Snowflake Semiformal Time...

Hey everyone!

VITA has had such a successful first semester, with so many new additions and old friends taking part in all of our socials and faith sharing groups! It was a time of change, as we said goodbye to one of our amazing LINK leader's, Maura, and Wings and Worship leader, Katie, as they leave for abroad next semester and welcomed a new LINK leader, Kelly.

Of course one of VITA's biggest events, the annual Snowflake Semiformal, was another success! We had so many people come dance the night away in their beautiful dresses and handsome suits, eat some delicious food (chocolate fountain, white chocolate peppermint pretzels, quiches- what's not to like!?) and just have a wonderful time together :)

VITA Team 2012-13 :)

Hopefully, this spring semester is as successful as the fall!

-Alex :)

Meet the Team! VITA 2012-13!

Hi everyone!!

I hope everyone is having a phenomenal day!! As I've said before, I am just SO EXCITED to get started on this new year in Campus Ministry. Last year, we had such a successful year, with all of our events, retreats, faith sharing groups, etc. That's why I am so excited to start this year- getting involved is so important to your college experience and we want to make the experience that much easier for you!! Sometimes, however, you don't know where to start!! No worries, because the next couple of ECM blog posts will be introducing you to many of the people that take part in making these groups, retreats, and events occur throughout the school year!!

Number one thing is: WE ARE HERE TO HELP!!

So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce you to VITA Team 2012-13.

Alexandra (Alex) Byrne, Junior
Email: abyrne@mail.smcvt.edu
Nicknames: Vitamin C (with Maura!!)
Major: Psychology
From: Mamaroneck, NY
Campus Ministry Involvement: member of Emmaus and LEAP retreats, Way of the Cross, Eucharistic Minister, and Lector
VITA Program She Leads: LINK
Favorite VITA Event: All of them!! One of my favorite things in the world to do is organize and plan events, so planning many of the VITA events this year was amazing!!
Fun Facts about Alex: 
-I love making new friends, hugs, and adore welcoming and bringing people together to make them feel at home!!
-I am a social media addict- feel free to tweet or fb me :)
-I can rap Kanye West's "Gold Digger" (ask me to do it sometime hahaha!!)

Maura Grogan, Junior
Email: mgrogan@mail.smcvt.edu
Nicknames: Mouse, MM, Vitamin C
Major: Computer Science
From: Fords, NJ
Campus Ministry Involvement: Coordinator, Altar Server, Eucharistic Minister, Lector, member of Emmaus retreat, LEAP Team, Way of the Cross
VITA Program She Leads: LINK
Favorite VITA Event: Toss up between Snowflake Semiformal and End of the Year Picnic.
Fun Facts about Maura: 
-I'm accident prone.
-I'm a wiz at names- I can usually remember your name after meeting you once.
- I love peanut butter/ chocolate anything!

Lauren Murphy, Sophomore
Email: lmurphy@mail.smcvt.edu
Nickname: Murph
Major: Psychology
From: Bronx, NY
Campus Ministry Involvement: member of LEAP retreat, Way of the Cross
VITA Program she Leads: LINK
Favorite VITA Event: Absolutely love the VITA Girls Night Sleepover and the End of the Year Picnic!
Fun Fact about Lauren: I used to want to be a Nascar driver aka the new Danica Patrick!

Katie McNally, Junior
Email: kmcnally@mail.smcvt.edu
Nickname: Pocahantas (Po)
Major: History
From: Dedham, Mass
Campus Ministry Involvement: Way of the Cross, LEAP Team, member of Emmaus retreat.
VITA Program She Leads: Connections
Favorite VITA Events:
-Snowflake Semiformal- hey, it had amazing chocolate fondue!
-Move in Day, welcoming the first years!
-Cookies and ice cream after mass!
-Girls Night Sleepover!
THE EDMUNDITES ARE THE COOLEST GUYS EVER.
Fun Fact about Katie: My nickname is Po, given to me by Alex Byrne, because of my signature Pocahantas hair styles and my love of the movie!

Katelyn Whitman, Junior
Email: kwhitman2@mail.smcvt.edu
Nicknames: Kate, Sassylady (SL), Whitey
Majors: History/ Theatre
From: Meriden, CT
Campus Ministry Involvement: Way of the Cross, LEAP Team, Altar Server, Eucharistic Minister, Lector.
VITA Program She Leads: Connections
Favorite VITA Event: Snowflake Semiformal. I just love the opportunity to dress up and have a dance party with friends!
Fun Fact About Kate: One of my pinkies is hyperextended!

