6660
ourladyqueenofpeaceparish.org
Thursday, Feb. 1, 6 to 8 p.m.

PRINCE OF PEACE
1138 S. 25th St., Milwaukee, 53204
414-645-8786
setoncatholicschools.com/prince-of-peace
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 4:30 to 6 p.m.

SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS
W1562 County Road B, Eden, 53019
920-477-3551
soth-school.org
Saturday, Jan. 27, Following 4 p.m. Mass until 6 p.m.

ST. AGNES
12801 W. Fairmount Ave., Butler, 53007
262-781-4996
stagnesparish.org/schoolmp
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

ST. ALPHONSUS
6000 W. Loomis Road, Greendale, 53129
414-421-1760
school.st-alphonsus.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10 a.m. to noon

ST. ANDREW
115 S. Seventh St., Delavan, 53115
262-728-6211
standrews-delavan.org/school
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 5:30 to 7 p.m.

ST. ANTHONY ON THE LAKE
W280N2101 Prospect Ave., Pewaukee, 53072
262-691-0460
stanthony.cc/school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

ST. BRUNO
246 W. Ottawa St., Dousman, 53118
262-965-2291
stbrunoparish.com/st-bruno-parish-school
Sunday, Jan. 28 (Winter Carnival), 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 1 (Academic Night), 6:30 to 8 p.m.

ST. CATHERINE
2647 N. 51st St., Milwaukee, 53210
414-445-2846
saintcatherine.org
Thursday, Feb. 1, 3 to 5 p.m.

ST. CHARLES
526 Renson Road, Hartland, 53029
262-367-2040
school.stcharleshartland.com
Sunday, Jan. 21, 10 a.m. to noon

ST. CHARLES BORROMEO
3100 W. Parnell, Milwaukee, 53221
414-282-0767
scbmil.org/school-page
Thursday, Feb. 1, 6 to 8 p.m.

ST. DOMINIC
18105 W. Capitol Drive, Brookfield, 53045
262-783-7565
stdominic.net/school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

ST. EUGENE
7600 N. Port Washington Road, Fox Point, 53217
414-918-1120
steugene.school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

ST. FRANCES CABRINI
529 Hawthorn Drive, West Bend, 53095
262-334-7142
school.saintfrancescabrini.com
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9 a.m. to noon (with pancake breakfast)

ST. FRANCIS BORGIA
1425 Covered Bridge Road, Cedarburg, 53012
262-377-2050
sfbschool.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m.

ST. GABRIEL
1200 St. Gabriel Way, Hubertus, 53033
262-628-1711
sgabriel.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9 a.m. to noon

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT
3132 S. 63rd St., Milwaukee, 53219
414-321-1350
gregthegreat.org
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST
116 Pleasant St., Plymouth, 53073
920-893-5961
sjbplymouth.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.

ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST
8500 W. Cold Spring Road, Greenfield, 53228
414-321-1965
sje.k12.wi.us
Saturday, Jan. 27, 2 to 4 p.m.

ST. JOHN VIANNEY
17500 W. Gebhardt Road, Brookfield, 53045
262-796-3942
stjohnv.org/school
Wednesday, Jan. 24, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10 to 11 a.m.

ST. JOHN XXIII
1802 N. Wisconsin St., Port Washington, 53074
262-284-2682
stjohn23rd.school
Saturday, Feb. 3, 3 p.m. (Mass, spaghetti dinner and student talent show to follow)

ST. JOSEPH – BIG BEND
S89W22650 Milwaukee Ave., Big Bend, 53103
262-662-2832
stjoesbb.com/school
Sunday, Feb. 28, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

ST. JOSEPH – GRAFTON
1619 Washington St., Grafton, 53024
262-375-6505
stjosephgrafton.org/school
Thursday, Feb. 1, 5 to 7 p.m.

ST. JOSEPH – RACINE
1525 Erie St., Racine, 53402
262-633-2403
st-joes-school.org
Monday, Feb. 5, 3:15 to 5:15 p.m.

