August 11, 2006 - Issue #16
Local News | Opinion/Editorials | Letters to the Editor
Archdiocese celebrates 40 years of CSS Catholic Social Services can trace its beginnings to the early 1960s, before the Anchorage Archdiocese was created
Mercy Sister Jean Pyper has worked for Catholic Social Services longer than any current employee — 17 years. That’s nearly half of the official 40 years that the archdiocese’s social outreach agency is celebrating this year.
Sister Pyper can tell you a great deal about the changing face of poverty challenging the agency.
"When I first arrived, the poor were generally young people and single moms. Today, we see a greater demand from families, middle-class people facing health emergencies who have never had to ask for help before."
Sister Pyper helps people who have received rental eviction notices. On the first of the month, when notices go out, her phone begins to ring.
"Within the first 20 minutes to a half an hour, I’ve received enough requests to exhaust the help that’s available to me," she told the Anchor last week.
Christ himself warned: The poor you have always with you. It has fallen to Catholic Social Services to carry the burden of the Catholic community’s response to that reality in Southcentral Alaska.
Catholic Social Services had its embryonic beginnings in the early 1960s, before the formation of the Anchorage Archdiocese, when all of Alaska was divided between the Dioceses of Juneau and Fairbanks.
Two young priests with new ideas arrived in Anchorage. Fathers Francis Murphy and Francis Cowgill, both later named monsignors, helped to found organizations that would begin to provide outreach to the needy. These included the Third Order of St. Francis and the Christian Family Movement.
Meanwhile, parishioners at Holy Family Church (now cathedral) in the heart of downtown saw the city’s problems pass by their front door each day. They responded with their own outreach, including a thrift store in the old church building, which stood to the south of the present cathedral.
Much of the early history of Catholic Social Services, or Catholic Charities as it was first known, is chronicled in a short paper written by a woman who played a pivotal role in the early years, Dona Agosti.
Agosti’s husband, Lino, was the presiding officer of the Third Order of St. Francis in 1961. He asked his wife to oversee outreach, so she took over fielding calls and marshaling volunteers.
She wrote that the organization’s "outreach program mushroomed so fast that the few members … were swamped" with requests for food, clothing and lodging.
Before long, a doctor named James O’Malley offered use of a house just down the alley from Holy Family.
Thus the first "St. Francis House," operated by volunteer Catholics, was born in approximately 1962.
Agosti wrote that food and clothing soon became only part of the outreach:
"Those without housing were given a night’s lodging at a rooming house and some families were given their first month’s rent. Propane was purchased for those facing a cold house in freezing weather, others were given transportation to doctor’s appointments, to welfare offices or to buy groceries."
Today, Agosti is 81 and in poor health. Her daughter, Tam Agosti-Gisler, recalls her mother’s efforts in those early days.
"Our phone would ring nonstop," Agosti-Gisler said. "One day I think my mother took 100 calls."
One morning, Agosti-Gisler recalled, she awoke to find nearly 20 Glen Alps homesteaders asleep on the family floor. Her mother had ushered them into her home when minus-45-degree weather made their cabins untenable.
Then in 1964 came the event that shaped much of the future for Southcentral, including the local Catholic Church. A massive earthquake brought huge needs and threw the spotlight on the fastest growing area of the state.
By then, the outreach group the Agostis helped operate called itself Catholic Charities and had 125 volunteers. When the apostolic nuncio visited Anchorage after the magnitude 9.2 earthquake, he gave the group several thousand dollars to assist in outreach efforts.
In 1966, Archbishop Joseph Ryan was made the first archbishop of the newly created Archdiocese of Anchorage.
Things became more official: The outreach network was incorporated and Jesuit Father Robert Whelan (later bishop of Fairbanks) headed the board of directors of Catholic Charities while Agosti continued as director.
In 1967, Archbishop Ryan brought Presentation Sister Mary Clare Ciulla from New York to serve as director of Catholic Charities. Agosti continued to help as needed, particularly in the aftermath of the huge Fairbanks flood that greeted Sister Ciulla in her first year.
