For the January Junior Saints, students in The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington were invited to draw a picture and write about something they would like to do in the new year 2022.
Blessed Sacrament School, Washington, D.C.
“One thing I want to accomplish or get better at in 2022 is the subject math. The reason I want to get better at math is because I am not the best at math. One thing I’ll do to accomplish this goal is to practice problems. Another thing I’ll do to complete this goal is to use educational apps.” – Artwork and writing by Elizabeth Samura, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
“In 2022, I would like to read 70 or more books. I would like to do this because I love to read, and I want to read more so I can become a writer. I want to read more books without pictures. My favorite type of genre is graphic novel. I think I should make a challenge for not many graphic novels and more chapter books.” – Emilia Jaeger, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
“My goal for 2022 is to improve my Spanish! I think I can achieve this goal by practicing Spanish two hours each week! I’ll do all of my practicing in my own free time. I would like to improve my Spanish by reading things in Spanish and watching shows and movies in Spanish. I want to improve my Spanish because it’s neat to know multiple languages. Also, if I ever want to visit Spain, then I’ll need to know basic Spanish. Plus, it’s a very popular language and is spoken in multiple countries. This is why I want to improve my Spanish!” – Artwork and writing by Morgan Stacks, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
“In 2022, I want to bake a baked good at least once every three weeks. This will help my family because my brothers are always asking my mom to make something sweet… It will also be nice to have a sweet treat around the house.” – Maisy Meenan, fifth grade, Blesses Sacrament School, Washington
“My goal for 2022 is to get more exercise, and these are some things that I can do to accomplish it. I can go to the gym two times a week. I can also walk my dog for 20 to 30 minutes after school. Lastly, I can practice lacrosse and basketball…” – Drawing and writing by Kate Benhard, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School
“In 2022, I want to train my dog better. I want her to be a better behaved dog. It would benefit my family, because she often digs holes and has chewed on some furniture. She can’t come and jumps up on you sometimes. I want to teach her to come and not to misbehave. It would help my family if she would behave.
“Also, if I can train her better, I would like her to be a therapy dog. It would mean a lot to me, because my brother had cancer a few years ago, and the therapy dogs helped him a lot.” – Artwork and writing by Cordelia McCahan, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
“My new year’s resolution is to stop eating a lot of sugar I feel like I have been eating a lot of sugar like ice cream, cake, cookies, etc. I will only eat one piece of candy/sweets a day. So instead of sitting around eating junk food all day, I’ll lay down and read a book or work.” – Frances Islinger, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
“I want to master sewing because I can then make things for others. I find sewing very calming. I feel good when I finish a project. I will work on mastering it bit by bit. My friend inspired me because she is good at it. I am not the best, but I will try to master it… I’m excited to make thing by me and for others.” – Drawing and writing by Annie Worden, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
“My new year’s resolution is to spend more time outside enjoying nature. This is a wonderful and healthy way to spend time as opposed to sitting inside all day staring at electronics.” – Artwork and writing by Charles Cleghorn, fifth grade, Blessed Sacrament School, Washington
St. Michael’s School, Ridge, Maryland
“In 2022, I want to go on a ski trip with my family.” – Artwork and writing by Caitlyn Primm, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I will train my newly adopted dog Silco.” – Soren Luther, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I would like to act on the stage!” – Artwork and writing by Aaliyah Smith-Estep, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I would like to try skydiving for the first time!” – Valencia Irving, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to reach out to help and support veterans and their families.” – Artwork and writing by Kellen Holmes, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to improve my basketball skills.” – Jace Hawkins, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to help the many people who are in need.” – Artwork and writing by Cecilia Hidalgo-Vasquez, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to go to the beach with my family and attend church each Sunday to thank God for my many blessings.” – Piper Cooper, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to set up a lemonade stand and sell lemonade and cookies.” – Artwork and writing by Hadley Day, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“I will take very good care of my two dogs in 2022.” – Junior (José) Cervantes Corona, third grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“I want to go see the world.” – Aidan Ogilvie, seventh grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
I already love to read, but I haven’t had that much time recently. So in the new year, I’m hoping to read more.” – Artwork and writing by Veronica Irving, sixth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“I am going to do barrel racing with my friend Rylie, and we are going to enter in a rodeo and win hopefully…” – Artwork and writing by True McKenzie, sixth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to go to Australia and hug a koala, just like my mom did when she was in college.” – Grace Sohn, fourth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to go snowboarding on a big hill at Poconos.” – Artwork and writing by Nathan Nepini, seventh grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“I want to go to a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) camp at college this summer.” – Maddie Hayes, seventh grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“I want to do what my dad does. My dad works on boats.” – Artwork and writing by Kyle van Ryswick, fourth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“In 2022, I want to go to Disney World, because I’ve never been there before.” – London Gill, fourth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
Drawing by Chris Escobar, fifth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
“My friend Kaden and I are going to be doing home cleaning… Our catch phrase is, ‘We’ve got you covered.’” – Artwork and writing by Cameron Wood, sixth grade, St. Michael’s School, Ridge
St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring, Maryland
