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SERVICE
At Mater
Dei, it is our belief that the experience of serving others
allows our students to develop self-confidence, to become aware
of the needs of others, and to recognize the many ways they can
utilize the gifts and talents God has bestowed on them.
Moreover, service guides the students to an understanding that
faith requires action and is demonstrated in deeds. Therefore,
we take immense pride in our students’ remarkable commitment to
meeting the needs of our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ,
as they continually respond to our main calling as Catholics:
to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.
Throughout the year, as part of their religion class, students
perform individual service at home, at school, and in the
community. Moreover, our students actively participate in
special Mater Dei service projects sponsored by both their
religion classes and other organizations.
On a weekly basis, students
donate money to the missions that are sponsored by each class.
Currently, our students support the Diocese of Belleville CYO’s
mission in Guatemala; the Sacred Brothers, Sacred Sisters’
orphanage in Venezuela; the School Sisters of Notre Dame’s
mission in Honduras; and the Poor
Handmaids of Jesus Christ’s mission in Mexico. During the
2008 - 2009 school year, our
students donated over $9,000 to these missions!
On
a monthly basis, our students may also choose to visit the
Warren G. Murray Development Center, a home for mentally and
physically challenged individuals which is located in
Centralia. This unique service opportunity has been a part of
Mater Dei’s outreach program for over 35 years! (For additional
information on Murray Center volunteers, please view the
“Activities” page.)
Finally, as seniors, our
students complete a three-week Senior Service Project, which the
Diocese of Belleville requires for Althoff Catholic High School,
Gibault Catholic High School, and Mater Dei Catholic High
School. More specifically, in January, our senior students
respond to the needs of others at a variety of locations in
Clinton County, the greater metro-east area, and St. Louis,
including day care centers, schools, hospitals, nursing homes,
civil agencies, and social agencies. Through their
participation in this project, our students connect the
educational experience of religion in the classroom to the
practical, day-to-day experience of religion in our society –
they truly serve to learn and learn to serve!
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