Sister Ciulla, a garrulous redhead, became the face of Catholic Charities for more than 15 years.
She was particularly concerned with women in crisis pregnancies. In 1969, the agency became the first licensed adoption agency in the state and assumed the name Catholic Social Services.
Adoptions, counseling and St. Francis House were the mainstays of Catholic Social Services during this period.
In 1976, the man who would give Catholic Social Services its modern face arrived in Anchorage when Archbishop Francis Hurley replaced Archbishop Ryan.
The new archbishop was used to working with government agencies, both as bishop of Juneau where he collaborated with the city, and before that as assistant general secretary of the bishops’ conference in Washington, D.C.
In 1981, as the agency accepted a government grant to run a respite and day-care program, it became apparent to the new archbishop that Catholic Social Services was poised for growth.
"Sister Clare did a very good job at what she did," Archbishop Hurley said in a recent interview. But, "by analogy, it was sort of a mom-and-pop organization."
The archbishop hired Michael Meehan, a Catholic who was a former city planner for the Municipality of Anchorage, to assist the agency.
By 1984, Meehan became executive director of Catholic Social Services. Sister Ciulla continued on with the outreach and adoption work at which she excelled.
During the 1980s, the archdiocese embarked on two large government-church ventures that eventually became flagship programs: Brother Francis Shelter and Clare House.
Working with city and state agencies, Clare House, a shelter for women and children, first opened on 20th Avenue and C Street in 1983. In 1985, again with state and municipal assistance, the archdiocese purchased the present location of Clare House near Arctic Boulevard.
In 1982, the death of three street people due to exposure prompted community leaders to look for a solution to the growing homeless population.
"It shook the conscience of the city," said Archbishop Hurley, who told then-Mayor Tony Knowles, "Get me a place and I’ll run a program."
After a temporary fix in a downtown building, Brother Francis Shelter opened its doors in a renovated warehouse provided by the municipality in 1983. In 2005, a new facility was opened on city-owned land.
In 1985, Mercy Sister Arlene Boyd was inspired to open McAuley Manor, a licensed home for girls and young women under the auspices of Catholic Social Services. A similar home for teen boys, Charlie Elder House, opened in 2001.
From 1985 to 1993, Jim Caldarola served as executive director of Catholic Social Services. During his tenure, the archdiocese invited Covenant House — the national Catholic youth shelter operation — to open a facility in Anchorage. Catholic Social Services raised funds and purchased the building on 6th Avenue where Covenant House is presently located.
Also during this period, Kodiak’s Brother Francis Shelter was opened, the agency’s counseling program was expanded to rural areas, and the large Catholic Social Services Center was purchased on Anchorage’s east side.
Other directors of Catholic Social Services include Suzanne Goodrich, 1993-98, Karleen Jackson, 1998–2003, acting director Cheryl Sheldon, Feb.-July 2003, Yvonne Chase, 2003-2005, acting director Sister of St. Joseph Charlotte Davenport, 2005-2006, and current director Susan Bomalaski.
Today, Bomalaski sees the future of Catholic Social Services as "exciting and challenging."
Among her challenges, Bomalaski said, are "educating the public (about the organization) and creating a network of sustainable funding that makes sense."
Sustainable funding has always been a hurdle for Catholic Social Services.
Programs have occasionally fallen to the budget ax. The counseling department, for example, no longer exists. The Healthy Families program is no more, and Special Needs Services no longer operates its day care center. Last year the Refugee Assistance and Immigration Services program took deep cuts.
This year, Clare House was dealt a blow when it failed to receive funding through the Human Services Block Grant, which accounted for 22 percent of the shelter’s previous-year operating budget. The two-year decision affects next year’s funding as well.
Nevertheless, Bomalaski is optimistic and determined to continue to help the women and children — there were 600 last year — who need the shelter.
"We’re very proud of the work CSS does," Bomalaski said. "We’ve been here for 40 years, and we’re going to be here for another 40."
