The Holy Cross Mission Center, in partnership with the U.S. Province’s Office of Apostolic Mission & Charism, is pleased to announce the winners of the 2024 Holy Cross Missions Student Essay Contest. This year’s theme was “Towards Completeness, Towards Christ,” a reference to Blessed Basil Moreau’s belief that “[Education] is the art of helping young people to completeness. For the Christian, this means that education is helping a young person to be more like Christ, the model for all Christians.” 

The Student Essay Contest Committee reviewed all 28 applications and was impressed by the diversity of personal encounters at Holy Cross’s international ministries. Students wrote of the transformations of both their heads and hearts, and they movingly described how those transformations drew them closer to Christ. In their determination of the winners, the Committee emphasized the following factors:

Eligibility: “All graduate, undergraduate, and high school students who have participated in an immersion experience at an international Holy Cross ministry in Bangladesh, Chile, Kenya, Mexico, Peru, Tanzania, or Uganda this past academic year.”

Attentiveness to the 2024 contest prompt: “[A]pplicants should hone in on one specific moment when they felt a profound connection with a person they encountered and describe the impact of that encounter. Your story should paint a clear picture of that personal encounter, frame it within a Holy Cross context, and highlight the ways that it prompted you to live more like Christ. Your personal transformation may have occurred through your head (your insights, understandings, perspectives, etc.), your heart (your aspirations, feelings, attitudes, attentiveness to others, etc.), or both.” 

Depth of spiritual reflection

Intrigue of the storytelling

On behalf of the Committee, many thanks to all applicants, their schools that sponsored their immersion experiences, and the international ministries that generously hosted them.

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First Place: Layann Wardeh

Immersion Sponsor: University of Notre Dame – Center for Social Concerns

International Ministry: St. Joseph’s Hill Senior Secondary School (Uganda)

Layann, a junior studying computer engineering at the University of Notre Dame, has dedicated herself to Holy Cross education in Uganda through her annual participation in the Baraka Bouts women’s boxing tournament, which raises funds for St. Joseph’s Hill and Lake View Senior Secondary School. This past summer she jumped at the opportunity to experience those ministries firsthand through a fellowship offered by the Center for Social Concerns. Layann’s essay paints a compelling portrait of Hope, a St. Joseph’s Hill student who integrated her Christian faith into her servant leadership on her netball team. 

 In addition to Layann’s $500 award from the Office of Apostolic Mission & Charism, the Holy Cross Mission Center will also contribute $1,000 in Layann’s honor for the ministry priorities of St. Joseph’s Hill. 

Congratulations, Layann!

Second Place: Kylene Coyle

Immersion Sponsor: Archbishop Hoban High School

International Ministry: Parroquia Nuestra Madre Santísima de la Luz (Mexico)

A 2024 graduate from Archbishop Hoban High School, Kylene wrote eloquently about La Luz Parish in Monterrey, Mexico. She used the metaphor of “thin places” to illuminate the “thin” barrier between God’s divine life and the material conditions for the people at La Luz Parish. 

In addition to Kylene’s $300 award from the Office of Apostolic Mission & Charism, the Holy Cross Mission Center will also contribute $500 in Kylene’s honor for the ministry priorities of St. Joseph’s Hill.

Congratulations, Kylene!

Third Place (tie): Noelle Boucher

Immersion Sponsor: King’s College (PA) – Physician Assistant Program

International Ministry: Policlínico Parroquial Hermano Andrés (Peru)

Noelle, a Physician Assistant student at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, participated in a Medical Mission Trip to Peru this summer. There, she experienced the Congregation’s diverse ministries in the impoverished neighborhood of Canto Grande while offering her medical training to treat patients at Br. André Clinic. Noelle’s essay caught the committee’s attention because of her Christ-like attentiveness to the needs of her most vulnerable patients.

In addition to Noelle’s $200 award from the Office of Apostolic Mission & Charism, the Holy Cross Mission Center will also contribute $500 in Noelle’s honor for the ministry priorities of Br. André Clinic. 

Congratulations, Noelle!

Third Place (tie): Mateo DeCola

Immersion Sponsor: Archbishop Hoban High School

International Ministry: Parroquia Nuestra Madre Santísima de la Luz (Mexico)

Mateo, a rising junior at Archbishop Hoban High School in Akron, Ohio, participated in his school’s immersion to La Luz Parish over spring break. Drawing on his family’s history of immigration, Mateo composed an essay that captures his zeal for Christ, his Christ-like compassion for those on the peripheries, and his love for the Congregation of Holy Cross. 

In addition to Mateo’s $200 award from the Office of Apostolic Mission & Charism, the Holy Cross Mission Center will also contribute $500 in Mateo’s honor for the ministry priorities of La Luz Parish. 

Congratulations, Mateo!

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Congratulations, Layann, Kylene, Noelle, Mateo, and all applicants to this year’s contest!

All are invited to read the winning essays and others in the coming months by subscribing to the HCMC’s monthly newsletter.

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Published: September 10, 2024