COURTESY PHOTO

Posing for photos are, from left, kneeling: Julie Krechting, Susie Wolterman, Allyssa Price and Betsy Sontag; standing: Shirley Frey, Nicole Oehler, Caitlin Leahy, Stacy Breen, Juliann Schwieter and Jan Huxel.

McAuley students start summer with service

ARCHDIOCESE — What’s the best way to start your summer vacation? For eight McAuley High School students, it meant going to Jamaica and lending a helping hand.

The trip was led by McAuley teachers Shirley Frey and Jan Huxel. The students included Stacy Breen, Julie Krechting, Caitlin Leahy, Nicole Oehler, Allyssa Price, Juliann Schwieter, Betsy Sontag and Susie Wolterman. The 10-day trip, running from June 5-14, was to St. John Bosco Boys’ Home located in Mandeville, Jamaica. St. John Bosco houses 150 orphan boys ages 8-18 and is directed by Sister Susan Frazer, a 1966 McAuley graduate, and Sister Mimi Krusling, a graduate of Regina High School. Students completed a five-day painting project, which involved painting a recreation room for the boys, complete with Disney characters and a rainbow of colors. The students also assisted with a birthday party, sponsored a movie night featuring Skyline chili dip for the boys to try, and interacted with the boys on a daily basis.

The eight students who went on the trip started their preparations early in the 2006-2007 school year. (Students must apply and interview for positions on all immersion trips offered by McAuley High School.) After being accepted, the students participated in fund-raising activities in order to generate enough money to cover all expenses. Monthly meetings were held in order to prepare for the trip and to assist with necessary prerequisites such as shots and passports.

The Jamaican immersion trip was one of three trips offered by McAuley this summer. Another group went to Honduras and still another to Give Kids the World Village in Florida. Trips for 2008 are already in the beginning stages and will include another trip to Jamaica.