Merrill Poor, Sophomore
Email: mpoor@mail.smcvt.edu
Nicknames: MERRILLPOOR! (Hahaha when Alex is very excited to see her!!)
Major: Psychology
From: Mont Vernon, NH
Campus Ministry Involvement: Liturgical Choir
VITA Program She Leads: Dessert and the Divine
Favorite VITA Event: Halloween Pumpkin Carving! I carved a Deathly Hallows pumpkin!
Fun Facts about Merrill: I have goats and love the Jonas Brothers!

Alex Brenock, Sophomore
Email: abrenock@mail.smcvt.edu
Nickname: MOA (My Other Alex :)
Major: Psychology
From: Medway, Mass
Campus Ministry Involvement: Liturgical Choir
VITA Program She Leads: Dessert and the Divine
Favorite VITA Event: Pumpkin Carving! It was my first Campus Ministry event; it was so much fun meeting new people and having fun together!
Fun Fact about Alex: I'm the same height as Shakira!

Tracy Peterka, Senior
Email: tpeterka@mail.smcvt.edu
Nickname: TRRRRRAACCCCYYYYY!! (You'll understand when you meet Tracy- everyone is always so excited to meet her that you elongate her name for years- she's just that lovable!!)
Major: History
From: Newport Beach, California
Campus Ministry Involvement: Way of the Cross, Taize, member of LEAP and Emmaus retreats, Eucharistic Minister.
VITA Program She Leads: Connections
Favorite VITA Event: the Girls Night Sleepover in the Upper Room
Fun Fact about Tracy: I am on SMC Fire and Rescue and can drive the fire engine!

And last, but not least, is the wonderful Anna Lester!! Anna is our amazing campus minister/ fearless leader with whom VITA would not be possible today!! She is the nicest, kindest person and what all of us involved in VITA love about her is that she is always there for us, no matter what!! Anna is the best SMC VITA mom anyone could ask for!! I absolutely recommend that if you're interested in Campus Ministry, go to her office, sit down on her comfy couch and talk to her- she always has the best advice and is always willing to help you get involved in whatever way you're comfortable with. Her email is alester@smcvt.edu. 


What I think is so wonderful about SMC in general is how easy it is to approach people about getting involved. We want you, as people interested in campus ministry, to feel comfortable if you see us in the halls or in the middle of Alliot on the sandwich line, to get in touch with us and feel okay about asking questions- were always here to help and always happy to talk to you about anything you may be interested in pursuing!!

Please feel free to ask VITA any questions via Formspring or Twitter or email us individually!! We'd love to hear from you.

-Alex :)

VITA Events!!

Hey Everyone!!

I hope everyone is having a great start to the summer!! I can tell you for a fact that I'm really missing SMC and can't wait to start planning for a new year.

To get you excited, I wanted to let anyone interested in VITA in on a couple of our fabulous events throughout the year. While VITA is greatly involved in peer ministry and faith sharing groups, we also love to have a ton of fun throughout the year as well!! We have an amazing "Social Team" which plans these amazing events- from pumpkin carving, a semiformal, movie and ice cream nights, and an end of the year picnics at the Waterfront...

SOME OF THE BEST TIMES EVER!!

Here are some pictures from this years events :)

Pumpkin Carving 2011!!

 

Cookie Making and Sledding 2011

 

  

 Snowflake Semiformal 2012!!

 

 

 

VITA Movie Night!!

                                              

                                                             VITA Bake Sale!!

The best part about VITA is that it is so easy to get involved, no matter what part you're interested in- we are always so open to new ideas, leadership, and members, so never hesitate to join us!!

-Alex :)

Liturgical Choir trip to Portland, Maine!

Hello everyone!

My name is Marci Wood, and I am a sophomore here at Saint Michael's! I am involved in campus ministry through some of the retreat programs that we offer, and am a member of the liturgical ensemble here on campus (I play the violin!).

Every year, the Saint Michael's Liturgical Ensemble (made up of the choir and instrumentalists) travels to different places to play at Catholic high schools and parishes. In the past, they have traveled to Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and many other states. This year, the trip was to Portland, Maine, and it was the first trip to Maine ever! It was also my first time going on the trip, so I wasn't really sure what to expect.

