May 4 - A visit of Mt. Carmel School students, staff and chaperones to the Mercedarian Sisters at Maturana. The winning entries of the contest honoring the 90th Anniversary of the Arrival of the MMB to Saipan were presented ad each received a small gift from the Sisters.

Celebrating Presence Through Essay, Art and Poetry

Posted on May 12, 2018 at 11:44 pm by admin

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May 4th, exactly two months to the day after the 90th Anniversary of the Arrival of the Mercedarian Missionaries of Berriz to Saipan— nine students were honored for their participation in Mt. Carmel School’s Commemoration of the day. After the celebration of the eucharist at Mt. Carmel Cathedral, the finalists received their certificates in each of the three categories—essay, Art and Poetry. They then proceeded to Maturana to present to the MMB Sisters their works.

The Sisters were waiting for the students in the Multi-purpose Area next to the convent. Sr. Martha Ramarui, the Local Coordinator, welcomed the students, staff and guests. Barbara Merfalen, the MCS Vice-Principal then invited the students to present their works. each one did, in turn.

Sr. MaryAnn Hartmann, then introduced each of the sisters by name, country of origin and an overview of their ministries before that sister presented a small token of appreciation to one of the students. Those garnering First Place in their category received a copy of the recently published book, “To Know and Make Known—one woman’s amazing faith journey from the cloister to the convent.” Those placing second and third received a copy of “When God Shows Us A Road to Follow. . .” published on the occasion of the Beatification of Blessed Margarita Maria Maturana in 2006.

The students then presented the original copies of their works to the Mercedarian Sisters. The Sisters immediately said that they will share their works at the next gathering of all the other Sisters of the Mission Area of Micronesia.

After a group photo to commemorate the occasion, a light merienda was shared as congratulations and picture-taking continued until the students needed to return to their regular class schedule.

The occasion was a wonderful opportunity across generations to celebrate the legacy of Blessed Margarita Maria, herself an educator, acknowledging her continued influence even now and hopefully for future generations. . .

Sincere gratitude goes out to all the Mt. Carmel students who participated in the contest and once again congratulations to all those respectively named winners.