Recognition of women

By Cori Fugere Urban

Joyce Corbin of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Windsor gestures as she speaks to Msgr. Peter Routhier, vicar general of the Diocese of Burlington.

As Joyce Corbin waited for the annual Recognition of Women in Ministry celebration to begin Nov. 1 at Our Lady of the Angels Church in Randolph, she reflected on her selection as one of the honorees. "It's very humbling," Corbin, said the director for the past dozen years of religious education at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Windsor. "It's wonderful to be recognized for what I love to do."

Corbin was one of 24 women honored for the many ways they serve and build up the Church, and like Corbin, felt humbled.

"It's very humbling," concurred Lucille Dupont, choir director at St. Francis Xavier Church in Winooski. "When I heard (I was going to get the honor), I was speechless."
She doesn't take credit for the high quality of the choir. "I stand in front of this choir and these beautiful sounds come toward me."

The afternoon celebration included Mass for the feast of All Saints Day celebrated by Bishop Salvatore R. Matano, Bishop of Burlington, and about two dozen priests. A reception followed.

Hundreds of people filled the church, sitting in folding chairs or standing in the back and along side aisles, and even spilling over into the parish hall where they listened to the Mass on a loudspeaker.

The bishop honored the women "who have taken seriously the call of Christ to be examples to their brothers and sisters in the family of God to be Christlike and bring His presence to others."

During his homily on the Feast of All Saints, Bishop Matano said new saints continue to be raised up despite difficulties the Church encounters.

"We must recognize that ours is the Church of the saints, and we are the brothers and sisters of the saints," he said. "And yet in the face of the Church's claim to give saints to the world, her critics cry out, ‘The Church is dead or at least is dying... . She has become vitiated by the infidelities of her members, paralyzed by the political and social challenges... . She no longer has the power to produce saints.'"

But people stay with the Church and continue to build it up. "New saints are raised up by her power even when that power seems to be broken," the bishop continued, saying this is true of the daughters of the Church, "the faithful women who since that day on Calvary have never ceased to follow the Lord."

Ruth Blake of St. Elizabeth Parish in Lyndonville wears a corsage given to her by parishioners.

Great wives and mothers are among the saints, he said, beginning with the Mother of God, St. Anne and St. Elizabeth. "Our beloved Church is indeed the home of saints."
The need for saints remains, he said.

"Today we honor women who...continue to follow Christ faithfully in their lives," he said, with gratitude acknowledging those "who recognize the Lord in their lives and share His presence with others by fulfilling His commandments, ‘Love your neighbor. Love one another as I have loved you.'"

Bishop Matano said the honorees give others great courage that the Church still longs to fulfill the will of Jesus to be perfect even as His heavenly Father is perfect and seeks to imitate Jesus.

"In honoring these women today, we also honor what is so central and important to our Catholic faith and to our Church-the family," he said. "For whether those honored today are mothers or not, all of us share in the work of building up family life."

At the end of the Mass, the bishop congratulated each woman all of whom received a small statue of the Blessed Mother and Child Jesus.

"I'm amazed and shocked and honored," said Georgianna Adam, a self-described "fixer of all things, including statues," and former lector at St. Joseph Co-Cathedral in Burlington. "Women do so many things in the background behind the scenes."

Msgr. Peter Routhier, vicar general of the Diocese of Burlington and coordinator of the event, said the two-dozen honorees perform "an infinite variety" of ministries throughout the statewide diocese, serving in areas like religious education, music ministry and housekeeping. "Many are behind the scenes, always working."

But most serve not only their churches but their communities as well. "So they witness their faith in the larger community," he said. "I'm always humbled as I look at all the work they do for our Church."

He said about 40 women were nominated, and he would have liked to honor them all.

"Women were important in the ministry (of Jesus) because they followed Jesus everywhere, and we still do," commented Claudia Stacey who recently retired after serving for 25 years in the religious education program at Our Lady of Seven Dolors Church in Fair Haven.

Father John Milanese, pastor of Our Lady of the Angels Church, said he and parishioners were honored to host the Recognition of Women in Ministry for the second consecutive year. "It's a delight to have people come from all over the diocese to this parish facility. Each and every woman here tells in her own way the opportunities in which people can build up the Kingdom of God. They are an inspiration to us all."

Claire Goldsworthy, 16, said seeing so many women who serve the Church makes her want to continue to help her parish, Our Lady of the Angels, where she is an altar server. "I want to be a lector," she said.

Another altar server, Erin Kiernan, 17, said she was inspired by the honorees. "It's very inspiring to have so many women help the Church and nice we're able to recognize them for all their hard work."
The 2009 honorees are:

Trudie Yandow of Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary/St. Louis Parish in Swanton smiles as she receives congratulations from Bishop Salvatore R. Matano, Bishop of Burlington.

Georgianna Adam, St. Joseph Co-Cathedral, Burlington

Linda Baird, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Burlington

Hazel Beals, St. John the Baptist, Castleton

Jeanine Berard, Most Holy Trinity, Barton

Ruth Blake, St. Elizabeth, Lyndonville

Joyce Corbin, St. Francis of Assisi, Windsor

Mary Ann Corey, St. Michael, Brattleboro

Theresa DeMasi, St. John the Baptist, North Bennington

Collette Dirmaier, Holy Family/St. Lawrence, Essex Junction

Lucille Dupont, St. Francis Xavier, Winooski

Virginia Garrand, St. Augustine, Montpelier

Louise Matthews, St. Thomas, Underhill Center

Denise Messier, St. Mary, St. Albans

Georgianna Adam (left) of St. Joseph Co-Cathedral Parish in Burlington confers with Linda Baird of Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Parish in Burlington.

Shirley Parrott, St. Ann, Milton

Agnes Pietryka, St. Anthony, Bethel

Patricia Reynolds, St. Patrick, Fairfield

Laurie Rossi, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Williston

Maureen Rupp, St. Monica, Barre

Claudia Stacey, Our Lady of Seven Dolors, Fair Haven

Pamela Tetreault, St. Ignatius, Lowell

Catherine VanGuilder, St. Raphael, Poultney

Faith Wuenschel, Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, Richmond

Adele Yandow, St. Andrew, Waterbury

Trudie Yandow, Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary/St. Louis, Swanton