Editor’s Note: Anchor Writer Effie Caldarola is married to Jim Caldarola, who is mentioned in this story. For more about Catholic Social Services, please visit www.cssalaska.org.
Archdiocese welcomes partners from Philippines
The Anchorage Archdiocese’s partnership with the Philippines’ Cotabato Archdiocese is taking another step toward the "Spirit-filled relationship" the two faith groups committed to almost two years ago.
Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo and Auxiliary Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo were to arrive Aug. 10 in Anchorage with a nine-person delegation of priests, women religious and lay people from their Southern Philippine island of Mindanao.
In November 2004, Archbishop Roger Schwietz and seven Alaskans ventured to Cotabato and beyond, through Mindanao’s countryside, to be immersed in the lives of Muslim, Catholic and indigenous people living there.
They returned with a deep appreciation for the hospitality they received as villagers joined them along mountain trails and greeted them with banquets, members of the group said.
Before the Filipino delegation arrived, Archbishop Schwietz told the Anchor he hopes the Anchorage-Cotabato global solidarity partnership "becomes a part of our life as an archdiocese, as a local church."
Reaching out to another archdiocese an ocean away "gets our minds off just ourselves," he said.
During the 2004 visit to Mindanao, Alaskans got a taste of the region’s "basic ecclesial communities," faith groups at the heart of the life of the church in the rural areas the Alaskans visited.
Peace-building and inter-religious dialogue efforts are at the forefront of the church’s work on the war-torn island. In remote regions, Catholic Relief Services and parish priests are facilitating community-based health programs to meet the needs of villagers who may lack a safe source of water.
Bonnie Cler, co-chair of the global solidarity effort, said she hopes the Filipino delegation’s visit this month gives members of each archdiocese additional insight into "how we can complement each other."
Cler, who joined the delegation that visited Mindanao in 2004, is director of faith formation at St. Anthony Parish in Anchorage.
During their Aug. 10-22 visit here, the Filipino group will speak at parishes in Anchorage, Palmer, Wasilla, Kenai and Soldotna.
They’ll also tour Catholic Social Services’ programs and the Alaska Native Heritage Center and will meet with Alaska Native rural health providers.
They are being hosted by families from 10 different parishes along the way.
Archbishop Schwietz and Archbishop Quevedo formally signed the partnership agreement on Nov. 6, 2004, agreeing to "grow mutual understanding and support" between the people in pews on Mindanao and in Alaska.
The two Oblate archbishops pledged commitment to a long-term partnership that aims to "enrich the lives of our people through the sharing of who we are and what we have. We desire a partnership rooted in communion that is characterized by openness and solidarity."
Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. bishops’ overseas relief and development arm, facilitated the Anchorage-Cotabato global solidarity partnership.
The agency has helped form many such partnerships between American and overseas churches to emphasize the Catholic call to live in solidarity with others as one universal church.
"It could be an exciting thing," Archbishop Schwietz said last week. "One of the big differences is that their faith is so tangible and so public, and as Americans, we tend to be private in living our faith."
While in the Cotabato Archdiocese, Cler stayed with a family in the village of Dukay who woke at dawn to sing worship songs, share food and reflect on Scripture. She said she often recalls "how warm and inviting and accepting" the Filipino people are.
"Their strong faith and their enthusiasm for their faith — it seems to be the center of who they are," she said.
The Filipino delegates are slated to speak the weekend of Aug. 12 in Anchorage at St. Benedict, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Holy Family Cathedral and St. Patrick Parishes.
During the weekend of Aug. 20, they’ll be at St. Michael Parish in Palmer, Sacred Heart Parish in Wasilla, Our Lady of the Angels Parish in Kenai and Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Soldotna.
For more information, contact Cler at 333-5544.
Priest tells his worried parish: Get involved in community, help end violence in Anchorage
Editor’s note: Second in a two-part series about gang violence in Anchorage (click here for story1).
Anxiety about violent crime is growing among parishioners of East Anchorage’s St. Anthony Parish, according to pastor Father Fred Bugarin.
