“I love to volunteer at Mount de Sales whenever possible. We decided to make it a “family night” to support such a wonderful cause,” said Mrs. Dignan, volunteer extraordinaire at Mount de Sales.
Mrs. Dignan, her two daughters, senior, Brooke, and sophomore, Erin, along with her husband, Tim all helped out at the event.
Over 300 students from high schools such as St. Cecilia’s in Nashville, Mount St. Joe, St. Mary’s Annapolis, Calvert Hall, Loyola, Spalding, and of course, Mount de Sales participated in the event. They arrived at 5:30 to eat dinner which was prepares by TFCA member’s parents.
The dads prepared the food and the mom’s served it. Tommy’s Food Service contributed to the dinner by donating pasta, salad, and bread. TFCA member’s brought in desserts and drinks.
Senior Ally Schuessler’s grandmother prepared about 20 pounds of pasta the day before in her own kitchen as part of her service for this great cause.
Not only did the parents and prepare and serve the dinner, but they also cleaned up. They took out the trash, and cleaned the floors and dishes.
After cleaning up, the parents went to the chapel and joined the students in the chapel for adoration with prayer, praise, and worship. Maria Schwendinger sang and Joe White played the guitar and sang.
“I went up to the choir loft and I am glad I did. What a beautiful sight as I peered down to the chapel, hundreds of teens gathered to pray and sing for LIFE,” said Mrs. Dignan.
During adoration, Father Michael DeAscanis, of St. Agnes, talked to the students about the need to defend life as a Catholic. He also mentioned the need for Catholic’s to care about both chastity and charity. As Catholic’s, we are obligated to support people who are having troubles with pregnancy by bringing them to the light of Christ. Father DeAscanis spoke of a girl who went to Hillcrest Clinic last year and changed her mind about having an abortion. Her boyfriend kicked her out and she was homeless. Parishioners from St. Agnes took her in and her baby was born in November. She was baptized on Saturday, January 21st at St. Agnes.
“Father DeAscanis' talk was very inspiring. It is so true that standing up against something that is wrong can influence someone’s decision towards the good,” said senior, Ashley Robertson.
Donations were accepted during the event that went towards a purchase of a sonogram machine. It is a known fact that once a woman sees a sonogram of her baby, she is less likely to decide to get an abortion.
Following dinner and adoration, the event came to an end with a little reception with dancing, music, and more food.
“It is such a powerful moment to witness so many young men and women putting their faith into action as they stand up for the Truth and Life. We have always felt so blessed and proud to be part of this wonderful event,” said senior parent, Tammy Schuessler.
C. Kavanagh, ‘12