ST. JOSEPH – WAUWATOSA
2750 N. 122nd St., Wauwatosa, 53222
414-771-5577
stjosephschooltosa.com
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC ACADEMY – LOWER CAMPUS
7207 14th Ave., Kenosha, 53143
262-656-7360
sjcawi.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 1 to 4 p.m.

ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC ACADEMY – UPPER CAMPUS
2401 69th St., Kenosha, 53143
262-654-8651
sjcawi.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 1 to 4 p.m.

ST. LEONARD
W173S7777 Westwood Drive, Muskego, 53150
262-679-0451
stleonards.org/school
Sunday, Jan. 21, noon to 1:30 p.m.

ST. LUCY
3035 Drexel Ave., Racine, 53403
262-554-1801
stlucysschool.com
Thursday, Feb. 1, 5 to 7 p.m.

ST. MARGARET MARY
3950 N. 92nd St., Milwaukee, 53222
414-463-8760
setoncatholicschools.com/st-margaret-mary
Thursday, Feb. 1, 3:30 to 6 p.m.

ST. MARY – HALES CORNERS
9553 W. Edgerton Ave., Hales Corners, 53130
414-425-3100
stmaryhc.org/school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

ST. MARY – MENOMONEE FALLS
N89W16215 Cleveland Ave., Menomonee Falls, 53051
262-251-1050
stmaryparishschool.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

ST. MARY’S VISITATION
13000 Juneau Blvd., Elm Grove, 53122
262-782-7057
stmaryeg.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 8:30 to 11 a.m.

ST. MATTHEW
9329 S. Chicago Road, Oak Creek, 53154
414-762-6820
stmattoc.org
Saturday, Jan. 27, 2:30 to 4 p.m.

ST. MATTHIAS
9300 W. Beloit Road, Milwaukee, 53227
414-321-0894
stmatthias-milw.org/school
Wednesday, Jan. 24, 6 to 7 p.m.

ST. MONICA
5635 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Whitefish Bay, 53217
414-420-6246
stmonica.school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9 a.m. to noon

ST. PETER
206 E. Washington St., Slinger, 53086
262-644-8083
spcsslinger.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, noon to 1:30 p.m.

ST. RITA
4433 Douglas Ave., Racine, 53402
262-639-3333
st-ritasschool.org
Tuesday, Jan. 30, 5 to 7 p.m.

ST. ROBERT
2200 E. Capitol Drive, Shorewood, 53211
414-332-1164
strobert.school
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.

ST. ROMAN
1810 W. Bolivar Ave., Milwaukee, 53221
414-282-7970
stromanschool.com
Thursday, Feb. 1, 6 to 8 p.m.

ST. SEBASTIAN
1747 N. 54th St., Milwaukee, 53208
414-453-5830
school.saintsebs.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 9 to 11 a.m.

ST. SEBASTIAN STEM ACADEMY
3030 95th St., Sturtevant, 53177
262-425-0009
stsebacademy.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 10 a.m. to noon

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS
341 E. Norwich St., Milwaukee, 53207
414-744-1214
thomasaquinasacademy.com
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 4 to 6 p.m.

WAUKESHA CATHOLIC – ST. MARY
520 E. Newhall Ave, Waukesha, 53188
262-896-2929
waukeshacatholic.org
Sunday, Feb. 4, 9 to 11 a.m.

WAUKESHA CATHOLIC – ST. WILLIAM
444 N. Moreland Blvd., Waukesha, 53188
262-896-2929
waukeshacatholic.org
Sunday, Jan. 28, 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Last year, Pro-Life Wisconsin expected to host its final trip to Washington, D.C., for the annual March for Life held in January near the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.

The court’s Dobbs decision June 24, 2022, effectively outlawed abortion in Wisconsin and some other states.

Unfortunately, after 50 years of abortion on demand, Pro-Life Wisconsin could see that Americans were addicted to abortion, explained Cindy Mich, Communications Director.

“Because they have friends in high places, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin decided to roll the dice and resume abortions in Milwaukee and Dane counties. The district attorneys and sheriffs in Milwaukee and Dane counties have made it clear that they are not going to enforce the law, which they all took an oath of office to do,” Mich said.

For these reasons, Pro-Life Wisconsin decided to participate in the March for Life again.

