Scouts receive religious awards

By Tanya Connor | The Catholic Free Press

What do you do if you get fleas?
If you’re a fox, you find another animal – a sheep’s a good choice. Bite off some of its wool and go swimming. Submerge your body, and the wool last. The fleas, not wanting to get wet, will have climbed on the wool. Now, open your mouth and watch the wool flow downstream, fleas and all!
Young people were presented with this picture at the annual awards ceremony of the Diocesan Catholic Committee on Scouting. More than 30 of them from parishes around the diocese had come to St. Paul Cathedral March 6 to receive the religious awards they’ve earned in the American Heritage Girls, Girl Scouts and Scouts BSA. Adult leaders were recognized, and are to receive their awards at a luncheon later.
Father Donato Infante III, Scout chaplain, extended Bishop McManus’ congratulations, as he was unable to attend.
 The previous weekend Father Infante celebrated the first diocesan-wide Scout Sunday, according to John Atlas, DCCS chairman. Officially called Diocesan Mass for Youth, it is sponsored by DCCS, he said.
“It’s a celebration of the importance of duty to God in the Scout programs,” he said. He said it’s traditionally held in parishes in February, and still should be, but leaders have been trying to organize a diocesan celebration too.
“We just wanted the diocese at large to be at the forefront of the celebration of a Scout’s faith,” he explained.
This year of the pandemic, leaders got the diocesan Scout Sunday going, mindful that the cathedral is large enough for social distancing. It ended up being back-to-back with the annual awards Mass.
“We … gave each Scout present a Scout Sunday patch,” Mr. Atlas said. “They just earn it by showing up,” unlike the awards given on March 6, for which they work.
But why did Father Infante preach about foxes and fleas before presenting the awards last Saturday?
Like the wool and fox, Jesus took our sins on himself and cast them into the depths of the sea, he said, referring to the first reading (Mi 7:14-15, 18-20).
Father Donato put in today’s language what the prodigal son from the day’s Gospel (Lk 15:1-3, 11-32) effectively told his father: “Dad, I don’t need you in my life; I just need your stuff.” The youth squandered that “stuff” and, desperate, considered asking if his father would hire him. He may have figured, “He probably doesn’t need me either.”  He never dreamed of being treated like a son again.
But, like that father, “God, our Father in heaven, loves us so much … that he’s coming to us to embrace us with his love and mercy,” Father Infante said.
In the Divine Mercy image “Jesus is walking toward us,” he said. Jesus took evil on himself and brought it to the cross and showed that “our response to sin cannot be revenge (or) … more evil,” but must be love.
Father Infante said the Scouts learned about different aspects of their faith to earn their awards, and adults were being acknowledged for living their faith in serving the youth, but the common theme was “response to Christ’s coming to us.” He said faith is not just something to study for a year; it is to be lived. But it all starts with Jesus’ gift.
“Jesus is running toward you to embrace you with his love,” he said. “Will you let him? Will you embrace him back?”

YOUTH AWARDS 2021

AMERICAN HERITAGE GIRLS

Quiver of Arrows Medal
Catherine Fleming, St. Peter-St. Andrew, Worcester
Moral Compass Medal
Catherine Fleming, St. Peter-St. Andrew, Worcester
Grace Fleming, St. Peter-St. Andrew, Worcester
Lillian Petullo, St. John, Guardian of Our Lady, Clinton
Isabel Reilly, St. Paul Cathedral, Worcester
Fiona Somers, St. Bernadette, Northborough

GIRL SCOUTS

Family of God
Octavia Feeley, St. Edward the Confessor, Westminster

Marian Medal
Allison Belliveau, Our Lady Immaculate, Athol

CUB SCOUTS, BSA

Light of Christ
Alexandra Anderson, St. Luke the Evangelist, Westborough
Matthew Finan, St. Patrick, Whitinsville
Jonah Gendron, St. Mary, Grafton
Sawyer Gendron, St. Mary, Grafton
Leo Reed, St. John Paul II, Southbridge

Parvuli Dei
Cole Anderson, St. Luke the Evangelist, Westborough
Gregory Gorman, Our Lady of the Assumption, Millbury
Tyler Josti, Mary, Queen of the Rosary, Spencer
Jacob LeDuc, St. Leo, Leominster
Dylan Somers, St. Bernadette, Northborough
Chase Spain, Our Lady of the Assumption, Millbury
Evan Spain, Our Lady of the Assumption, Millbury
Hunter Tutko-Rainville, Our Lady of the Assumption, Millbury

SCOUTS, BSA

Ad Altare Dei
Joseph Barrows, St. Edward the Confessor, Westminster
Cassie Brown, St. Brigid, Millbury
Patrick Connolly, St. Roch, Oxford
Alison Gorman, Our Lady of the Assumption, Millbury
Sean Hurley, St. Brigid, Millbury
Ethan Lavigne, St. Mary, Jefferson
Jeremy Reddy, St. Brigid, Millbury
Ella Reed, St. John Paul II, Southbridge
Brian Russo, St. George, Worcester
Carter Taillefer, St. James, South Grafton
James Wheeler, St. George, Worcester

Pope Pius XII
Jeremy Bullock, St. Mary, Uxbridge
Owen Chase, St. George, Worcester
Catherine Fleming, St. Peter-St. Andrew, Worcester
Grace Fleming, St. Peter-St. Andrew, Worcester
Isabel Reilly, St. Paul Cathedral, Worcester
Joseph Sawicki, St. Paul Cathedral, Worcester
Jace Sweetwood, St. Mary, Shrewsbury

PILLARS OF FAITH AWARD

Jeremy Bullock, St. Mary, Uxbridge
Jace Sweetwood , St. Mary, Shrewsbury

ADULT AWARDS 2021*

BRONZE PELICAN AWARD
Jill Patnode-Krause, Cub Scouts, St. Peter, Northbridge
John Piselli, Scouts, BSA, St. Brigid, Millbury
Robert Ryan, Scouts, BSA, St. Mary, Shrewsbury

ST. GEORGE AWARD
Michele Piselli, Scouts, BSA, St. Brigid, Millbury

ST. ELIZABETH ANN SETON AWARD
 Msgr. F. Stephen Pedone, Diocese of Worcester, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and Loreto
Alessandra Soares, American Heritage Girls, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and Loreto

*Awards to be presented at special luncheon later this year.