Oshkosh parish youth collect more than 1,000 pairs of socks for worthy cause
OSHKOSH — Little things can mean a lot.
Dawn Prickett, a Sunday school coordinator at St. Raphael the Archangel Parish, recently learned that many children in St. Raphael’s sister parish, Holy Family in Lafayette, Tenn., wear flip-flops as shoes simply because they have no socks to go with their shoes.
St. Raphael the Archangel Parish religious education instructor Kris Cater is pictured with her students who collected socks for the parish’s sister parish, Holy Family, in Lafayette, Tenn. (Submitted Photo | For The Compass)
She saw this as a need that could easily be addressed by children in the Sunday school classes, while at the same time letting St. Raphael youths experience the joy of giving and being the hands and feet of Jesus for others.
All the 700 students in the grades 1-10 program were invited to participate in the two-week drive. They responded enthusiastically, said Jessie Adrians, coordinator of religious education for St. Raphael.
“For two weeks, our youths brought in socks in their own size and ‘style’ and threw them into laundry baskets we had in our gathering space,” Adrians said. “Our elementary coordinator, Jen Jensen, also ‘wore’ a laundry basket and invited students to toss the socks in as she walked around to classrooms. Our halls were full of joy as our youths responded with enthusiasm and excitement.”
About 1,054 pair of socks were collected and will be shared in the next few weeks with Holy Family Parish and the No Child Forgotten Program for St. Vincent de Paul in Oshkosh.
“It was an opportunity for the youths to give child-to-child,” Adrians said. “When they learned that there were some kids who wanted socks but couldn’t have them, they thought about the fact that they could reach into their drawer and get some any time they wanted. They put themselves in the place of someone else.
“It met a need that might not otherwise have been met. It shows our kids the power that they have, that they are the church, the hands and feet of Jesus in the world, and what a big difference they can make by small acts of kindness,” she added.
Adrians said the enthusiasm shown by the youths was amazing.
“I think that we can learn a lot from our kids and the way they responded to this,” she said. “They responded with open hands and open hearts. As adults, we need to similarly respond when we see a need in our world.”
Students not only learned the value of giving, but a way to live their faith, Adrians said. “We know Jesus calls us to serve others,” she said. “It’s a big part of belonging to the church. This is a big part of caring for each other and observing the peace and justice aspect of our church. This showed the children that they’re valued, they’re important, and we all need to take part in service such as this.”
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