In preparation for the trip, we practiced A LOT. In addition to our weekly rehearsal, the weekend before the trip we played at 3 masses - one at a local church on Saturday and both masses at Saint Mike's on Sunday. All that practice payed off though, because we were prepared to play and sounded great! Here is a basic run down of the trip schedule:

Thursday: Left Saint Mike's at 4:45pm, had an approximately 4 hour bus trip to Maine (with a pit stop at Pizza Hut!!!!), set up at the high school we were playing at in the morning, and checked into the hotel around 11:30pm.

Friday: Play at 2 high schools in celebration of Catholic schools week, eat dinner at Courtney's (a member of the lit choir) house - her parents prepared dinner for all of us and it was SO GOOD! Seriously, the best mac and cheese I have ever had in my whole life.

Kayley with a lion statue
outside one of the high schools!

Priests play basketball? At SMC, you bet!

Emma, Merrill, and Alex!

Saturday: We had some free time in the morning (aka do homework), ate lunch at a really cool restaurant inside a boat, played at the 4:00pm mass at a local parish, and then set up at Courtney's parish where we would be playing the next morning.

Kayley and me!

Kayley inside the restaurant!

Sunday: Woke up early to load the bus and headed over to play at our final mass of the trip. Then, Courtney's family cooked us breakfast at the church - delicious pancakes and fruit salad! We departed Maine, and arrived back at SMC around 4:30pm.

One of the BEAUTIFUL churches we played in!

The entire wind section and Matt, who plays percussion

The trip was such a fun experience, and I am really glad I was able to go on it. Liturgical choir has been such a fun way to get involved at mass here at SMC - everyone is so friendly and nice!! If you like to sing or play an instrument, I would definitely recommend joining lit choir!

The Lit Choir!!

I'll leave you with a few videos I took (just a warning - I took them on my phone and was located directly behind all the percussion, so that's why the sound quality isn't the best). Enjoy!!

If you have any questions about liturgical choir (or anything about SMC!) feel free to contact me! Hope to see you on campus in the future. :)


-Marci

VITA Faith Sharing

Hey Everyone!!

Since the last time I spoke to you, VITA has been underway with getting its programs and retreats together. It has definitely been busy, but it has been really worth it :)

Today, I thought I'd talk to you about the types of events that VITA puts on throughout the year. There are so many ways to get involved in Campus Ministry, that if you're interested, you'll definitely find something you're interested in!!

Usually, during the week, we have two faith sharing groups, LINK and Connections. LINK, which is what I help run, is from 8-9pm on Wednesdays, is SMC's weekly large faith sharing group. Usually, we focus on relaxation and reflection, a great way to get away from the hectic week and hang out with a great group of people :) LINK incorporates meditation, music, discussion, and prayer- overall, just a wonderful time. LINK was the first VITA event I ever attended last year, so it definitely has a special place in my heart :)

Connections is VITA's small faith group sharing on Thursday from 8-9pm, run by two of my wonderful friends, Tracy and Katie!! Connections really focuses on a question to discuss over Scripture passages, but can sometimes even venture into talking about Monty Python!! It is so nice and really helps you to get to know people better in VITA. Plus, there are always delicious chocolate chip cookies and milk- who can say no to that? ;)

One of the great things about any VITA event is that you don't have to be Catholic to attend. While many people in VITA are Catholic, we have many students of different faiths come and check out what VITA is all about. I actually love it because I learn so much about different religions that I probably would not have known if I wasn't a part of VITA!!

This Thursday from 4-5 in the Upper room of the Chapel, VITA is having their first meeting, so please feel free to come!! Also, never hesitate to contact us on Facebook or Twitter- we're always happy to answer any questions you may have :)

Until next time, sending you my best wishes,
Alex :)

VITA Orientation Weekend 2011

Hi everyone!!

My name is Alex Byrne and I am a Sophomore Psychology major and SMC Blogger. What you may not know about me is that so much of my life in college has been dedicated to the programs within Edmundite Campus Ministry.

When looking at colleges, I looked for a place that would help me grow, not only as a student, but as a friend, and a compassionate leader. I wanted a place where I could enrich my passions for community service and peer ministry, but most of all, I wanted to find an accepting place where I would feel included and welcomed.

