A Message from the Principal

Happy St. Valentine's Day Week, Eagles!

Happy Sunday, Eagles. I hope you are doing well.

It's the week of St. Valentine's Day. I'm sure you've all heard about how St. Valentine's Day is a made-up, commercial holiday, meant to boost the sales of Valentine's Day cards, candy, flowers, and such. And I'm sure most of us have experienced that version of St. Valentine's Day in some way shape or form.

However, we also know that there is so much more to love than what we see and hear every year on Valentine's Day. On the Monday after the Super Bowl, a day I know many people wish was a holiday, several Savio faculty members mentioned being pleasantly surprised by the commercial that incorporated the four Greek words for love and highlighted the importance of Agape, totally selfless love that does not seek one's own advantage but only to benefit or share with another. True, the commercial didn't exactly say that, but that is Agape. At the same time, Agape is also the love that Christ commands us to have for one another:

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."  --John 13:34-35

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."  --John 13:34-35

As servant leaders formed in the image of Christ, Agape is the kind of love for which we are called to Savio, the kind of love we strive to kindle in the hearts of our students, parents, faculty and staff. It's the love I hope was evident last week on Imago Christi Day when the entire student body, along with the Savio faculty, staff, and several parents, headed out to different locations in the Austin area to do service. It's the kind of love we hope we show each other every day at Savio.

Along these same lines, Scripture tells us more about the kind of love we should strive to show each other. One of my favorite verses about love in the Bible is 1 Corinthians 13:4-8:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does no boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does no boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."                          --1 Corinthians 13:4-8

This verse certainly sets the bar high for love, but it is certainly the kind of love that I hope our students, parents, faculty, and staff experience and offer each other at Savio. Showing this kind of love is certainly not easy, but it certainly is necessary in a family, a school, and in a community of faith, all of which we are at Savio.

I'll close with this. Last year, I gave our students a prayer card. On one side was the Abandonment Prayer, with the hope that our students would offer themselves up to God every day. On the other side, was an exhortation attributed to Fr. Pedro Arrupe (1907-1991). In this exhortation, Fr. Arrupe provides advice on love, on what to fall in love with. I told students Fr. Arrupe's words were a reminder to be mindful about to whom or what they gave their hearts: 

"Nothing is more practical than finding God, than falling in Love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything."

"Nothing is more practical than finding God, than falling in Love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything."                     --Fr. Pedro Arrupe  

Have a wonderful St. Valentine's Day week, Eagles. May you experience God's love this week and every week henceforth. And may we as a community experience and give each other Christ's love on St. Valentine's Day and every day. 

Blessings. 

Dr. Garcia

2020 Imago Christi Day

On Thursday, January 30, Savio students, parents, faculty, and staff continued its long-standing tradition of Imago Christi Day. Held as part of Catholic Schools Week, Imago Christi Day is a day when Savio students, parents, faculty, and staff travel to a variety of service sites around the Austin area and perform more than 1000 hours of service in a single day. Families from each of the four Houses visit nursing homes, parks, building projects, retreat centers, and other organizations to assist with various tasks to support these organizations as they serve the various communities with whom they work.

An Amazing Day of Service

Imago Christi Day aims to spark the interest of teachers, students, parents, and those they serve with love and passion for meeting and helping others. Through service, Savio volunteers effectively learn how and why to serve the community, the poor, and vulnerable. One of the most remarkable characteristics of Imago Christi Day is that it allows Savio students, parents, faculty, and staff to serve through direct action, which is a necessary component of Christ’s mission. In doing so, the Savio community works to embody our vision of forming servant leaders in the image of Christ through our mission to prepare young men and women to become faith-filled, visionary and inspirational leaders in service to the Church and the world.

Read on to learn about the places Savio students, parents, faculty, and staff visited and the work they did for this year's Imago Christi Day (Note: All descriptions of organizations are taken from their websites). 

St. Philomena at Down Home Country Ranch

Volunteers from St. Philomena family traveled to Down Home Country Ranch. The Mission of Down Home Country Ranch is to empower the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through social, educational, residential and vocational opportunities. Members of the St. Philomena family received the right to work at the ranch and tackled some much-needed clearing of brush. 