The March for Life trip to Washington, D.C., takes place Jan. 17-21. This event unites pro-life people to act as witnesses for life on a national level.

“Our supporters really wanted us to go,” Mich said. “We listen to our people. The fight has just begun.”

Despite the Dobbs decision, the mission of Pro-Life Wisconsin — to protect the innocent and the vulnerable — has not changed.

“Yet, how we choose to carry it out has to pivot at a moment’s notice,” Mich explained. “Pro-Life Wisconsin has always been ready to fight the battle, whether it is out front of an abortion center, in the State Capitol or the courts. We will employ every legal remedy to keep abortion out of the state of Wisconsin.”

The theme for the 2024 march is “With Every Woman, For Every Child.”

“The emphasis is on the ideal of ‘You can do this, and I will help you! You are not alone and worthy of love and support,’” Mich said.

Fr. Matthew Perumpil, M.I., is shown after a Mass celebrated in Bangalore, India, as part of a reunion with about 120 children — many now adults — that he “parented” as the director of a home for orphans who carried the HIV virus. (Submitted photo)

The pastor of Mother of Perpetual Help Parish in West Allis enjoyed a one-of-a-kind reunion in Bangalore, India, last month with more than 100 adults and children he regards as his “children.”

The reunion drew about 120 of 145 children under the care of Fr. Matthew Perumpil, M.I., from 2008 to 2019 in a home he established with his order for HIV-positive orphans. Some even brought children of their own and Fr. Perumpil regards them as his “grandchildren.”

“We spent time sharing our stories, talking about the challenges they face as they live normally outside and how we need to maintain our extended family network to support one another,” he said of his December visit.

Fr. Perumpil’s special ministry started with just three children in Bangalore, India, in 2002.

At the time, the AIDS epidemic was gripping the country, affecting large numbers of families, especially poor women who were married, getting infected from their husbands and transmitting the virus to their children during childbirth and breastfeeding. There was no treatment available and most people in the early phase of the epidemic died.

“One of the first centers to care for the HIV infected in India was run by Camillians in Bangalore, and I was appointed as the director in 2002,” Fr. Perumpil recalled. “Most of what we could do in those days was to care for them and help them die with dignity.”

Fr. Perumpil, a priest from the Order of St. Camillus, was caring for a woman who was dying of HIV/AIDS when he faced an unusual problem.

The mother had no one to care for her three daughters, as she had no other family. The oldest was not infected, but the others were, and no one wanted to take in infected children then.

“No one was willing to take care of the infected children as they would pass on the virus to others. Their life span at that time was very short. So we first started a home for them and took care of them.”

Fr. Perumpil credits his natural call to fatherhood for his assurance to the woman that he would care for her daughters. He recalled not having a clue about child-rearing at first.

Many mothers died in the center and entrusted their children to him. He said he couldn’t have been a “dad” to 145 children without the assistance of volunteers.

“Then we got the help of some religious sisters to take care of the girls in particular. I had a great team of social workers, nurses and consulting doctors throughout the program,” he said. “I was their legal guardian, and the home and school was registered, even though we never called it an orphanage.”

“We started with 20 children, boys and girls, all between the ages of 4 to 10. Most of these children were orphans and were very sick, so our focus was health care and nutrition as they were severely malnourished. Slowly we built a program addressing all their needs including education.”

As successful treatment for children became available, Fr. Perumpil faced a new challenge — securing the future of these young ones, many of whom had no family. He came up with the idea of a residential school model providing comprehensive care and support to build their lives.

“In the second year, we admitted 40 more children and built a beautiful home and school for them. In four years, the number reached 100,” he recalled. In 2013, as the oldest of the children were becoming teenagers, Fr. Perumpil opened a second campus capable of accommodating 100 boys and 100 girls. The children continued their academics with vocational training and other life skills required to build their future.

“Now most of them are living and working outside. Some of them are married and have children. They are doing well with their health in general, even though they will have to be on treatment for HIV for life. Only 30 children under 18 are in our care now. Those who are living outside are connected through a networking and supportive program.”

