The world can be a lonely place. Even on the school playground, one can find himself or herself surrounded by their peers, but feeling alone. In many ways, the playground is a microcosm of the community.
We often get so caught up in what we are doing, and who we are with, that we fail to notice those around us who might not have anyone to be with. As adults, this manifests itself during rides on public transit when we fail to notice someone sitting alone, and offer them a greeting. It shows when we sit in airport terminals and fail to notice lone travelers because we are engrossed in our devices. It shows in the workplace when we fail to notice the coworker eating lunch alone. When we think of it that way, it’s easy to see how children could become so focused on their game of tag or soccer that they fail to notice the lone child standing on the side and watching all of the action go on without them.
Maura Tyler, a second-grade student at Asheville Catholic School, is one student who took notice. Not only did she notice, but she decided to do something about it. Maura noticed that some of her fellow students sometimes had no one to play with during recess. For one reason or another, they did not get into the game of capture the flag, the swingset was full, and the basketball game had two even teams.
Maura noticed that no one else seemed to be aware that some of their peers were without a playmate as they continued on with their games. Her heart went out to these fellow students, and she began to formulate a solution.
“At first I thought about creating a club called ‘The Friendship Club’ to help other students make friends. When I talked to my parents about it, we thought of having a ‘buddy bench’ on the playground,” she says.
The buddy bench is a special bench where students can go when they have no one to play with. Other students who see someone on the buddy bench are encouraged to go over and offer to play with any student sitting there. Maura sold rocks to her family and friends to raise the $78 she needed to purchase the buddy bench. She recently brought the bench to Asheville Catholic School to place on the playground.
Principal Mike Miller praised Maura for her ability to see a problem and then do something about it. “It’s rare these days to come across people who identify a problem, and then work to do something about it. Maura sacrificed her own time and energy to help others make friends and have fun on the playground. Too many people want to complain and place blame. You just don’t see as much of that self-sacrificial mindset anymore.”
Maura says she wants everyone to know that the buddy bench is a place where anyone can find a friend. That’s something we need a lot more of nowadays.
— Contributed by Mike Miller
Money will be used to provide free Catholic education to students throughout diocese
CHARLOTTE — An estate gift from a credit card executive who went on to create a nationally-recognized personal finance curriculum to help young people manage debt will soon help pay for children in the Diocese of Charlotte to go to Catholic school for free.
Before his death earlier this year, C. Philip Johnston set up the “C. Philip Johnston – Aline W. Kaneer Scholarship Fund” with $4 million from his estate.
All 19 Catholic schools in the diocese will be able to request money annually from the fund, which is expected to generate approximately $200,000 in scholarships each year. The money will be used to pay the full tuition cost for students who qualify for aid.
Johnston, a Catholic convert, was born in Charlotte but lived all over the country before retiring in the Southeast. He attended Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Md., which is where he made the decision to enter the Church, according to his nephew Greg Johnston. He earned a master’s degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1958. He worked in the entertainment industry, but when acting work became scarce, he took a “temporary job” working for Conrad Hilton in a new credit card venture called Carte Blanche.
He rose to success in the emerging credit card industry and, after reaching the position of senior vice president at a large regional bank in St. Louis, he left the banking side of the credit card industry to lead a non-profit organization specializing in consumer credit counseling. Johnston had recognized the need to teach people how to manage personal debt, so he partnered with a national group of educators and economists to create a curriculum in personal finance for children in kindergarten through 12th grade.
He passed away in April at the age of 88.
“We have known since 1989 that Mr. Johnston was going to do something in the way of an estate gift,” said Jim Kelley, diocesan development director.
“We are so grateful for this transformative gift.”
Those like Johnston who make a planned gift to the diocese or any of its parishes, schools, ministries or agencies become members of the Catholic Heritage Society. The society is the diocese’s way of honoring the Christian generosity of Catholic friends who are providing for the future of the Church in western North Carolina.
The Catholic Heritage Society is comprised of more than 900 people in the diocese, many of whom are leaving gifts to the Diocese of Charlotte Foundation in their wills. Since 1994, the foundation has distributed more than $7 million to the diocese and its parishes, schools and ministries.
Johnston’s gift is the second gift of at least $4 million to the diocese in the past year.
The other gift was an endowment bequeathed to St. Barnabas Church received through the generosity of Dennis and Mary Kushler, who quietly left the parish a $4.1 million endowment after their deaths. It is the single largest estate gift in the history of the Church in North Carolina.
The Kushlers’ endowment will provide the parish with an estimated $205,000 annual income initially, and it will grow over time. It is a general purpose endowment, so the money can be used to help in whatever way the parish decides.
Kelley noted, “More and more people across the diocese are remembering the Church in their estate plans – gifts from thousands of dollars to millions – and we are thankful for their generosity.”
— SueAnn Howell, Senior reporter