St. Anthony as a community has been working on crime prevention for more than two years, but a rash of shootings in the city over the past months has concentrated attention on the phenomenon, and more parishioners are turning to the church for help.
After a recent Mass at St. Anthony, a woman opened her hand to reveal a bullet casing found nearby. Others have told of waking to the sound of gunshots.
They get nervous when young people congregate in the streets at night and they want to know what the church can do to restore peace, Father Bugarin said.
He tells them that as people of faith, they have a duty to respond to the "prophetic call and mission and vocation" to voice their concerns and work for peace, he said.
One way they can do that, according to the pastor, is by partnering with police, municipal leaders and other faith communities through AFACT (Anchorage Faith & Action — Congregations Together).
The community-organizing group is a network of a dozen faith organizations, including St. Anthony Parish, whose members meet one-to-one with parishioners and neighbors in an effort to build relationships and improve the quality of life in the city.
AFACT has twice sponsored public crime-prevention meetings at St. Anthony Church.
Hundreds packed the pews Feb. 2, 2004, to hear from Anchorage Assemblymen, and again March 9, 2005, when Mayor Mark Begich and Police Chief Walt Monegan addressed those gathered.
Another AFACT meeting, held May 17 of this year at Central Lutheran Church, addressed the need for safe, after-school youth activities in West Fairview.
In addition, St. Anthony Parish youths have testified before the municipal assembly against a proposal to cut funding for cops — Student Resource Officers — in their schools.
AFACT has also organized two Clergy/Cops/Kids forums, bringing together pastors, police officers and a group of 25-40 area youths for a frank discussion about racial profiling and public safety.
Father Bugarin said he hopes the youths’ input will help police adapt their approach to law enforcement and cultivate a connection between the two groups.
"Whenever there is a dialogue, there is a relationship that is nurtured," Father Bugarin said.
Monegan said he "highly supports" the community partnerships that Clergy/Cops/Kids forums cultivate.
He also said the focus of police is to curb criminal behavior.
"All of us, when we were that age, everyone pushes the envelope somewhat. It’s not who or what you are, as much as what you do. Everyone’s focus should be on the behavior," not ethnicity or gender, he said.
Community-oriented policing — the crux of AFACT’s 2005 public crime prevention meeting — aims to form partnerships between community members and police officers.
At that 2005 gathering, Mayor Begich and Monegan agreed to incorporate the principles of community-oriented policing into the police department’s strategic plan.
"It’s developing a trust relationship with the youth in the neighborhoods," Father Bugarin said, "not just patrol and enforcement."
A year ago, the municipality established a "Community Youth Violence Gang Response Team," and now, the 11-person team recommends supervising students expelled from school, collaborating with ethnic and minority communities, educating about gang violence, and developing alternatives to gangs, to name a few strategies.
But Father Bugarin said July 18 that he hadn’t yet seen the fruition of the promise that city leaders made to hundreds during the crime meeting to implement community-oriented policing.
"We don’t see it happening" outside of the School Resource Officer program, the priest said.
One officer was appointed as a community council liaison by the Anchorage Police Department but was called back to headquarters last month.
Monegan said shift patrol officers attempt to attend community council meetings when they can but that the position probably won’t be permanently staffed for about another year.
Almost two years ago, a $50,000 federal grant was awarded for extra policing in Mountain View.
With that money, Monegan said, the department increased "directed patrols" during which officers sought out violence and domestic disturbances and staked out high-crime areas frequented by "gang-bangers."
While the existence of gangs is undeniable, Father Bugarin wondered if maybe gangs are "symptomatic" of greater problems such as a lack of effective parenting or supervision, he said.
In the meantime, the priest said he sees his role as a clergyman as helping people hear the call to put their faith into action.
At all four weekend Masses July 15-16, in the days following a shootout among young football players, Father Bugarin urged parishioners to "speak on behalf of right and justice."
"It’s the democratic process," Father Bugarin said. "Together in solidarity, we can certainly move mountains. We’re a faith-based organization. That’s where our power is."
Police chief Monegan echoed the priest’s sentiment.