“A new year is a great time to change and make differences in the world. One change I would like to make is to try to control my temper, because I can get mad very easily, so that is an important change. Another change I can make is to focus in class, especially when I get distracted with things in my desk or around me. With the Lord’s help, I can make lots of changes in 2022.” – Artwork and writing by Angie Vu, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In the new year, I want to pray to God more. I want to pray to him more to feel closer to him. I’m going to make my own prayer to say to God every night.” – Sara Ramkumar, second grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“A new year is a good time to change. In 2022, I will try to make a difference in my house by trying to get in trouble less. I also promise to show more kindness to my family. In 2022, I will try to be a better person.” – Kevin Sanders, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“A new year brings the opportunity to make changes in our actions. One thing I would like to get better at is being nicer to my big sister. I sometimes never realize how much I yell at my sister, but if I pray every night, I know God can help me. 2022 will bring big changes. – Stone Gomez, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“A new year is a time to make resolutions. One thing I would like to do is get better at piano. My piano teacher is really nice, but I don’t practice enough. If I work harder at piano, I can get better at it and play harder pieces.” – Chloe Chen, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will make a difference by waking up by myself.” – Artwork and writing by Euna Siew, third grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“A new year is a time to start fresh and try to change in a positive way. This year, I want to get better at soccer so I can join the girls’ soccer team. I also want to make a difference this year by helping others like Jesus did.” – Helina Anteneh, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In the new year of 2022, I will try to pray more. I want to pray more, because in 2021, I did not pray very much. Usually I only prayed at church. Now I will try to pray when I am going to bed and when I am sad.” – Lily Sanders, second grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will learn how to cook.” – Lily Draper, third grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will promise to pray each night and pray to Mary and Jesus.” – Marcelo Monzon, third grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I would like to become a better soccer player. I will continue to play with people that have better skills than me at recess. Also, I would like to play on a spring team. Finally, I need to practice my ball skills more at home. I will ask my dad and make my brother play more soccer with me in the backyard. Hopefully by the end of 2022, I will be a better soccer player.” – Patrick Fry, seventh grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will accomplish getting a batting average over .400. I want to be a pro baseball player in the MLB, and I will play for the Washington Nats.” – Luca Chapa, second grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will promise to do my best in school.” – Artwork and writing by Alex Assad, third grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“One change I would like to make is to be nicer to my brother. I sometimes get frustrated with my brother and forget how much he means to me, and how much I care about him. With the Lord’s help, I know I can be nicer to my brother in 2022.” – Ethan Charles, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“The beginning of the new year is a great time for change. This year, I will try to control my anger, because God wants us to be happy, not angry or sad. I will also try to stop worrying, because I know God will solve whatever I’m worrying about. These resolutions will help me live a better life.” – Shanthi Abraham, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will try to help around the house more, because I want to have a clean house.” – Morgan Oswell, second grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will get stronger, receive my First Reconciliation and receive my First Eucharist.” – Rodney Auguste, second grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will spend time with my family, go on vacation, play games and learn as much as I can!” – Maeve Fitzgerald, second grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In the new year, I would like to travel to New York and see the Yankees play. I want to see the Yankees play because they are my favorite baseball team. I couldn’t see the because of Covid-19 and would like to see them this year.” – Logan Branch, seventh grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will promise to always pray.” – Artwork and writing by Isaac Vinson, third grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“This year brings many new things for me and my family. I want to travel this year, visit places and make this year a year I won’t forget. This year, I will strive to get good grades and work hard to earn them. My grades are very important to me, and going into the eighth grade, my grades need to be brought up so I will possibly get into a good high school… 2022 will likely bring joy, and maybe some difficult moments, but I hope to put in my best effort in all situations. I pray this year will be one I remember forever.” – Sofia Castillo, seventh grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“A new year is a good time to do new things to help others. One thing I can do this year is being nicer to my sister. I can be nice to my sister by backing down when we have fights and ask my dad for advice. My dad had three sisters and two brothers!” – Hadley Parker, fourth grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“In 2022, I will have more confidence, be brave, grow up, be a good kid, not fight, pray more often and spend more time with my family.” – Artwork and writing by Abigail Dawit, third grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“I have many goals for 2022. One thing I would love to do is learn American Sign Language so I can officially say I am fluent in three languages. It would also help me be able to communicate with a larger variety of people and would help me expand my knowledge. Another thing I want to achieve in 2022 is having an open mind to trying new things and making friends with new people. Although I do have many friends outside of St. John the Baptist School, there’s no harm in making more!
“I would also like to develop my painting skills more. I got a lot of new painting supplies for Christmas, and I plan to use them to the best of my ability. One final thing I would like to achieve in 2022 is de-stressing my life. I have a terribly busy schedule which comes along with tons of stress, and staying organized would really help with that.” – Adaobi Obikwelu, seventh grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
“The pandemic is one of the most devastating events of the 21st century, devastating in terms of the lives lost and also in the way of how mundane that time was. The excitement and regularity of life was suddenly lost overnight as people were told to separate themselves from one another.
