Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory - Shamrock Yearbook (San Francisco, CA)

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Senior Serving... Senior retreat was an eye-opening experience that unlocked a doorway to cormnunity service for all those who participated. About thirty seniors at a time spent two days working with teachers and campus ministry leaders. They shared their gifts and talents while helping others. One of the services some seniors participated in was Van Outreach. A handful of students spent hours preparing sandwiches, coffee, and bags of used clothing so that they could personally deliver these items to people living on the streets of San Francisco. This experience proved to be valuable because it helped show that simple gestures of generosity can make a huge difference. Senior Kristen Klein said, The Van Outreach was a great experience, and I couldn't believe how many times my group was blessed by all the people we were able to offer food and clothing. After a full day's work, each group of students retreated back to school to either sleep in a classroom or right outside the school building. The next day they dispersed again to different service organizations. Whether they were working with children, the elderly, or the homeless, each student learned something new about themselves and others. When their work was done, there was a heart -warming prayer service and discussion in order for students to share their experiences. -Melissa Holder'98 tk.-L Right: Ryan Cacanando and Mike Montalban relax after a hard days' work. Service retreat days were long and rewarding. Right: Seniors fall in laughter. . 5 Many who attended enjoyed ' Q . A their service work. if - fre se i Above: Cynthia Chan plays with kids from the Hamilton Family Center. Many students found spending time with children very rewarding. Above: Ms Shirah explains the day's activities. Many teachers helped to make the retreat a great Right: Rose Mclnnis and Ryan Cacanando experience. 24 Age of Reason wash dishes after dinner. Seniors provided a variety of services to others.

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Time to Reflect... Left: Junior Ardene Ballonado uses her free time to feed the cows. Juniors got free time during their retreat to kick back and relax. Left: Freshmen and their retreat leaders talk in small groups. Freshmen were taught about their role in the community. uve: Freshmen participate in the Simon Says ice aker activity. They weren't afraid to let loose and e fun. I: Juniors Victoria Guzman, Nicole Luporini, Cathy lette, and Vanessa Dimapasoc hold on to what they ie. The auction was a time for students to think about it was important in their lives. Throughout the month of January, juniors made their way to Bishop's Ranch to participate in an ovemight retreat. The theme was Choices. Led by students from St. Mary's College,juniors started the retreat with some ice breakers. After getting settled in their cabins, students participated in a variety of activities related to the theme. They took pan in a virtue auction, where they were given play money to bid on virtues. Afterwards the group was broken down into smaller groups. This provided a chance for students to get to know each other better. At night many went on walks and took advantage of the spacious surroundings. The night before the students left, they got together in groups to plan a mass for their last day. Everyone enjoyed the mass because they all participated in planning it. This retreat really allowed the juniors to become better acquainted with themselves and their classmates. The month of November was dedicated to breaking the barriers that stood in front of the Class of 2001. The freshmen retreat was a day to discover their friends, their God, and them- selves. The theme was One in the Spirit, suggesting that even though everyone is different, they are also unique in their own way, because they share a special bond in the same class and community. The freshman played a lot of ice breakers in order for everyone to become comfortable and acquainted with each other before breaking into small groups. The importance of respect was the first thing that was established among each of the groups. RESPECT was written on a big piece of paper that hung on the wall so that everyone was reminded of it. In each group the students wrote in journals. They first wrote identity poems which got the students to think about the limitless possiblities of their identities and how God works through them. Then, on a separate piece of paper, they illustrated certain words or phrases from their identity poems that were meaningful to them. Afterwards, each person put all of the pieces together to create one puzzle piece which would later be combined with the other small groups' pieces. Their art work was displayed at the Freshman Family Mass. Also in their joumals, they analyzed their relationship with God. They wrote Him a letter explaining their thoughts and feelings. In addition, each freshman received letters from the senior class. All activities allowed the freshmen to have fun and develop a new outlook on life. -Nicole Bocci and Karen De Castro '98 Above: Juniors stop for a picture before leaving Bishop's Ranch. Most juniors found that they leamed a lot about themselves on the retreat. J unior!Frosh Retreats 23

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2 away? 51040545 qw W Below: Seniors raise their hands in friend- ship. Lasting bonds were tomaed in the two days they spent together. 5 Q- rre- ' , .I y Rr' , l I ,iw g 1 Vg- I I W til.. , less fortunate than me. -Amy Lofrano '98 I I was glad to go on the retreat, I learned a lot and my eyes were opened by the different services I experienced. Now I try to be more generous and helpful to those I know are What moved me was a homeless man, that called himself Solo, and how happy he was with himself and the shirt that he was wearing. It was interesting and very touching that a person with so little could be moved by such small things. -Alfredo Hernandez '98 Senior Retreat 25