It’s a chance to learn and creatively express how our faith calls us to help address poverty.

Students from two Catholic schools in the Diocese of Grand Rapids have participated in a national art contest exploring poverty’s root causes and the Church’s response to it. The annual “Creating on the Margins” art contest is organized by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development and is open to young people in 7th-12th grade.

This guest post is from Mrs. Tara Lafferty, a teacher at Divine Providence Academy.

I teach 6th-8th grade at Divine Providence Academy. Most of my students live on farms, or on land with a lot of space. Their homes are also spread out from each other, dotting a radius of 30 miles or more.

This story originally appeared in the April 2020 issue of FAITH Grand Rapids magazine. It was written by Maryalene Laponsie and features photography by Holly Dolci.

‘They looked at him with love’

More than 400 4^th graders from Catholic schools across the Diocese of Grand Rapids gathered for the annual Songfest concert on March 5. It was the 24^th year for the program.

Deacon Dennis Rybicki directed the program, as he has every year. It was emceed by principals Cindy Thomas of St. Stephen and Kevin Varner of Our Lady of Consolation. The concert took place at West Catholic High School.

Talking with Mr. Faber, the students learned about some of the things a superintendent does.

The event is an opportunity to pray and peacefully protest the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, and to promote the gift and sanctity of life.

The 24-hour giving event begins on Jan. 28, during Celebrate Catholic Schools Week.

This new college scholarship program is for Grand Rapids residents graduating from a high school within the city, starting with the class of 2020.

The new construction adds six classrooms to the school.