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September 11, 2015
Tom BurkeVita Solorio-Fielder loves helping others. She is a volunteer tutor for Reading Partners and last year put together a book drive for the group that brought nearly 500 volumes that have been shared with Partners and Books Behind Bars.
Reading Partners tutors children at low-income schools. “I love working with the students and I wanted to give back to this organization somehow,” Vita told me via email. “When my former eighth grade teacher, Ursuline Sister Lillian Repak, asked me about starting a service project at my alma mater, St. John School, I immediately knew I would start something for Reading Partners.”
The four-day effort included Vita energizing St. John students with talks in each class. “All the students were so excited to be able to give back to our community.” At the end of the week 465 books had been donated: 428 from St. John’s and the rest from merchants whose help Vita had sought including Thrift Town, Green Apple Books and Dog Eared Books.
“Overall, this was a wonderful experience and I feel so lucky that those who I reached out to were so supportive and generous,” Vita said. “I sincerely hope that I will be able to do some more projects like this throughout the course of my high school career. You’ll definitely be seeing more of me in the world of service.”
NEW WELCOMER: Welcome aboard at San Francisco’s Archbishop Riordan High School to Luis Martinez, the school’s new director of admissions. Luis comes from experience in admissions for Stanford University. He is founder of Hidden Ivies Consortium an event that expanded recruitment for 34 universities, including USC, Johns Hopkins and the University of Chicago, Riordan said. Luis is a graduate of Bates College in Maine where he also worked in admissions. He holds a graduate degree in international education management from Middlebury College’s Monterey Institute.
“Riordan feels a lot like where I went to high school,” said Martinez. “I felt at home right away, and I’m looking forward to working with everyone and helping the young men achieve their greatest potential,” Luis said in a letter from Riordan president Joe Conti to students’ parents.
In addition to directing Riordan’s local admissions team, Luis will also be leading the St. Francis Scholars Program.
PEER PLEASURE: Parents of children under 5 years of age at Holy Name of Jesus Parish have found a friend in Noreen Chan. She and Maureen Ariola have founded an Under 5 Ministry “to offer support for families with children under 5 years old.” It’s “an opportunity to create new friendships” with parents “going through the same struggles and challenges,” Noreen said. She and her husband are parents of two children, Reyna, a freshman at Mercy High School, San Francisco and 4-year-old Nolan who attends Holy Name Preschool. Noreen has been a parishioner at Holy Name for 40 years. The ministry also organizes social events for members.
“Personally, my husband and I are both working full time, and raising two wonderful kids,” Noreen said knowing there are many families in similar situations.
“Volunteering to be chair of this wonderful ministry is one of the ways I am giving back to our community.” Her dad Ramsey is vice president of the Fil-Am club, a member of the parish council, a sacristan and choir member. Her mom Nenette teaches in the religious education program.
COME HOLY GHOST: Right around the corner Sept. 12 is the Annual San Francisco Catholic Charismatic Renewal Conference at St. Mary’s Cathedral, Gough Street at Geary Boulevard in San Francisco. National speakers address the theme “We Are One in the Spirit.” Tracks will be available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese. Registration is available at the door or online at SFSpirit.com. The 7 p.m. Mass is open to everyone. Visit www.SFSpirit.com; call English (650) 261-0825; Spanish (650) 773-4709; Vietnamese (408) 248-6518.
ON THE FENCE: Speaking to me from a license plate frame on the freeway was this, what I think, very good advice: “When in doubt, don’t!”
Email items and electronic pictures – jpegs at no less than 300 dpi to burket@sfarchdiocese.org or mail to Street, One Peter Yorke Way, San Francisco 94109. Include a follow-up phone number. Street is toll-free. My phone number is (415) 614-5634.