After coming to the United States in September 2019 for a short sabbatical from the program, Fr. Perumpil planned to return to India, but ended up working at the St. Camillus Community Residence in Wauwatosa, for the care of the seniors and later, beginning in 2021, at Mother of Perpetual Help Parish.

Fr. Perumpil remains a distant father figure. “Being far away, the only way I can be in touch with them is through phone calls. We agreed to be family for each other and strengthen the bond through sharing whenever we can,” he said.

Team-building games were part of a family retreat experience offered by St. Anthony School in Milwaukee and held at the Catholic Ecology Center. (Submitted photo)

Great staff retreat experiences at the Catholic Ecology Center in Dodge County led St. Anthony School of Milwaukee to offer a day-long family retreat there in November.

“One thing that stuck out to our team is that we wanted our families to experience what we get to experience,” said Eyleen Hernandez, who serves as a parent coordinator for the school. “Every year we go to the Catholic Ecology Center for our end-of-year staff retreat, and every time we leave feeling rejuvenated, and we thought our families deserve this, too.”

In addition, “We want them to have the opportunity to experience things that are not just in walking distance, but to experience this peace and to see things outside of our city,” Hernandez said.

“It was really amazing,” said Susana Contreras, another one of the school’s parent coordinators. “We had almost 100 people and it was just beautiful.”

The goal, Contreras explained, was to provide families with an opportunity to connect, away from distractions. “We’ve seen, lately, the disconnect between parents and their families. Parents are working a lot. Sometimes they don’t have enough time to give to their kids. We’re working to help the connection, to go to a place to disconnect completely, take time as a family, and have fun activities.”

Cell phones were not allowed for participants, Contreras said. “At the end, one of the moms said she appreciated that, about the cell phones, that they didn’t think about cell phones all day. They took the time to really be there with the kids, talking and laughing.”

The day began at 7:30 a.m., when families boarded buses for the retreat at the Catholic Ecology Center, which is located just southeast of Neosho.

When they arrived, they gathered for an opening Mass, celebrated by St. Anthony’s Associate Pastor Fr. Milton Herrera. “It was a way for our families to participate, reading scripture, some were leading the songs,” Hernandez said. “For some families who don’t always have access to attend Mass on Sunday all the time, it was a beautiful way to reconnect and have that one-on-one with God.”

After Mass, participants divided into three smaller groups of families, and cycled through different activities.

“Oftentimes, the school or parish will give us a goal for the day,” said Theresa Liebert, Program Coordinator for the Catholic Ecology Center. “We design the day around those goals,” she said. The goal for St. Anthony’s retreat was to grow in faith and communication.

One activity was a series of team building games. “People had to work as a team and communicate,” said Hernandez. “It was team building with families. A lot of it was building support, and realizing you need each other to accomplish a final goal.”

One game involved removing a ball from a cage using sticks, Contreras said. “The main purpose was communication. Each participant had a stick, and they had to work together to get the ball out of there. It was kids versus parents. It was fun to see people laughing.”

Another activity was a nature hike around the grounds. Hernandez said the leaders from the Catholic Ecology Center taught families about the animals and plants that live on the grounds, including many that are unique to Wisconsin. “Seeing them light up as they learned these new things was really cool,” she said. “We ended the trail at a chicken coop, where the kids could catch the chickens, and hold them, and watch eggs being hatched.”

Groups also participated in an art activity, painting small clay pots. “You could see families coming together with ideas for pots they were painting,” Hernandez said.

“That was the relaxing time of the day, to slow down and have some bonding time in those relationships,” Liebert said.

“Some of the parents, especially the dads, didn’t want to do it, but we encouraged them to participate in everything,” Contreras said. “At the end, one of the dads was like, ‘Thank you for encouraging me and pushing me out of my comfort zone.’”

Participants enjoyed tacos for lunch and received a dinner to go at the end of the day. “We wanted to make sure we had everything for them there,” Contreras said.

This was the school’s first family retreat, which was funded by a grant from City Forward Collective, Hernandez said. Planning began in February. She explained that the idea was inspired by the annual staff retreat.

St. Anthony School has approximately 1,500 students in grades K4 through 12. The retreat was open to families of students in all grades. Both Contreras and Hernandez said that they hope to make this an annual event, and to expand it. “If we could take double or triple next year, that would be great,” Hernandez said.

