Page 1875 – Archdiocese of Baltimore

WASHINGTON – An increase in the federal minimum wage, its proponents would argue, is not only an idea whose time has come, but an idea whose time had come long ago. The minimum wage was last increased in 1997. The 10-years-and-counting gap between increases is the longest since the minimum wage was instituted in 1938. Its purchasing power also has dropped. According to Catholic Charities USA, it’s now equal to $3.95 in 1995 dollars – when the minimum wage was $4.25.

Cathedral parishioners merge marriage with business

When Tom Kinstle of Homeland retired from Lockheed Martin in 2002 and joined his wife’s Timonium-based design business, he wasn’t worried that too much togetherness would cause conflicts at work or at home. “I dabble here,” the 73-year-old Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Homeland parishioner said. “It’s Ruth’s business.” That statement caused his youthful-looking 60-year-old wife to erupt in laughter and then wag her finger at him. “Wait a minute,” Ms. Kinstle playfully protested. “I don’t know that I like the tone of that. It sounds like you want to spend more time on the golf course. You can’t quit on me.”

Couples keep the spark alive through dating

Erica and Sean Kerchner are a military couple who have been married for three years and at the moment find it hard to spend quality time together. Mr. Kerchner has been training with the U.S. Navy in Norfolk, Va. for four months while his wife stays with her parents in Silver Spring. Mrs. Kerchner said her husband comes to visit on the weekends and it is important for them to find time just for themselves in between visiting friends and family. They try to set aside one night to go out to dinner or a movie, “nothing really fancy,” she said. She said if they can’t have a full night together they will make sure to set a few hours aside to go up a local pizza place or just talk.

A bumper crop of good films

Those who complain that they don’t make quality films “like they used to” should get out more often and see what a rich palette of films – both domestic and foreign – are available, provided one chooses carefully. And, so too, the performances this past year by such present-day luminaries as Will Smith, Renee Zellweger, Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts and Laurence Fishburne bear favorable comparison with the stars of old. There was a surfeit of superior films in 2006, with solid moral underpinnings, so much so that narrowing the field down to 10 was more difficult than ever. From powerful anti-war films to inspirational true-life (though highly disparate) stories to a superior adaptation of a literary classic, they ran the proverbial gamut.

A tough year for aid workers in Darfur

WASHINGTON (CNS) – A church aid worker in Darfur said 2006 was tough for humanitarian workers but noted that the United States and United Nations have increased their efforts in the western Sudanese region. Mark Snyder, head of the North Sudan program for Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. bishops’ international aid and development agency, said U.N. observers and logistical staff have been deployed to Darfur. The Sudanese government has agreed to set up a “protection force,” he said, without providing further detail.

Basilica seeks additional tour guides

Ruth Harrison of Churchville has visited famous churches throughout Europe and found her January tour of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary to be among the best – made especially unique by the historical knowledge imparted by volunteer docent Frank Twardzik. The retired radiologist from Howard County, and his wife Barbara Twardzik, are among 50 volunteers who give guided tours of the newly restored Baltimore landmark and church leaders are ready to recruit additional men and women to join the Basilica’s legion of docents.

Bishop Madden awards medals of honor

Bishop Denis J. Madden, urban vicar, presented the Archdiocesan Medal of Honor to three parishioners of St. William of York, Baltimore, during a Jan. 7 Mass at the parish concelebrate by Father Martin Demek, pastor. The recognition is bestowed to clergy, religious and laity for their outstanding service to the archdiocese and their respective parishes or institutions. The medal is imbedded in lucite with the coat of arms of the archdiocese on one side and on the other flames of fire representing the Holy Spirit and the words, “love, service, disciple.”

The care needed to fix a broken heart

Idalia Peraza should not have lived past the age of 20. Over the last 36 years Ms. Peraza, a developmentally disabled woman from Honduras, has been suffering from a common congenital heart defect called Tetralogy of Fallot. When Ms. Peraza was born she had a hole in her heart causing her to literally turn blue when the blood crossed through the hole without entering the lungs. For years Ms. Peraza has been suffering with nausea and breathlessness. A few months ago she started having terrible fevers, vomiting and chest pain. Her sister, Mercedes Ruiz whom she lives with, took her to see Midatlantic cardiologist, Dr. Stacy Fisher who diagnosed her heart problem.

Church struggles to judge communist collaborators

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The resignation of a Polish archbishop over spying revelations has highlighted a tension between judgment and forgiveness in the church, one that has taken on new meaning in post-communist Europe. In the broadest sense, it’s a tension found in the teaching of Christ, who preached forgiveness but told his followers to “judge justly” the wrongs of society.

Cumberland parishioners make big dent in poverty

When they learned from a member of the board of education that local school children were returning from summer vacation thinner than when they left, parishioners of Ss. Peter and Paul in Cumberland wanted to do something about it. Working with members of nearby Emmanuel Episcopal Church, they came up with an innovative lunch box program that gets healthy food into the stomachs of hungry children. Five days a week during the summer, volunteers pack about 150 lunches that are left in a cooler at a popular playground where children take the sandwiches, apples and bananas without feeling embarrassed. The unique outreach, now entering its fourth year, is just one component of Ss. Peter and Paul’s St. Anthony Place, a growing service ministry that celebrated its 10th anniversary Jan. 7.

Zambian native takes first vows

Sister Mary Brigid Tembo took her first formation vows Jan. 6 in her journey to become a Sister of Bon Secours. More than 125 people attended the mass of first profession held at the Sisters of Bon Secours Provincial Chapel in Marriottsville. Of Zambian decent, Sister Brigid incorporated several African cultural elements into the Mass, including a symbolic dance she performed herself.

Mercy High freshman wins essay contest