A gift for the freshmen

October is the month dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, which Fr. Dominic observed by giving each freshman a handmade rosary in school colors, made possible by a long-time Saint Bede family.

In 1984, Fr. Dominic learned to make rosaries as a young novice from Br. Thaddeus, an elderly monk who made over 29,000 rosaries for the missions after his retirement from the abbey farm operations. Once he was made chaplain for the Academy, he wanted to use this skill to benefit his students.

“I designed what might be called a ‘school rosary’ with dark green beads and a medal of Saint Benedict as the centerpiece,” he said; “The crosses came from a big box of crucifixes I found in Br. Taddy’s room after he died.”

For many years the rosaries given to our freshmen were purchased online, through the generosity of James Arkins, a St. Bede parent and grandparent who wanted to promote our students’ spiritual growth in the Catholic tradition. After his death, Fr. Dominic reached out to his family to see if they wanted to continue his legacy. They enthusiastically agreed, and the chaplain got to work crafting the custom rosaries last May.

"Our grandfather, Jim Arkins, passed away in 2021 at the age of 102,” said Eric Arkins ’95. “His faith and his family were the most important things to him.  He was a kind and generous man who always found a way to do God's work.  It wasn't until his passing that Fr. Dominic shared with us that Grandpa had donated rosaries every year to the incoming freshman class at St. Bede.  As St. Bede alumni, we knew how important it was to carry on our grandfather's tradition and share both the spirit of St. Bede and our grandfather's memory with the newest members of the Bruin family."

 In each of the freshman religion classes, Fr. Dominic gave a short history of the rosary, its origins in scripture and tradition, and how it is used to meditate and pray.

“Some of our non-Catholic student are unfamiliar with Marian devotion,” he explains. “When Catholics pray to Mary or other saints, we are asking them to intercede with God on our behalf, in the same way that we would ask family and friends to pray for us when we have a personal problem or tragedy. We often ask other people to pray for us because we assume that they are close to God, as Mary is.”

 After the blessing, the students prayed the rosary with the special intention of healing for Mr. Hejmanowski’s mother who had been recently hospitalized, as well as for other friends and family members who are ill. 

 Many freshmen expressed how meaningful it was to receive a special school rosary.

·       “It felt special because it truly set in that I am a part of St. Bede.”

·       “It showed me people around St. Bede care.”

·       “I have not had a rosary for a while and I am especially happy to have a St. Bede one.

·       “This means a lot to me because it will be a memory for me in the future, and because Father Dom gave it to me.”

The Arkins family is enthusiastic about continuing to fund the freshman rosary project, and Fr. Dominic says he has already started working on next year’s batch.

DONORS

Christine (Arkins) Joyce, Class of 1994
Eric Arkins, Class of 1995
Susan (Arkins) Parikh, Class of 1999
Emily (Arkins) Balestri, Class of 2002
Jack Arkins, Class of 2004
Tommy Arkins, Class of 2007
Hayden Arkins, Class of 2023