The 2008 Cardinal Awards Dinner was as much a tribute to the workings of the Holy Spirit as it was an evening to honor five members of the Greater Los Angeles community for their long and distinguished records of service.
In its new venue at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood and Highland in Hollywood, Cardinal Roger Mahony presented the awards Feb. 9 to this year's "Catholic stars" --- Richard Closson, Antoinette Hodgkiss, Dorothy King, Gary Krauss and Jesuit Father Robert Lawton.
Proceeds from the dinner will benefit San Miguel School in Watts which plans to add a preschool and to develop a specialized learning center for young students from preschool through third grade.
"This evening as we gather to honor five wonderful people of our archdiocesan family, I am struck by a special characteristic evident in each of them --- service," said Cardinal Mahony. "That service has been primarily focused on our parishes --- the heart of our church. It is evident in their outreach through education, visitations, development of leadership in the young, and stewardship support."
The honorees emphasized their gratitude for their spouses, family, friends, colleagues, clergy and religious who had supported their work over the years. More than 900 people were present at the dinner.
As director of Trusts and Estates for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Closson initiated the Archdiocesan Legacy Society for those who have included the archdiocese and parishes in their estate plans. He has conducted numerous parish seminars and has provided individual consultations in planned giving.
A quiet, gentle man with a warm smile, Closson described his work as well as his service to his parish, Holy Angels in Arcadia, as "my great privilege and joy." He added, "God has touched me with His grace, and I am humbled and grateful."
A convert to Catholicism in her early 20s, Hodgkiss coordinates eucharistic ministry to the elderly and homebound of St. Brendan Church in Los Angeles which includes a professional nurse accompanying the ministers. She also is a long-time supporter of the Juniors of Social Service, the Social Service Auxiliary and the Good Shepherd Center for Homeless Women.
"I received my inspiration definitely from the Holy Spirit and from all those also whom I serve," said Hodgkiss. In describing the personal significance she feels in taking Communion to the homebound, she said, "We are really bringing God to the parishioners," adding that what she receives in return from the elderly "really makes my faith very strong."
Krauss resigned from a career as a company sales executive to establish Ascending Lights Leadership Network to encourage youth in becoming skilled Christian leaders in their parishes. His three "home" parishes are St. Denis in Diamond Bar, Our Lady of the Assumption in Claremont, and St. Ann north of downtown Los Angeles where he lives nearby.
Krauss quipped that in St. Paul's image of the body of Christ, he is "the mouth" championing youth leadership. "I cannot tell you how grateful I am on behalf of our beautiful graduates, our students, and their churches that I have had the honor of working with you all and standing on your shoulders," he said.
King, a parishioner of St. Gregory the Great Church in Whittier for nearly 50 years, helped launch the archdiocesan Catholic Bible Institute in 1993. Since then, more than 1,500 students have passed through the Institute and have participated in monthly sessions at Loyola Marymount University often given by some of the church's leading Scripture scholars.
Expressing her enthusiasm for Scripture and continuing with St. Paul's image of the body of Christ, King joked that the saint and she "always have something more to say." She added her hope that, "All of you now have a place to go to study the word of God, but not only that, to dwell on the Scriptures and find out what God's will is for you in your own life. And what else could be more important?"
Father Lawton, president of Loyola Marymount University, was honored for the many ways he has strived to ensure that the university widens its vision to serve the educational and spiritual needs of the archdiocesan church community and the City of Angels.
"Here [in Los Angeles] the desires, the dreams, the hungers and the hurts of the present and coming age are lived most intensely. Here God passionately yearns to dwell," said Father Lawton. "And God does dwell here through works of this great archdiocese --- through the care and love of so many of you. Loyola Marymount is proud to labor with you, caring for this tangled, tough, fragile, wondrous, intricately beautiful place, this new Eden, this City of the Angels --- our home and God's as well."
The evening's proceeds will benefit the community of Watts, one tough area of Los Angeles where gang violence is a pervasive threat, but where "a haven of peace, religion and hope" also exists in the bright oasis of San Miguel School, noted Msgr. Royale Vadakin, moderator of the curia.
Missionary of the Sacred Heart Father Jose Valdez Romo, San Miguel pastor, expressed his gratitude that San Miguel School will be able to add a preschool and a specialized learning center for its students.
"These children are the future leadership of South Central Los Angeles," said the pastor. "The more opportunities we can give them to study, the better they can move away from a culture of violence."
School principal Jesús Vazquez noted that 15 children have already been pre-registered for the preschool. "I feel super excited, happy and blessed," said Vazquez. He said that families that can enroll their young children in preschool will develop a long-term relationship with the Catholic school that will positively impact the school's future stability. |