“Despite that, I still have goals for the new year as I look forward with renewed hope. I really want to learn how to play the violin and/or cello. I think that they are such beautiful instruments, and I would love to learn how to play them. I want to learn to speak French, Arabic, Italian and Greek. The languages are just so melodic, and I want to speak them if I ever travel to those places…” – Redeat Yiesak, seventh grade, St. John the Baptist School, Silver Spring
St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville, Maryland
“In this New Year I want to be able to increase my faith. Although I attend church, that is not enough for my faith. I need to continue to pray every morning and night to thank God for all he has given me. I also want to be able to help not only my own faith increase, but the faith of others by helping at Faith Formation. A saint I would like to model my life after is St. Catherine of Siena because her mission was to serve the poor and the sick. This new year, I wish that I can grow in my faith and help those around me.” – Vanessa Condori, eighth grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“Whether it is getting into a good high school, or finishing eighth grade with good grades, most of us are focused on trying to prepare for success in work and social life. As we set goals in these areas, we should also contemplate things we have to do to achieve spiritual success. This year, I would like to get into the habit of going to Mass every weekend. Since the pandemic started, my weekend routine has changed, and I stopped going to Mass regularly. I will achieve this goal by going to Mass every Saturday or Sunday with my family and by doing altar serving and participating in the songs and readings…” – Samuel Goertner, eighth grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“This year, I want to attend Mass in-person more often. I’m thankful for the gift of the Eucharist and the calm presence after attending Mass. Before the pandemic broke out, my family and I used to go to church every Sunday. During virtual Mass, I found it hard to maintain focus and limit distractions. Usually while I’m in Mass, I like to reflect on how I acted and how I can improve in the next week. During one of the priest’s homilies, he discussed the importance of family, in church and at home. When I go to Mass, I feel at home. I never realized how different I feel without seeing God every Sunday. My favorite part of Mass is receiving the Body of Christ. That feeling when you receive Jesus Christ and get out of church and feel like your body is calm and holy is one of the best feelings. I’m looking forward to attending Mass in-person and growing closer to God.” – Lillian Lora, eighth grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“My goal for this year is to make prayer a habit in my life. I feel that prayer can reduce stress and make me more of a positive person. I can take at least an hour out of my day to pray. I can talk to God and ask him to help me make decisions that I can’t decide on my own. Praying silently can clear my mind of stressful obstacles like exams or the future ahead of me. I hope to achieve this goal and keep with it for the rest of my life.” – Eliot Mendes, eighth grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“Confirmation is a celebration, but so much more. This sacrament confirms you as an adult in the Church, but growing up comes with responsibilities. To me Confirmation is a new chapter, with obligations to myself and others. I sometimes worry that these expectations will be asking too much of me, but that is a time when I turn to the Holy Spirit. I remind myself that I’ve been given these responsibilities because God knows I’m able to handle it. One of my responsibilities is to let the Holy Spirit guide me and help me grow. This will be a time to celebrate with my family and friends, a new journey.” –Gemma Barish, seventh grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“Have you ever wondered what it's like to take the next step? Receiving Confirmation is becoming an adult in the Catholic faith. This is my next step in my faith journey. When I was baptized my parents made the choice for me to become Catholic. At the time I was too young to make the decision and now I get to make the choice. I am receiving Confirmation because I want to become a disciple of Christ. Confirmation is about a choice, and it is mine to make to continue my spiritual journey.” – David Palank, seventh grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“If there was one thing I could not ever forget to do every day, it would be to read at least one verse of the Bible. It is very important to keep God as close as possible to me, in my religious faith. Not only by reading the Bible, even just by giving at least 10 minutes of my day to Jesus, to appreciate everything that he has done for me, and all the blessings that he blessed me with. For my new year’s resolution, I want to remember God every single day in my life and make him an important part of my life. I also want to thank God every single day, for everything I'm blessed with…” – Sefanit Berhe, sixth grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
“It is the start of the year 2022 and I want to make new religious goals for myself and my faith with God. This year I would like to pray a decade of the rosary twice a week to get closer to the Holy Family and especially Mary, the mother of God. I think it is very important for us to pray to Mary for love and comfort for ourselves in our life. The world wouldn’t be the same without Mary, because if she didn’t say yes, Jesus wouldn’t be in our lives today. This is my religious goal for the year of 2022, and I am so excited to start a new fresh year getting closer to God.” – Giuliana Calcagno, sixth grade, eighth grade, St. Jude Regional Catholic School, Rockville
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February Junior Saints seeking drawings and writings for Black History Month
February is Black History Month. For the February Junior Saints, students are invited to draw a picture of an African American woman or man who made history, and write about what they admire about that person. The drawings and writings should be emailed to mark@cathstan.org by Wednesday Feb. 9, 2022 to Mark Zimmermann, the Catholic Standard's editor, and they should include the name, grade and school or parish of the student printed clearly.
Due to time constraints involved with reviewing the volume of submitted work, it is requested that schools or parish religious education programs limit their entries to 10 drawings and 10 writings from their students. The best formats to send are jpegs for artwork and word documents or pdfs for writing, if possible. Thank you!
