Windsor students take part in Caritas Day of Service ahead of Easter long weekend
Students and staff at FJ. Brennan Catholic High School observed Holy Thursday by hosting their annual Caritas Day of Service.
School officials said it’s a central part of the Brennan experience, with Caritas being a Latin term that refers to charity, kindness and service to others.
“Leading by example,” exclaimed campus minister Rebecca Daoud.
“This day is, in the Catholic Church, we recognize it as the day that Jesus at the Last Supper washed the feet of the disciples, and so we also try to imitate that. And we encourage our students to imitate that by being of service to others. Not necessarily by washing their feet, but through other activities.”
Students engaged in activities at the school like assembling lunches for the Downtown Mission, making Easter cards for paediatric and palliative patients with Transition to Betterness, and collecting and sorting neighbourhood food donations.
Several groups also took part in off-site activities by visiting seniors' homes and serving food at community kitchens.
“Every year it's always a buzz within the school community,” Daoud explained. “The teachers always have ideas. They're starting to think about it at the beginning of the school year. The kids are excited to do it.”
Staff said the annual day of service has been taking place at the school for upwards of 20 years, with formers students often returning to help.Students and staff at FJ. Brennan Catholic High School observed Holy Thursday by hosting their annual Caritas Day of Service in Windsor, Ont., on Thursday, March 28, 2024. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)
“It's kind of like a fun day where we just like volunteer and help out,” said student Nina Sfalcin. “People do stuff for you. So it's like, why not give back to them?”
Grade 12 student Shade Adewusi told CTV News the day is a good way make connections within the community and get exposed to volunteerism.
“I really like it personally because this is how I started volunteering,” Adewusi said. “I think it's really good for especially our younger students like our grade nines and tens because of Covid, they didn't really get a good start.”
“So I think this is a really good way for them to make those connections and kind of see what kind of volunteering they like to do and where they would like to spend their time to help the community.”
Adewusi added, “it really kind of equips our students with leadership skills that they need for their workplace or post-secondary, and it teaches us really valuable skills as well as just helping out in the community.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Lindholm scores the winner for Canucks in OT
Just over a minute into overtime, Elias Lindholm scored, bringing the Vancouver Canucks to victory over the Nashville Predators in Game 4.
CDC says it's identified 1st documented cases of HIV transmitted through cosmetic needles
Three women diagnosed with HIV after getting 'vampire facial' procedures at an unlicensed medical spa are believed to be the first documented cases of people contracting the virus through a cosmetic procedure using needles.
All London Drugs stores closed across Western Canada due to system issue
All 79 locations of pharmacy and retail chain London Drugs are shut down Sunday, and there is no estimate on when they will be back open.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Ontario to ban use of cellphones in school classrooms starting in September
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
Australian prime minister describes domestic violence as a 'national crisis' after protests
Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday described domestic violence as a 'national crisis' after thousands rallied around the country against violence toward women.
Casey DeSmith won’t start Game 4 for the Canucks
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs will start in net for the Vancouver Canucks when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series Sunday.
Putin likely didn't order death of Russian opposition leader Navalny, U.S. official says
U.S. intelligence officials have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin likely didn't order the death of imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny in February, according to an official familiar with the determination.
Tornadoes kill 4 in Oklahoma, leaving trail of destruction and thousands without power
Tornadoes killed four people in Oklahoma and left thousands without power Sunday after a destructive outbreak of severe weather flattened buildings in the heart of one rural town and injured at least 100 people across the state.