CRJ STUDENTS HELP LOCAL CLINIC THROUGH ART

CRJ students volunteered to paint a table, chairs and bookcase for Outreach Community Health Center.

Cristo Rey Jesuit is committed to forming men and women for and with others that are committed to helping their community. Recently, Outreach Community Health Centers reached out to Cristo Rey Jesuit with a service project idea for students. Outreach had received some furniture from a local hospital that was in need of a little TLC, and they wanted to know if CRJ students would be interested in fixing up and painting the furniture.

Art teacher Patrick Kelly worked with 14 students who volunteered to help fix up and paint the bookcase, table and chairs. Students chose primary colors (yellow, red, blue) to make them bright and colorful for their future home. In all, the students spent over 20 hours touching up and restoring the furniture. “It felt good to do something nice, and make part of our world better through art,” said Kelly. 

Senior Alexis volunteered for this project due to her interest in art. "For me, painting is something that helps me a lot in times of stress. With art, you're free to express yourself in so many ways. It was really an enjoyable project where we were all able to talk and get to know one another more while doing something for our community. CRJ teaches us to have compassion for others and treating one another equally. These services are helping others, and they don’t always have to be difficult or complex; it’s the smallest things that can truly make an impact in somebody’s life."

Outreach was delighted with the work that the CRJ students had done and even arranged for a pizza party to thank them for their hard work. The furniture is currently in use in the children’s waiting room of the clinic. Thank you to all the students who volunteered, as well as Mr. Kelly, for your service to the community.

Depending on when you were born or how much you enjoy watching old sitcoms, the theme song to The Addams Family, including those infamous double snaps, is immediately recognizable. This past weekend, the students in our theater program performed The Addams Family for our spring musical. The musical told a story about how Wednesday Addams, the oldest daughter, was nervous to tell Morticia, her mother, that she was engaged to Lucas, a “normal” guy, rather than someone like them. Wednesday begs her parents to act “normal” when her fiance and his parents visit. Anyone who knows the Addams family knows that they find joy in morbid or scary experiences which they understand makes them different than other “normal” people. For Wednesday’s sake, they do their best to act normal, but they do it in their own way. While the show provided for a lot of good laughs and entertainment, I thought it was interesting how for all the ways the Addams family was regarded as abnormal, their underlying values really weren’t that far off from what we would consider normal. 

While the Addams family had a way of life that looked very different from everyone around them, I and the rest of the audience could relate to their values. They had a tight-knit nuclear family while also caring for Uncle Fester, Grandma, and Lurch in their home. The Addams family showed great love for one another, embodied in the way Gomez, the father, and Morticia embraced one another and would spontaneously begin dancing with one another. Lastly, the Addams family greatly valued telling the truth to one another as the foundation of a trusting relationship. This was embodied by the way Gomez and Morticia interacted with one another and their kids. They talked in the musical about how telling the truth was the expectation in their family.

The musical concludes with the two families understanding one another better and the wedding between Wednesday and her fiance permitted to continue. The fiance’s normal family also began to see the virtues of the Addams family and learned that the values of the family weren’t so outdated or irrelevant after all. Because the Addams family stuck to their values, their abnormal practices didn’t overshadow their strong beliefs.

Our values as a Jesuit school might be considered abnormal in some places. We encourage our students and staff members to be Open to Growth, Loving, Intellectually Competent, Religious, Committed to Justice, and Work Experienced. We challenge ourselves and our students to live and think differently, in a good way. In students' time at CRJ, they reflect and consider the ways that they believe in our core values and how they are challenged by these values. Living our values in a world that may view them as antiquated, irrelevant, or soft could be considered abnormal to some. We see it differently though. With these values, we believe our lives can be more fulfilled and aligned with God's dreams for our lives and our world. Given the many issues we see in our world, maybe living a little more “abnormally” would yield more positive and “normal” outcomes for us all?

SENIOR SPOTLIGHT

FERNANDA, '24 FINDS CAREER PATH THROUGH UNIQUE CWSP PLACEMENT

Fernanda has found a surprising career path through her two years at the Milwaukee County Zoo.

The Corporate Work Study Program partners with many different types of organizations so that students can have experiences in a wide variety of industries. One of those unique partners is the Milwaukee County Zoo, and senior Fernanda has enjoyed working there for two years now!

“CWSP was important when choosing to attend CRJ because I wanted work experience as a teenager and to get an idea of what job I could do in the future,” Fernanda shared. "For my junior year, I worked in the Education building and was given multiple projects over the year, including preparing materials for summer interns. For my senior year, I worked in the Volunteer department and have been checking renewals and helping volunteers with events.”

Lynn Wilding is the Program Manager at the Zoological Society of Milwaukee, and she is Fernanda's supervisor this year. “I appreciate the responsibility and skill set that our CRJ student team has. Fernanda shows great pride in her work and is very good at paying attention to detail. While we do not directly work with the animals, we do things to benefit the care and preservation of animals in general. Some of that support might be in learning about animals, assisting with training materials, interacting with our volunteers, and participating in activities.”

Before working at the zoo, Fernanda wasn't sure what career to pursue when she entered college. "Once I started working at the zoo, I knew that it was possible to work with animals, and that's what I wanted to do. I decided then that a career I want to pursue after college is something that involves working with animals.” This fall, Fernanda will be attending UW-Madison. She will be looking at potential majors in zoology and environmental studies. “I want to pursue a career in working to save animals from extinction.”

ORIENTATION BRINGS CLASS OF 2028 TOGETHER

March 23rd marked the first official gathering of the Class of 2028 as CRJ welcomed 125 students and their families to the New Student/Family Orientation. Students and families received important information to help them with the transition to high school as well as our Jesuit identity and approach to faith formation. Academic leadership shared insights into the classes, student life activities, and college-going support they can look forward to. The incoming students and their families were also very excited to hear about the amazing opportunities available through our innovative Corporate Work Study Program. 

In addition, panels featuring parents, alumni and current students provided additional information and perspectives of what it means to be a Trailblazer! Founding Class member Jacky Gutierrez was one of the alumni who participated in the panel. "As a proud alum, I was honored to address the incoming freshman class and their families," Gutierrez said. "Having walked the halls of Cristo Rey Jesuit myself, I understand the unique experiences and challenges that come with being a CRJ student. I wanted the incoming freshmen and their families to know that they are not only embarking on a journey, but rather joining a tight-knit community dedicated to their success."

We look forward to welcoming the Class of 2028 back to CRJ for Summer Bridge beginning on June 17th!

Is your business interested in partnering with our work study program?

We would like to speak with you about how your business or organization can partner with our Corporate Work Study Program! Contact Everette Fernandes at 414.436.4600 Ext. 3141 or efernandes@cristoreymilwaukee.org.

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The generous support of Cristo Rey Jesuit donors like you makes it possible for us to offer a Catholic, college-prep education combined with unique professional work experience to young women and men of all faiths and limited financial means.