"They’re stepping up to the plate and saying they’re a part of this community," he said. "Instead of all these entities speaking individually like solos, now they’re going to be spoken in a unified effort and we’re all on the same page, all singing the same song."
Early start for 2008 World Youth Day plans
Although those who journeyed to the 2005 World Youth Day in Germany are still talking about their adventures, believe it or not it’s time to start planning for Australia.
Bob McMorrow, a member of the archdiocesan Youth Evangelization Team and the local point man for World Youth Day, said planning meetings have already begun for the next meeting with Pope Benedict XVI, in Sydney this time, July 7-21, 2008.
Yes, 2008.
Seem a little early?
McMorrow put it this way: "If someone is interested and starts now to put away just $35 a week, they’ll have almost what they need for the trip."
And, if Grandma is wondering what you want for Christmas, now might a good time to request cash for your travel account.
World Youth Day, begun in 1986 by Pope John Paul II, is celebrated internationally once every two to three years. It’s a huge international gathering attracting Catholics young and old from around the world.
Last year, 147 Catholics from the Archdiocese of Anchorage traveled to Cologne, Germany, for the first gathering with Pope Benedict XVI. Groups from the archdiocese have attended since the 1993 gathering in Denver, the only time World Youth Day has been in the U.S.
Alaskans traveled to Manila in the Philippines in 1995, Paris in 1997, Rome in 2000 and Toronto in 2002.
McMorrow said the journey, while fun for participants, also has a deep and lasting impact on their faith life.
"(For) helping young people develop a Catholic spirituality and identity … no youth event comes close to accomplishing this like World Youth Day does," he said.
A small group interested in the 2008 event has met twice and will meet again in October.
McMorrow said there’s still plenty of time to get on board for Sydney or just to attend a meeting to learn more.
"It seems we have more returning people traveling from the archdiocese this time," McMorrow said last week.
Our Lady of the Lake Mission Parish in Big Lake and St. Joseph Parish in Cordova sent two participants to Cologne; about six members from each parish are talking about Sydney.
"We do pretty well with getting youth to go," McMorrow said. Now, parents are beginning to sign on in larger numbers as well.
McMorrow said parents and their children attending together "seems to do wonders for families."
McMorrow said one new priority is attracting more young adults.World Youth Day is designed for those 16-35.
The itinerary includes stops in Cairns in Queensland, a catamaran cruise to the Great Barrier Reef including snorkeling, and a train excursion into the mountains to visit the town of Kuranda.
Prices range from $3,695 to $4,420, depending on the number of people per room.
McMorrow said people need to think about making a commitment by next summer, but "the sooner the better."
For information on the trip, including how to contribute financially to help those wishing to attend, contact McMorrow at St. Benedict Parish, 243-2195.
News & Notes
Archdiocese to participate in another collection for Gulf Coast
At their June meeting in Los Angeles, the U.S. bishops unanimously approved a second national collection to assist the Diocese of Biloxi, Miss., and the Archdiocese of New Orleans in their hurricane recovery and rebuilding efforts. The collection will be taken the weekend of Aug. 26-27 in the Anchorage Archdiocese.
The New Orleans Archdiocese and Biloxi Diocese are facing an estimated $157 million in uninsured losses to their churches, schools and facilities, according to a July 10 report from bishops’ conference president Bishop William Skylstad.
"These costs place even greater burdens on people already overwhelmed by grief, dislocation and discouragement," Bishop Skylstad said in the report.
The original national collection, taken last year shortly after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita ravaged the Gulf Coast, raised more than $130 million (with $166,855 from the Archdiocese of Anchorage), but those funds went largely for direct humanitarian relief.
This new collection will give the Archbishop of New Orleans and the Bishop of Biloxi more discretion in funding the church’s recovery and rebuilding efforts.
"The ongoing needs for diocesan recovery remain staggering and extremely urgent," Bishop Skylstad said in the report. He noted that in the Biloxi Diocese, for example, the bishop reported that 428 of 433 church-owned structures were destroyed or severely damaged.
