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WILMINGTON, Del. – The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington contains chapels representing many Catholic ethnic groups in the United States – with one big exception. “Where is the Italian chapel?” Wilmington Bishop Michael A. Saltarelli has often asked. That very omission is why he, a cardinal and three other bishops of Italian descent are leading a campaign to build an Italian chapel in honor of Our Lady of Pompeii. Italian-Americans are “as strong as any other ethnic community,” Bishop Saltarelli said, noting that the lack of an Italian chapel at the national shrine seemed curious at first to a group of bishops including Cardinal Anthony J. Bevilacqua, retired archbishop of Philadelphia; Bishop Paul S. Loverde of Arlington, Va.; Brooklyn Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio; and New York Auxiliary Bishop Robert A. Brucato.

St. Agnes Hospital, Baltimore, announced that Ann Stromberg, R.N., is the hospital’s 2007 Nurse of the Year. Ms. Stromberg was chosen from a number of nominees who exhibit excellence in the application of evidence-based practice, initiative, advocacy, team support and in projecting a positive image of nursing.

A funeral Mass for Sister Mary Magdalita Ginty, O.P., was offered May 22 in the Queen of the Rosary Chapel at Sinsinawa, Wis. She was 88.

When Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Homeland, parishioner Albert “Skip” Counselman was awarded a lifetime achievement award from a Hartford, Conn.-based insurance firm, it was St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore that took the big-cash reward. Travelers – the nation’s second-largest writer of property and casualty insurance – gave the Caton Avenue hospital a $10,000 check, because Mr. Counselman serves as its chairman of the board and it was his charity of choice, said Jay Fishman, chairman and chief executive officer of Travelers. The 59-year-old Cockeysville resident is the president and CEO of Riggs, Counselman, Michaels & Downes, Inc., one of the leading 100 insurance and risk management agency/brokerage firms in the U.S. and headquartered in Baltimore.

It happened during a retreat at St. Joseph Church.

I wanted to add something to the article regarding Father John Delclos (CR, May 10). His phone ministry was an absolute comfort.

The product of a semester-long collaboration between Loyola College in Maryland and the Students Sharing Coalition (SSC) is a recently published book about 18 Baltimore youth activists, “Changing the World Around Us: Profiles in Youth Activism.” Students in Cinthia Gannett’s writing class interviewed the activists and wrote profiles while students in Peggy O’Neill’s class contributed sections on history, operation and the mission of SSC. The book was designed by senior Kristen Cesiro and Loyola graphic design professor Diane Samet, a member of the SSC board of directors.

LUSAKA, Zambia – Zambia’s Catholic bishops have expressed “great dismay” over the government’s delay in reviewing and enacting a new constitution. “The people are tired of the slow pace” of the constitutional review process, said the Zambian bishops’ conference in a May 16 statement. The bishops urged the government “to desist from excessive legalism” and said that Zambia “can no longer afford the luxury of procrastination, which has characterized the government’s approach” to the process. Zambia, where a British-drafted constitution has been used since the former colony’s independence in 1964, “is in dire need of an inclusive constitution that will not only stand the test of time but also empower” Zambians to face challenges, they said.

Sacred Heart School, Glyndon, students collected more than 100 cartons of books and donations the week of May 7 to help build a library in Jamaica through Food For The Poor.

Mercy High School in Baltimore is establishing its first-ever endowment and has already raised $1 million during a “quiet phase” of a capital campaign supporting the fund. School leaders formally launched the “Securing the Future” campaign May 3, bumping up the initial target goal of $1 million to $1.5 million. Mary John Snyder, a member of the school’s board of trustees and chair of the endowment campaign, said it was a “very nice surprise” that the school has already secured $1 million. “Everyone is very, very excited,” said Ms. Snyder, a member of Mercy’s class of 1965. “This is all about securing the future for Mercy.”