“It was beautiful to see the joy in the parents with their kids and spending time with their children,” Contreras said.

Former school teacher Meredith Langan returned to the classroom for a day thanks to St. John the Baptist School in Plymouth and the nearby assisted-living residence where Langan resides. (Submitted photo)

It didn’t matter whether she was in a classroom or not — Meredith Langan has always been a teacher at heart.

So, when the 86-year-old was given the opportunity to do absolutely anything, the choice was simple: she wanted to be a teacher again, just for a day.

Thanks to the efforts of the staff at The Waterford at Plymouth, the assisted living community where Langan resides, and nearby St. John the Baptist Catholic School, Langan got her wish.

Teachers and students rolled out the red carpet for Langan on a mid-November morning, lining the halls to welcome her into the Sheboygan County school. After members of the student council presented her with a bouquet of flowers and a “Teacher for the Day” certificate, Langan proceeded to the 3K classroom, where her great-grandson Jonah is a student, and read to the class.

“They took something that could have just been so simple, and they made her queen for a day,” said Meredith Langan-Gluck, Langan’s daughter and Jonah’s grandmother.

“It was wonderful that we could help make her dream come true to be back in a classroom again,” said Amy Nelson, principal of St. John the Baptist. “It was an amazing and very heartwarming experience.”

It all started when The Waterford reached out to Nelson to inquire if she and her colleagues could help make Langan’s wish come true. The Waterford has a “Tree of Dreams” program, where staff members ask residents, “If money was no object, what is something that you would like to do?” Langan-Gluck explained. Other “dreams” that residents have seen fulfilled include riding on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and attending a Brewers game in Milwaukee. But Langan knew exactly what she would do, if she could do anything.

“Mom said she wanted to teach again,” Langan-Gluck said.

Langan became a first grade teacher in the suburbs of Chicago in 1959, but by the end of the school year she was married and expecting her first child. At the time, pregnant women were expected to immediately leave the workforce, so she had to leave her beloved students, most of whom had attended her recent wedding. But she poured all that energy into educating her own children: “Mom always told me that I went to the best preschool in the world, because it was just me and her,” Langan-Gluck said. “Just because you’re no longer in a classroom doesn’t mean you’re not teaching anymore.”

After Langan’s three children were grown, she returned to the classroom, teaching fifth grade for 15 years until her retirement.

As she sat in the 3K classroom at St. John the Baptist reading “Llama Llama Red Pajama,” Langan showed that she still had the ability to create a rapport with students, even after all these years, as she invited the children to engage with the book in their own way, showing them the illustrations and discussing the geographic regions where llamas live.

“I just saw this light come on (within her),” Langan-Gluck said. “She just kept saying to me, ‘It’s just like it’s not even real. It was the best day I’ve had in a long, long time.’”

Fourth grade students at St. Frances Cabrini School in West Bend are shown last spring with a knight’s helmet trophy used as reward for good behavior as part of a program funded with a GIFTS grant. (Submitted photo)

2024 Archbishop’s Catholic Schools Dinner
Date: Tuesday, March 5
Time: 4 p.m. Mass with Bishop Jeffrey R. Haines; 5 p.m. cocktail reception; 6 p.m. dinner and program
Location: Baird Center, 400 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee
Purpose: Funds from the Catholic Schools Dinner directly benefit the GIFTS (Grant Initiatives for Today’s Students) program, which allows local schools to fund important projects and programs. In the past five years, more than $1 million has been given in grants.
RSVP Deadline: Feb. 20
More Information: Buy tickets online at archmil.regfox.com/schoolsdinner2024 or contact Paige Rohr at rohrp@archmil.org or 414-769-3451

Catholic identity is something that St. Frances Cabrini School in West Bend has been focusing on more and more in recent years. As Principal William Waech puts it: “As a Catholic school, we’re supposed to be different. We want to make sure there’s Catholicism woven into everything we’re doing.”

So, when Waech and his staff decided to implement a school-wide behavioral management system, they knew that a secular strategy would not adequately address their needs.

