Marists All November 2012
Final Issue #108
Marists All Transition
From VINCE POISELLA ('58): Le mot serait "adieu". If life could be summed up in one word, the word would be "good-bye."
It is with a certain sadness that I begin this last printed issue of Marists All. For, in one sense, it is "goodbye." This publication spans twenty-five years, melded by a Marist Spirit unique in its tradition, anchored by Marcellin Champagnat’s vision, blessed by the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and the example of Mary, our Ordinary Resource.
The stories told by and about the Marist Brothers themselves, the former Marist Brothers, the families and friends of the Marists, and the members of the wider Marist Family have inspired our readers over those years.
There have been many kind responses by Marists All readers about the 107 issues over these twenty-five years that kept alive the influence of the Marist Spirit and the influence of Marcellin Champagnat in our hearts. The Marists All team is very appreciative of your kind words.
Although the print issue of Marists All has come to an end with this epilogue, Rich Foy ('46) is keeping alive the Marists All website for an indefinite time. All back issues and many features related to our Marist world may still be found there and reread. (The web site address appears in our logo above.)
Rob Schmid ('68), crucial to our Marists All team, is keeping alive our email list to inform readers of special events or untimely deaths.
In these next pages I have offered our readers the various means to stay connected within the Marist world. Please save it as a reference for future contacts.
Vision Exchange
Our faithful readers and contributors may want to continue communicating with this special Marist family. With the kind assistance of Joe McMahon ('51), a new format is now available to all readers of Marists All to continue communication with each other through the modern conveniences of the Internet. Please become acquainted with it. Here is the procedure for access to the site:
The first step is to go to:
www.visioncircles.net
On the home page the invitation is bold and clear.
Click on:< Join Vision Exchange today!
Then sign on with an ID and password. The administrator of the site will receive your application and approve it. You will receive an email confirmation.
If you are signing on for the first time, click
JOIN US NOW. IT'S FREE.
(If you are a member, then just log in with your ID and password.)
Then click on Groups in the header.
Then click on All Groups: categories will pop up.
Then click on to Special Groups: religious will pop up.
Then click onto Religious: MaristsAll will pop up.
- As a member of the Marists All group, you will now be in a position to write to all the others in our group, the same way you did when you sent something to Marists All.
- You may also respond to anyone in our group who has previously written something, post reflections of past experiences, or update our readers on events in your life.
- As a member of the Marists All group, you may begin a dialog on a topic of interest to our group or respond to someone who has already begun the dialogue.
- I especially appeal to those listed in John O'Connell's ('58) Directory who were in training in the mid-fifties to the early sixties to use this site for communication purposes
Please take note that only those who have become members of the Vision Exchange site and been approved have access to the Marists All section of the site.
Marist Young Adult Program
The Marist Young Adult Program continues to keep Marcellin's dream alive by inviting interested young adults between the ages of 18 and 30 to further explore their Christian faith. Through spiritual, social, and service activities, both online and in person, young adults can experience an alive and vibrant faith rooted in the Marist tradition.
From BR. STEVE MILAN ('87) and MATT FALLON: The Marist Young Adult Program is proud to launch its mobile app. The Marist Young Adult app is a condensed version of our current website. It includes a "Prayer Wall " where users can submit prayer requests, a "Videos" section for viewing our seasonal retreats, a "What's Happening" section for updated news and events, and a "Prayer of the Day." The app is free and is available in Apple, Android, and Blackberry platforms. The app is also available for the iPad.
Although the app is being sponsored by the Marist Young Adult Program, it is not just for young adults. News from the Marist Brothers website is also available through the app, and anyone is invited to submit a prayer. In addition, the "Prayer of the Day" is a good way for anyone to keep a spiritual focus.
From RICH FOY ('46): Although Marists All will cease regular operation, there are other resources that may interest Marists All readers.
A decade ago Brian Desilets ('45) led a group of us in describing the relationship of the Marist Brothers to Marist College. It received the name Marist Heritage Project. Since then, it has become a valuable and permanent part of the Marist College archives even though one might have to drill down to reach it.
I have been working on a project to describe many of those who lived on the Marist College campus before it became the college campus. While still a work in progress, a good deal of it is ready and includes historical matters that relate to the Marist Brothers. Because of its webpage format, it is capable of continuous updating. Any ideas, photos, tidbits, and trivia you send me will be given careful consideration for inclusion.
Within the next year, I will be relocating from Poughkeepsie to Red Hook, NY, and Flanders, NJ. Starting in 2013. While in Red Hook, NY, I intend to review the work I started ten years ago on the history of the Esopus property.
I understand that several readers are working on a history of the Cold Spring property. I encourage them to share their work for inclusion in the history of Marist College, even if only peripheral. Hopefully, it can be included with the archival history of the college.
Several Marists All readers have suggested the possibility of a section on the history of Tyngsboro, which was registered as a branch of Marist College when it was a novitiate. I'm not the one to write up the Tyngsboro history but I am willing to help out if others are willing to assume leadership.
From DAVID KAMMER ('42): I believe that it is a good idea to encourage our readers to stay au courant with the work of the Marist Brothers, first by frequenting the Marist Rome web site at www.champagnat.org wherein there is a wealth of information about current Marist activity around the world.
Secondly, news of the American province deserves our attention. I believe our typical readers would more likely go to the province web site than to the "mobile app."
And if you haven’t lately checked out the Marist College web site, take a look at the magnificent new Hancock Building and see the beautiful lighted underpass to the campus east side of Route 9.
From GUS NOLAN ('48): I feel compelled to add a note in this final edition of Marists All to express my gratitude to all those who participated in supporting Marists All. There would be no such publication as Marists All were it not for the contributions in copy and money offered by our readers, well over five hundred. This, by itself, is an amazing story. Surely the Holy Spirit wanted this to happen.
I blush with a little shame when I think of the plaque I received in 2011 acknowledging twenty-five years of involvement with the publication. I recall with fondness the endless runs David ('42) and Judy Kammer made to Marist College in Poughkeepsie in the early years to pick up the printed copies and then fold, stuff, and mail them; not to mention all the editing David and Judy did to put in proper form all that was sent to them: and that without a computer, but rather with a little old typewriter.
Subsequently, Vince ('58) and Jane Poisella picked up the challenge and carried on for more than ten years doing the editing and making some of the important judgment calls that were necessary. I believe that Dave was retired when he did this. But Vince had a number of other things to deal with when he took on the editor's role. I am still in awe over the dedicated Marist Spirit in these two.
I have not mentioned Linus Foy ('46), who has worked ceaselessly dealing with the technical aspects of putting the publication on line. But in a sense, the work he has done for Marists All pales in the face of his major work in retirement researching and writing about the history of the properties that now compose the Marist College campus. In time we will all be able to read about this amazing story.
Bob Schmid ('68) has made a unique contribution to the distribution of our publication in bringing our newsletter to many readers on-line. His contribution has immensely reduced our mailing expenses which has always been our biggest costs and so kept our operation functional.
From CHRISTINE COLOMBAN: The United States Marist laity website www.maristlaity.com has been updated. You may now listen to the 35th presentation of Fr. Edwin Keel called "Our Only Model." It can be found under "Spirituality," "Exploring the Marist Way,"
From The Spiritual Testament of Marcellin Champagnat Keep ever alive among you the charity of Christ. Love one another as Jesus Christ has loved you. Be of one heart and one mind. Have the world say of the Little Brothers of Mary, what they said of the first Christians: "See how they love one another! " Ad Jesum per Mariam!
Source: Original Marists All Site
Marist College | Marist Archives & Special Collections | Contact Us | Acknowledgements