Major gift to SLU

Saint Louis University has announced that philanthropists Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield are donating $50 million to the university, the largest gift in SLU’s 200-year history. The historic gift will fund a new Saint Louis University Research Institute that will serve as the focal point for SLU’s strategic goal of growing the scale and eminence of its research and scholarship. It will also establish the Sinquefield Center for Applied Economic Research and provide annual support to SLU’s chess team.

Rex Sinquefield, a SLU alumnus and trustee, said the university “was instrumental to my success in life. I want generations of Saint Louis University students to enjoy the same opportunity that I had.” The Saint Louis University Research Institute will recruit and retain faculty research leaders, invest in multi-disciplinary research programs, and launch a research growth fund. The Sinquefield Center for Applied Economic Research will conduct research grounded in applied economics or the study of economic theories in practice. The gift will also support the establishment of a guest lecture series in economics and related fields.

In memoriam

Dorothy Granberry Bennett, the first African-American pastoral associate hired at St. Alphonsus Liguori “Rock” Church died Aug. 24 in Atlanta. She was born in 1919 in Reedy, Okla. Mrs. Bennett retired from the St. Louis Public School System with more than 30 years of service as an educator. In 1985, she was hired at St. Alphonsus Liguori ‘Rock’ Catholic Church. The funeral Mass was celebrated Sept. 1 at St. Alphonsus “Rock” Church, with burial at Calvary Cemetery.

Outstanding parishioners

Joseph and Nancy Mueller, parishioners at Mary Queen of Peace in Webster Groves, are among the 2018 winners of the Citizen Recognition Awards from the Missouri Catholic Conference. Each year, the MCC recognizes a Catholic citizen, couple or group from each of the four dioceses who gives of themselves to better the lives of others. They will receive the award at the MCC Annual Assembly at Helias Catholic High School in Jefferson City, Mo., on Saturday, Oct. 6. In 58 years of marriage, the Muellers have been active in their parish. Joe Mueller has been a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society since he was in law school, serving as vice president and then president. Nancy became a member of the SVDP in the early 1970s, when women first joined the Society. She volunteered at the soup kitchens of St. Patrick Center and the Missionaries of Charity, where she still works once a week. The winner from Kansas City/St. Joseph is Mary Ernstmann, a leader in Missouri Right to Life causes. She has long-served on the Social Services Council at her parish, where she and others galvanized parishioners around social justice matters such as newly established immigrant and refugee ministries and English as Second Language (ESL) initiatives within her parish. In the Jefferson City Diocese, Cheryl Hayes promoted the Catholic faith by her involvement in her parish, serving on boards and committees. In the Springfield/Cape Girardeau Diocese, Teresa Giarrantano is the director of the St. Peter the Apostle Parish Outreach House in Joplin since 2012. Register for the free Oct. 6 event at mocatholic.org or call the MCC office at (800) 456-1679.

New leadership

David Colón is beginning his tenure as head of Visitation Academy after serving as headmaster at Wakefield Academy in Virginia. Colón received a master’s degree from Harvard University, with a concentration in renaissance and reformation European history and preparation in medieval and modern European intellectual history and early modern Catholicism. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the University of Salamanca in Spain. Colón received a bachelor’s degree from American University, with a concentration in history and a minor in Germanic language and civilization. Visitation Academy is an independent, Catholic school offering a coeducational Montessori program in grades toddler through kindergarten and an all-girls environment in Grades 1-12.

Hair today …

St. Joseph’s Academy Campus Ministry hosted its biennial hair donation event, “SJA Rocks the Bob,” with 115 students, faculty, staff and alumnae donating their hair to Children with Hair Loss on Aug. 24. That brought close to 1,000 inches of hair. The nonprofit recipient provides hair replacements at no cost to children and young adults with medically related hair loss. Anna Hotop, director of campus ministry, said the event is “the perfect model of our motto, ‘Not I, But We.’ The community comes together to live out the Sisters of St. Joseph’s calling for us to ‘serve the Dear Neighbor’ in a unique way.”

Upcoming events

Mass of reparation

A Mass of Reparation to pray for the victims of abuse and ask forgiveness for the sins of the Church will take place at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7, at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, Lindell Boulevard and Newstead Avenue in the Central West End. Archbishop Robert J. Carlson will be the main celebrant of the Mass. A eucharistic Holy Hour, sung Divine Mercy chaplet and confessions will take place after Mass. Reparation is a theological term used when making amends for insults given to God through the sins of human beings. A Mass of Reparation uses specific prayers in seeking forgiveness of sins.

SLU First Friday series addresses slavery

Jesuit Father David Suwalsky will speak on, “Saint Louis University - After Slavery” as SLU’s First Friday Mass and Speaker Series resumes Friday, Sept. 7, at Boileau Hall. Sponsored by SLU’s Office of Mission and Identity, the event will open at noon with Mass, followed by a light lunch then the talk by Father Suwalsky, who is SLU’s director of Academic Initiatives, Mission and Identity. St Louis Redevelopment Corporation executive director Brooks Goedeker (Oct. 5), Jesuit Father Michael Rozier (Nov. 2) and SLU law professor Susan McGraugh (Dec. 7) will speak at the monthly sessions through the end of the year. To RSVP, email [email protected]

Assistance for Beyond Sunday school grants

The Roman Catholic Foundation of Eastern Missouri will hold a pair of Beyond Sunday Technical Assistance sessions for parishes and/or schools interested in applying for Beyond Sunday school grants. These sessions will provide guidance for the grant application process. The sessions, which are identical, will be 4-6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 10 and 10 a.m.-noon Tuesday, Sept. 18, both at Cardinal Rigali Center in Shrewsbury

Social justice conference

The second annual Sister Antona Ebo Social Justice Conference will take place from 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15, at Saint Louis University High School. Organized by the archdiocesan Peace and Justice Commission, the conference will include workshops on topics including racism, gun violence, immigration and incarceration. Plenary speaker will be Deacon Lawrence C. Houston, a preacher, speaker and educator from the Archdiocese of New Orleans. A plenary panel discussion on gun violence also will take place. Registration is $10 per person, with scholarships available. A light breakfast and lunch will be provided. Participants ages 13 and older are welcome. To register, see bit.ly/2MxwGSC; or contact Marie Kenyon at (314) 792-7062 or [email protected].

Catholic perspective on end-of-life issues

The Roman Catholic Foundation of Eastern Missouri will present The Conversation: A Catholic Perspective on End-of-Life Issues on Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Oakville. Father Kristian Teater will discuss the principles of Catholic bioethics, a topic of interest for many Catholics making healthcare plans for themselves or caring for ill or aging loved ones. The free seminar will also include presentations on Catholic funeral and cemetery planning, estate planning and advance directives and charitable gift planning. For registration, visit rcfstl.org/the-conversation. In addition, three other seminars are planned: Saturday, Oct. 20 at St. Rose Philippine Duchesne Parish in Florissant; Saturday, Nov. 3 at Immaculate Conception Parish in Dardenne Prairie; and Saturday, Nov. 17 at Cardinal Rigali Center in Shrewsbury.