Archbishop's Column
This year the Alaska Conference of Catholic Bishops dedicated its summer meeting principally to listening sessions with the people living on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in the Diocese of Fairbanks.
The conference, made up of the bishops of the state, meets three times each year, once in each diocese. Usually we gather in February in Juneau when the Legislature is in session, in June or July in Fairbanks, and in Anchorage during the month of October.
One of the goals of our state bishops’ conference is to get better acquainted with the issues that the people in the various areas of our state are concerned about.
Thus, we decided to get a rural, Bush experience in the Fairbanks Diocese. Bishop Donald Kettler of Fairbanks and his staff planned the meeting and organized the details.
The bishops assembled in Anchorage on Monday, July 14, and conducted their business meeting at our archdiocesan offices with the assistance of the conference’s executive director, Chip Wagoner of Juneau.
After that meeting we bid farewell to retired Anchorage Archbishop Francis Hurley, who did not accompany us north, and boarded the Fairbanks Diocese’s twin engine Piper Navaho, piloted by Deacon Bill Dourte of Fairbanks, who had flown Bishop Kettler down from Fairbanks and awaited us at Merrill Field here in Anchorage.
We flew to Bethel, where we had supper with the pastor, Jesuit Father Chuck Peterson, and spent the night there.
The next morning we once again boarded the Navaho and flew for just under an hour to the Yupik village of Emmonak, located near the Bering Sea close to the mouth of the great Yukon River.
After lunch we were divided into three groups for our listening sessions.
Bishop Kettler joined the youth/young adult group; Bishop Warfel attended the session with the elders, and I attended a session with adults and families.
The people were free to talk about whatever concerns they wished to raise and to ask questions. We were there to listen and learn.
After the sessions we gathered at Sacred Heart Catholic Church for Eucharist with the Catholic community, which filled the church.
We then divided once again to join various Yupik families for supper in their homes.
I was assigned to the home of Merlin and Elizabeth Redfox and their five boys. Grandma Redfox was also there. It was an enjoyable evening sharing their meal and conversation.
We were not able to visit for long, however, since we had to return to the town hall for an evening of Eskimo dancing. It was a delightful day to be able to learn of the concerns of this Native Bush community and share their culture.
We spent that night in simple surroundings at the parish house.
On Wednesday morning we returned to the Navaho and flew back to Bethel. There, after lunch with several of the Jesuit community, we attended a listening session with all three bishops together.
About half of the Bethel residents who spoke with us were Alaska Native and the other half non-Native, an approximation of the population of the Kuskokwim River town.
After the session we celebrated Mass at the parish church and then headed upriver in boats to experience life at a fish camp, where we also enjoyed a barbecue supper.
We then spent the night in Bethel and flew back to Anchorage on Thursday morning, July 27.
In all, those days in the Bush were a good learning experience for us. As we share our notes and reflections on what we heard from the people, we will be better able to organize our priorities as a conference.
I was deeply touched by the great spirit of hospitality we encountered wherever we went. I was also impressed by the good work of the Jesuit missionaries who established and nourished the faith of the people.
As in our archdiocese, the Catholic Church remains a vibrant part of the lives of our people.
Editorial
Appeal for nonviolent solution is not naïve
Once again, the Mideast tinderbox has burst into violence. Once again, the Catholic Church is among the most prominent voices for nonviolence. And once again, that voice is being dismissed as unrealistic.
All of this is tragic and wrongheaded.
The terrorist wing of Hezbollah sparked the current war by crossing into Israel a month ago and killing or capturing several Israeli soldiers. Israel responded with a furious bombing campaign, so far killing at least 900 Lebanese civilians and 100 Hezbollah fighters, displacing hundreds of thousands of civilians and destroying infrastructure throughout the country.
Hezbollah terrorists have killed close to 100 Israelis so far, the majority of them soldiers.
As soon as the fighting erupted, the Vatican began urging both sides to cease hostilities and work out a solution nonviolently.
When it became clear that Hezbollah intended to continue its attacks and that Israel was willing to accept astronomical "collateral damage," the Vatican started calling Israel’s response "disproportionate," a violation of the church’s teachings on just war.