Enter GPS — “God’s Positioning System” — St. Frances Cabrini’s very own program for developing “holy habits” in the classroom, in the home and in the hearts of each of its 208 students.

“It’s a form of positive behavior expectations used throughout every area in our school,” explained Cheyanne Broeckel, physical education teacher and athletic director at the school.

Tracy Lehnerz, an English Language Arts teacher at St. Frances Cabrini’s middle school, described it as “a common language throughout the building.”

“It’s a tool to help us create a safe, welcoming, respectful environment for all of our students,” she said. “I can say the same thing to a kindergartener and also an eighth grader, and both understand the expectation.”

GPS was made possible by the school’s 2022 GIFTS Grant from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. The GIFTS Grant funded the purchase of the Education in Virtue curriculum created by the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, which provided the basis for GPS.

“Our GPS matrix hits on five important virtues, (which) also happen to (form) the acronym of HEART, our school icon,” said Broeckel. Those virtues are humility, self-control, perseverance, responsibility and respect (the “e”, “a” and “t” in the acronym are borrowed from self-control, perseverance and respect). “Our team came up with the wording based on the idea that we should behave and act in certain ways to make our hearts like Christ’s.”

The GPS matrix is posted throughout the school and taught in classrooms according to grade level. Kindergarten teacher Emily Graper said she begins the year by going through the matrix as a whole, and then discussing each specific virtue and what it looks like in practice.

“The students also learn about a saint (who) lived a life of virtue, and we spend the week practicing and reteaching throughout,” she said. “When I witness students practicing the expectation and showing an understanding of the virtue, I reward the class with a GPS slip.”

The classroom matrices “serve as a great visual reminder for students of what is expected of them in all areas of our building,” said Lehnerz. “A quick reference to the classroom matrix is able to get a student ‘back on track’ when they are not meeting behavioral expectations.” Matrices are also sent home to parents.

Broeckel said she finds the GPS behavior expectations especially crucial in her classroom, since it is a physical environment.

“Having my students see the connection between them and then repeating the matrix year after year also creates a special culture in my gym and our school,” she said. “At the start of the year, we discuss what our matrix looks like in the gym. Each day and lesson, I remind students what we are striving for. Sometimes the lesson really challenges our perseverance. The students then know their goal for the day.”

As much as she wants her students to learn physical education skills, it’s those HEART virtues that she puts above everything else, Broeckel said.

“If my kids can be a part of a virtue/character-driven culture, their participation and confidence in sport skills increases and their enjoyment with each other in games increases.”

The virtues and expectations are reviewed and practiced all year, Graper said. “Every Monday during our school assembly, all the GPS tickets are collected and one is picked to win the knight helmet for the week.”

When Waech graduated from college, his uncle gave him a knight’s helmet handcrafted by a blacksmith. St. Frances Cabrini School’s mascot just so happens to be a knight — so he has put his knight’s helmet to a noble purpose as a traveling incentive for the students.

“The kids are all about having that knight helmet in their room,” he said.

In St. Frances Cabrini’s middle school, students in fifth through eighth grade are divided into four “houses” and earn GPS slips for their houses rather than for their classroom. “My seventh graders last year worked particularly hard to earn GPS slips,” said Lehnerz. “I never thought that GPS slips and a knight helmet would motivate seventh graders the way it did. It was quite remarkable. I’ve really noticed students rising to the occasion.”

Elementary and middle school are crucial times to model and instill these virtues, said Waech. It’s an opportunity that educators more and more are missing out on.

“When you look at the world today, there’s clearly a lack of these types of things being taught,” he said. “I think it’s important to immerse the kids in it while they’re here. The whole goal is to look at your eighth-grade graduate and how you want them to act in high school when they’re not under your care anymore.”

“We have an important job as Catholic school teachers. We not only want to make our students into good citizens, but we also want to make them saints,” said Lehnerz. “When we talk about behaviors as tied to virtues, students learn and grow in their faith as well. St. Gregory of Nyssa said, ‘The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God.’ What a joy it is to be on that journey with our students.”

Detail from the Isenheim Altarpiece on display at the Unterlinden Museum at Colmar, Alsace, in France. (Wikimedia Commons)