Get Ready to Picnic

The whole parish is invited to a picnic sponsored

by SPIRITuality ALIVE on the afternoon of

Sunday, May 23rd

Be sure to mark your calendar and plan to join us.

Happy Anniversary!

Five Years ago today:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

After the great Pope John Paul II, the Cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble laborer in the vineyard of the Lord. The fact that the Lord knows how to work and act even with inadequate instruments consoles me, so above all I entrust myself to your prayers.

In the joy of the Risen Lord, confident of his unfailing help, let us move forward. The Lord will help us and Mary, his Most Holy Mother, will be on our side.

Thank you.

First Communion Pictures

If you have any good First Communion Pictures, please let Deacon David know at dkrueger@saintcolumbkille.org.

Thanks!

Crazy Day

Monday was Crazy Hair Day in First Grade.

At Columb's Ceili, one of the items auctioned allowed one class to

wear crazy hair to school. This year the First Grade classes got to do it.

Of course the teachers got in on the fun.

There was also a marble party.



It was a very crazy day.

Dr. Blue

Tuesday night Fr. Damian introduced next year's principal, Dr. Cheryl Blue, to the school staff. Over the course of the next few months she plans to meet with teachers and staff individually before she becomes principal on July 1st.

A native of Lubbock, Texas Dr. Blue received her undergraduate degree in Spanish and English from Texas Tech University. She completed her Masters of Science in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Northern Colorado in 1973 and her Specialist degree in Administration from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. She received her doctorate in Administration, Curriculum, and Instruction from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1995.

She has also been an elementary and middle school principal, a high school dean, and a Spanish and English teacher. She served as the Assistant Superintendent for Instruction in the Plattsmouth School District and has been teaching Graduate and Post Graduate courses at Peru State College for ten years -- the last four as a full time faculty member. She taught in the DOD schools in Weisbaden, Germany, in the Denver Public Schools in Denver, Colorado, and in the Ralston Schools prior to her tenure in Plattsmouth.

Dr. Blue is also the Executive Director of the Nebraska Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) a state affiliate of the International organization. She serves as a representative from Nebraska to the International ASCD Leadership Council. In addition she has presented at numerous conferences around the nation.

Dr. Blue lives in Plattsmouth with her husband, Jim. They have four children, five grandchildren, and five great grandchildren.

Dr. Blue said she was attracted to St. Columbkille because of the school reputation and she missed being with the students and staff. She enjoyed meeting a few students after school yesterday and discussing their project.

Welcome Dr. Blue!

Fetal Hand Grasp

Photographer Michael Clancy took the picture above on Aug. 19, 1999 and was printed by USA Today on Sept. 7, 1999. Michael Clancy recounts that “… in the hushed but crowded operating room where outsiders have gathered to watch a rare medical event - spinal surgery on a child still in his mother’s womb - a stool falls with a loud bang. ‘Shh’, says, Joseph Bruner, the surgeon leading the operation. “You’ll wake the baby.”

At the age of 21 weeks Samual Armas was the baby grasping the hand of a surgeon who was performing surgery upon him at the age of 21 weeks to correct spina bifida.

Fox News caught up with Samuel in Georgia last year when he was 9. Samuel says he proud of the photo and is quoted saying, "A lot of babies would've lost their lives if that didn't happen."

Samuel will wear lower leg braces for the rest of his life as a result of spina bifida, which occurs when the spine fails to close properly during early pregnancy. He'll also use a wheelchair during long trips. His mother says Samuel "walks great."

Samuel is a decorated Cub Scout loves to swim, competing in swim team. He loves science and animals, especially orcas, bald eagles and tigers. He's also a bug collector.

Science Fair

Dr. Ein & Dr. Stein (transfer students from the Ralston School of Cosmetology) visited the 5th-8th grade classrooms to tell about their entry in the upcoming Science Fair.

They have been working on a formula to shrink things. Knowing how much students like vegetables in general, and Brussels sprouts in particular, they have invented a formula to shrink a day's worth of vegetables into a small spoon.

Unfortunately Fr Damian seemed to have stopped by their secret lab and drank from their beaker...

... shrinking him.

They are working to find a way to fix him before the Weekend Masses.

Thursday is the deadline to sign up to participate in the Science Fair. Students in grades 5 to 8 may sign up as an individual or as part of a team: just like Drs Ein & Stein.

Easter Vigil: Part II

Added to the excitement of the Easter Vigil is the addition

of new members by baptism and/or confirmation.

We are delighted to have these 17 additions to our parish family.

Divine Mercy Sunday

The message and devotion to Jesus as The Divine Mercy is based on the writings of Saint Faustina Kowalska, an uneducated Polish nun who, in obedience to her spiritual director, wrote a diary of about 600 pages recording the revelations she received about God’s mercy. Even before her death in 1938, the devotion to The Divine Mercy had begun to spread.

The message of mercy is that God loves us — all of us — no matter how great our sins. He wants us to recognize that His mercy is greater than our sins, so that we will call upon Him with trust, receive His mercy, and let it flow through us to others. Thus, all will come to share His joy. It is a message we can call to mind simply by remembering ABC.

A — Ask for His Mercy. God wants us to approach Him in prayer constantly, repenting of our sins and asking Him to pour His mercy out upon us and upon the whole world.

B — Be merciful. God wants us to receive His mercy and let it flow through us to others. He wants us to extend love and forgiveness to others just as He does to us.

C — Completely trust in Jesus. God wants us to know that the graces of His mercy are dependent upon our trust. The more we trust in Jesus, the more we will receive.

Purple Day

Last week each of the preschool classes celebrated

Purple Day.

It was fun to sing and play at preschool after Easter Break.