Saint Mike's was just that perfect fit :)

My first year at SMC, I was so warmly welcomed by MOVE's amazing directors,
Heidi St. Peter and Erin Bodin and constantly presented opportunities to volunteer for projects through MOVE (Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts.) Whether it be dancing the night away at the Senior Citizen Prom, going on the MOVE First Year Apple Picking, or spending my Monday nights playing Bingo at the local nursing home, I really enjoyed getting involved in giving back to the community.

VITA became my second family. Coming in as a new student, I was extremely shy and a bit afraid of getting involved with things, even though I was really passionate about them. However, from the moment I went to my first VITA meeting, I felt at home and felt as if this was where I was supposed to be. VITA includes so many programs, from serving at 11am and 7pm Mass as lectors, choir members, Eucharistic Ministers, and alter servers, our weekly faith sharing groups, LINK, Dessert and the Divine, and Connections, semester retreats such as LEAP, Busy Student retreat, and Emmaus, and workshops throughout the year, I met so many amazing friends, gained so much confidence, and grew greatly in my faith.

Looking back, I could not imagine my life without Campus Ministry. The opportunities they have and continue to provide me with are endless. Now, as a Sophomore, having the chance to welcome and include First Years as I was so included last year is one of the best feelings in the world. So, when Anna Lester, SMC's Campus Minister (and my SMC Mom :) emailed me if I was interested in helping out for VITA at this year's Move-in and Orientation, I was soooo excited!!!!

The VITA Team got the chance to move in the Wednesday and our schedule was set like this:

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

1pm-4pm – Meet in Anna's office in Alliot

Gather and reconnect, talk about our summer

Discuss outline for week coming up

Go over Fall Activity List and VITA Calendar

Tackle the “To-Do” List of crafting

Bake food for move-in day

First Year Letters

5pm - Pizza

Thursday, August 25, 2011 – Wear VITA shirts all day!!

8am – Breakfast in Upper Room

9am-3pm – Walk in Residence Halls with food/water in the Residence Halls

9am-1pm – ECM/VITA table in Ross Sports Center

11:30-2pm – Free lunch in Alliot with First Years and Families

5pm – Family style dinner in the Upper Room

Friday, August 26, 2011

9 or 10am – Breakfast in Upper Room

11:30am – Orientation Mass

12pm – Lunch in Upper Room

1pm-3pm – Finish “To-Do” List and writing letters to first years

6pm – Family style dinner in the Upper Room

Saturday, August 27, 2011

8:45am – Quick bagel breakfast

9-1pm – Join MOVE Core Team for Service Project at Rock Point (bag lunches)

1pm-5pm – Prayer and reflection as a group at Rock Point

6pm – Moe's!!!!!!

Overall, a very busy schedule, but totally worth it!! Here are some pictures :)

Derek and Abby at the ECM/ VITA Table in Ross during Move- in!!

Taylor and Melissa at Ross!!

The Rock Point School in Burlington, where MOVE and VITA joined together to do a Saturday Service project :)



Maura, my VITA partner in crime, mowing the grass at
Rock Point.



My great friend, Melissa, cutting the hedges at Rock Point.



Three of my closest friends, Abbey, Angelica, and Allyson, all members of MOVE's Core Team, on the front steps of Rock Point.

My roomie from last year and good friend, Bri, with my "big sister" Tracy, and friend, Sarah, having lunch together on one of the big rocks bordering Lake Champlain :)



Now, an extremely important part of VITA programs is reflection. As we said goodbye to the MOVE team, we all sat by Lake Champlain and just reflected on the work we had done the past couple of days. On the left side, you can see my friend, Katie and myself on the right side- who wouldn't feel relaxed and reflective in such a beautiful place?



Tracy, reflecting and reading one of the Scripture passages Anna gave to us earlier in the day :)



My friend, Denise and I, reflecting together about our faith and goals :)



VITA Team 2011!! From left, Denise, Melissa, Tracy, Me, Katie, Maura, Abby, and Taylor.

VITA Orientation weekend was one of the best weekends I've ever had at SMC. The closeness, compassion, and fun felt that weekend was priceless and I couldn't have had a better time :)

Please feel free to reach out to VITA on Facebook or Twitter- we're always so happy to hear from you!!

Sending you all my best wishes,
Alex :)