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Saturday, January 15th was a beautiful celebration for the sacrament of First Reconciliation for many of our children!  On a brilliantly sunny and frigid morning, 26 of our students received the sacrament for the first time.  The children arrived looking excited and confident for their appointment time on their special day, which was so wonderful to see.  Each child received a red heart upon arrival, signifying the sins they were bringing to confession.  When they finished receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation, each child traded their red heart for a white one, signifying that Jesus had forgiven and washed away all of their sins and they had a fresh start!  
       

After stopping to say their prayers at our special penance station, each child also received a votive prayer candle, to remind them of the light of Christ and that Jesus is always with them when they pray.  We give a big thank you to the many volunteers who made the day possible.  Two wonderful volunteers assisted us indoors, making sure everything ran smoothly and six dedicated and courageous volunteers braved the below freezing temperatures to assist with keeping everyone safe and organized in the parking lot, and letting each family know when it there was their turn to enter the church.  We were so thankful to have found a way that allowed the children to receive this beautiful sacrament while also following the COVID health and safety protocols.  All masking, social distancing and sanitizing protocols were followed, and our volunteers made everything run so smoothly so that one child could be in each of the two confessionals while 1 to 3 additional students waited in line for their turn.  Four more students made their First Reconciliation on Wednesday, January 26th and two more will receive it in the Spring.  Please join us in thanking our volunteers and congratulating all of our students and families!