Students and families bring All Saints Day to life

On Nov. 1, the Solemnity of All Saints, St. Joseph Catholic Church and Cardinal Gibbons High School hosted an All Saints Day Mass and celebration at the Kingsborough Estates neighborhood in southeast Raleigh.

The event was planned by a Cardinal Gibbons team of parents and students led by chaplain Father Luke Rawicki, L.C., and was part of their initiative to do outreach in Kingsborough Estates on the first Saturday of each month.

Before the festivities began, Father Luke and multiple teams of parents and students went door-to-door around the neighborhood personally inviting residents to join in the celebration. Once everyone was gathered, an outdoor bilingual Mass was held in a tent on the main office lawn of Kingsborough Estates, concelebrated by Father Luke and Father Peter Devereux, L.C., the pastor of St. Joseph.

The Mass was set up by a team of St. Joseph parishioners and included an inspirational homily by Father Peter, two musicians from Cardinal Gibbons and children who lived in Kingsborough Estates, assisted by their parents and Cardinal Gibbons students, serving as lectors and processing in and out of Mass wearing homemade saint posters describing which saint they were representing.

Following the Mass, everyone was invited to stay for saint-themed crafts, music run by Cardinal Gibbons students and food, which included a homemade version of Pan de Muerto, a sweet bread made to celebrate Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a holiday traditionally celebrated in Mexico.

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