St. Patrick at Brookdale

Brookdale Senior Living is an assisted living and memory care community. St. Patrick family traveled to the Round Rock location where they visited with residents, engaged in coffee chats, card games, bingo, and chair yoga. They also participated in manicures, made valentines, and even walked some residents' dogs for them. 

St. Catherine of Sienna at Austin Parks Foundation

The Austin Parks Foundation partners with the community to enhance people’s lives by making Austin's public parks better through volunteerism, innovative programming, advocacy, and financial support. St. Catherine of Sienna family traveled to Westenfield Park in Austin and worked alongside Austin Parks Foundation representatives with mulching several baby trees as well as some very seasoned live oaks, closing out the morning with lunch and a football game.

St. Anthony at Dream a Dream

Dream a Dream Therapeutic Horsemanship offers equine facilitated therapies to children with developmental disabilities (with a special emphasis in Autism) in the greater Austin Area. While at Dream a Dream, the St. Anthony family members brushed horses and cleaned stalls. 

St. Teresa of Calcutta St. Ignatius Food Pantry

St. Ignatius Martyr Food Pantry is a ministry of St. Ignatius Martyr Catholic Church and is supported by donations from parishioners and other generous benefactors.  The Food Pantry has been serving those in need since 1980. St Teresa family helped at the food pantry, sorting and packing food donations. 

St. Thérèse of Lisieux at Annunciation Maternity Home

Annunciation Maternity Home is the only Nationally Accredited maternity home in Texas licensed to provide free services to young women who are experiencing an unplanned pregnancy. Located in Georgetown, Texas, Annunciation can assist up to 29 young women, and their children, during pregnancy and for up to two years after the birth of her baby. Members of the St. Thérèse family helped sort baby clothes and write encouraging notes. 

St. John Paul II at Brodie Ranch Nursing Home

Brodie Ranch Nursing Home provides short and long-term transitional and skilled nursing care in the Austin community for a variety of conditions and situations. 

St. Nicholas at Healing with Horses

Healing with Horses Therapeutic Riding Ranch is a 501(c)(3) equine-facilitated therapy center that promotes increased independence and resilience through the power of the horse. By creating space for healthy relationships between horses and humans, they help students learn life skills in a safe, inclusive environment. The Savio students, parents, faculty, and staff with the St. Nicholas family worked hard clearing trees and branches, then took advantage of getting some quality time with the horses and ponies.

St. Padre Pio and St. Maximilian Kolbe at Eagles Wings

Eagle's Wings is a retreat center whose mission is to enrich the lives of Catholic and other Christian youth and their families by providing a Christ-centered environment with retreats and facilities in a natural environment. St. Padre Pio and Maximilian Kolbe families did double-duty indoors and outdoors baking cookies and clearing a trail, as well as doing some repairs. 

St. Francis of Assisi at Trail Foundation

The Trail Foundation is a 501(c)3 dedicated to protecting, enhancing, and connecting the Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail at Lady Bird Lake for the benefit of all. They work in cooperation with the Austin Parks and Recreation Department to close the gap between what the City provides and what the Trail deserves. St. Francis of Assisi family members got their hands dirty mulching to beautify and protect trees. 

St. Thomas Aquinas Texas Baptist Children's Home

The Baptist Children's Home in Round Rock provide a safe home and a stable family environment children and single mothers can learn, grow, and ultimately experience a happy, healthy future. St. Thomas Aquinas family members made quick work of the court floor they were tasked to remove. Afterward, they enjoyed some fun in the game room. 

Thank you Savio

As you can see, Savio's 2020 Imago Christi Day was an amazing success. Our thanks go to the Savio students, parents, faculty, and staff who lived what it means to be servant leaders in the image of Christ.  A huge thank you also goes out to Christian Outreach for doing an incredible job of organizing service sites and volunteers. We also thank Mrs. Artzt and Mrs. Heyl for working with the students in Christian Outreach to make this day possible. Finally, we thank all the organizations that partnered with Savio as well as Apple Leasing for transporting everyone to their service locations. We thank all these people and organizations. They helped make sure that Imago Christi Day was a great day to be an Eagle. 

Blessings. 

Dr. Garcia