That interpretation received a feisty and dismissive response from Israel’s ambassador to the Vatican
"(W)hat is the right proportion?" Oded Ben-Hur said. "Give it to me. What is it, 10 to five? One to one? One hundred to 1,000? There is no such thing."
Surely the ambassador doesn’t consider it proportional to kill nine innocent Lebanese for every one Hezbollah fighter.
Warring parties used to treat Pope John Paul II as out of touch with reality, too, despite the fact that he experienced the Nazi occupation of Poland firsthand. The current pope, a German, was forced as a youth to join a Nazi group.
Both men came face to face with terror, violence, hatred, evil and war. Their positions on these matters cannot be considered naïve.
Church leaders will continue to condemn terrorism and other unjust, indefensible forms of violence. They do so in many cases because they are intimately familiar with both the teachings of Christ and the experience of war.
Anchor Notebook
Kelly DuFort is leaving the Anchor.
Writing it out helps make it more real. Those of you who have met Kelly during her five years with the Anchor can understand why this is a tough reality to adjust to. She’s an exceptional journalist and a very nice person to boot.
When Kelly started here as the editorial assistant in 2001 her professional experience was limited to photography and fish science. But she demonstrated she could write and that she was bright and conscientious and eager to learn all she could about journalism.
Kelly’s photography was excellent to begin with and only got better. She jumped at every chance to take pictures, whether it was the 5 a.m. "mananitas" on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the solemn church dedication or the cockpit shot of a priest pilot 2,000 feet above Dillingham.
She also learned to write news stories by plunging in and getting it done, and the many compliments from readers and many awards from press clubs are testaments to her sensitivity, accuracy, balance and storytelling instinct.
Kelly also pursued her interest in graphic design to the point that she became the Anchor’s preferred ad builder, saving advertisers and the Anchor time and money.
She definitely earned the step up from "editorial assistant" to "assistant editor."
Now, she’ll be doing graphic design, photography and writing for an Anchorage firm that provides project consultation to villages, municipalities and other entities.
She’ll continue to freelance as time allows, so you will probably still see her photo credit and possibly byline in these pages. But her last day on staff is Aug. 22.
She’ll be hard to replace, but the search is on, for real.
— Anchor Editor John Roscoe
Letters to the Editor
Church condemns Masons
I appreciate Geoff Kennedy’s courtesy (Readers Respond, July 28). It seems we have come to a point of agreeing to disagree on a few ideas. The war in Iraq will be found to be either wisdom or folly all in good time. As to the Masons, I would point out that the church has condemned them for a very long time. This year Pope Benedict has canonized 10 Mexican priests who were martyred during three years of the Masonic persecutions of 1926-29.According to The Catholic Encyclopedia, the action of the church is summed up in at least 17 papal pronouncements against Freemasonry between 1738 and 1890. For those who may be interested in the Mexican Revolution, "Blood Drenched Altars" by Bishop Francis Kelley is most informative. T.A. Nelson (TAN) Books has other titles available.
Anchorage
Gay marriage contradictory
In the July 14 issue of the Anchor, a headline on Page 3 states: "Three states act on gay marriage in court, legislature." I’m sure they didn’t mean "happy" marriage. I think they meant homosexual marriage. Our vocabularies need improvement. Using the term "gay marriage" gives the impression that such a thing exists. But as far as I am concerned, it doesn’t. Gay marriage is a contradiction of itself. We need to learn to call a spade a spade. Homosexual couples can keep their respect and dignity as people when they share lodgings. What they do there is their own business. But it dishonors the institution of marriage when they call this "marriage." "Gay marriage" does not describe the union between a man and a woman. When we use this term we confuse everyone.
Anchorage
Poor movie-going decision
In response to Father Clementich’s column in the July 14 issue of the Catholic Anchor, the first question that comes to my mind is: Why would a Catholic priest go to see a movie ("Brokeback Mountain") that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has rated as "morally offensive" (see www.nccbuscc.org/movies)?
Anchorage