Above: Kathleen Kozak
Cardinal Gibbons High School hosted a centennial event Aug. 17 to honor those who serve on parish councils and bring them together for fellowship.
Many pastors attended the event with their council members. In total, more than 160 people represented more than 30 parishes.
The day included a welcome and prayer service in the school’s theater. Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama, Father Michael Burbeck, vicar general of the diocese, Kathleen Kozak, who directs campus ministry at the school, and the school’s chaplain, Father Luke Rawicki, L.C., spoke to council members.
Those gathered enjoyed a taco lunch from a food truck outdoors. After the meal, attendees participated in games, such as bingo and trivia, in the cafeteria.
Sophia Escelara, a sophomore member of the Cardinal Gibbons student council, ended the day with a prayer and reflection.
She was part of the team of student volunteers who greeted people, offered campus tours and helped with games. Along the way the team learned valuable lessons such as adapting changes in real time.
"One of the games was ZARAMA, a game our student council moderator, Mr. Mike Rogosich, had created. This game ... allowed the people to meet their peers and learn something new about them while competing for some fun prizes," Escelara said. "The energy was at its peak!"
The Gibbons community also hosted a centennial event in July for parish staff members.
“The students made everyone feel so welcome. They greeted everyone with smiles. They had enthusiasm and joy,” said Bishop Luis. “And that is so needed. That is our future.”
For his part, Jeff Bell, who is head of school, said it was wonderful to celebrate the centennial of the diocese at Cardinal Gibbons.
“We were pleased to share the day with fantastic colleagues from across the state, and we were so proud of our students, who served as hosts to the bishop, the clergy, and the diocesan staff,” he said.
The event started with remarks from Bishop Luis and a reflection from Kozak. Bishop Luis reminded parish staff members that they are loved and that they should let the people of their parish see Jesus’ love in their faces when they interact with them.
Kozak shared that, as the diocese celebrates the past 100 years, there should also be a spirit of embracing that same missionary zeal that was originally present as the faithful begin the next 100 years.
“I was happy to attend with my staff the first centennial event scheduled by the diocese,” said Father Ryszard Kolodziej, pastor of St. Egbert Catholic Church in Morehead City. “It was wonderful for us to come together to enrich each other with our faith. We build on the foundation laid by the previous generations, thanking the Lord for everything that has been achieved, and we are looking forward with hope to what we can still accomplish through God's grace.”
The day included lunch, games and an atmosphere that brought both longtime and brand new parish employees together.
“From the moment I got there, being newly hired, with the sea of strangers, only knowing my coworkers, I felt God’s love the entire day,” said Rinny Stephens, bookkeeper at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Fayetteville.
Human resources coordinator for the Diocese of Raleigh, Julie Teeter, summed up the celebration, “Bishop Luis said it best, ‘We are the Best Diocese in the World!’”
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