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Article_Women of Faith are also �women of action�

Feature News | Friday, October 31, 2014

Women of Faith are also ‘women of action'

Honorees got an early start in helping parish and school communities

Jacqueline and Robin De Souza of St. John Neumann Parish in Miami attend the first annual Women of Faith event.

Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC

Jacqueline and Robin De Souza of St. John Neumann Parish in Miami attend the first annual Women of Faith event.

AVENTURA | Jacqueline De Souza, reflecting on her Women of Faith award recognition, recalled growing up in Jamaica and how her father — a product of Jesuit education there — kept the family close to the Church and Catholic education.

Christina Wells of Archbishop McCarthy High School in Southwest Ranches receives her Women of Faith award from Archbishop Thomas Wenski.

Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC

Christina Wells of Archbishop McCarthy High School in Southwest Ranches receives her Women of Faith award from Archbishop Thomas Wenski.

“My dad was always involved in the church and we often had Jesuit priests coming to our home. They were almost a part of the family and so it was common for us to be interacting with priests,” said De Souza, a longtime member of St. John Neumann Parish in Miami. “My dad has been a great influence.”

Over her 20 years as a member at St. John Neumann, De Souza took a leadership role in the parish Women’s Club, where she served as president. She took other lay ministry roles including eucharistic minister and religious education instructor. She raised two daughters who both attended the parish school.

Marile Lopez of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Miami receives her Women of Faith award from Archbishop Thomas Wenski.

Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC

Marile Lopez of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Miami receives her Women of Faith award from Archbishop Thomas Wenski.

“My children are very confident in responding to people about what they believe in and what they don’t believe in, and the difference between pro-life and pro-choice,” De Souza told The Florida Catholic.

“It is important to show you can still be a wife and mother, and work and still be involved in the church, while laying the foundation for your kids, making sure that as future Catholics and future leaders they are growing in their faith,” she said.

Sally Russomanno of St. Louis Parish in Pinecrest receives her Women of Faith award from Archbishop Thomas Wenski.

Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC

Sally Russomanno of St. Louis Parish in Pinecrest receives her Women of Faith award from Archbishop Thomas Wenski.

Archbishop Thomas Wenski honored De Souza and nine other outstanding women from across the region for their work, dedication and commitment to the Church at the first ever “Women of Faith” awards luncheon, held Oct. 26.

Several of the honorees spoke privately about their Catholic values and how their own charitable involvements started many years ago, in some cases in their youth.

The youngest honoree, Christina Wells, a senior at Archbishop Edward McCarthy High School and member of St. Gregory Parish in Plantation, saw a need for a scholarship endowment at her high school. So last year she created a program, and a recent golf tournament helped bring the endowment up to $35,000.

“I was really passionate about that,” said Wells, who gave credit to her grade school and her family for forming her values. “I knew that there was a program like that at St. Gregory Elementary School so that the school was able to support families going through a hard time; if there was an illness, for example.

“I knew that there was a need at my high school based on some of the people that I know there.”

Three years ago, Wells also created St. Gregory's Hugs for the Homebound ministry, encouraging student teams to visit 45 homebound members of the parish. Wells has also been an altar server and lector for the Sunday night teen Mass.

Marile Lopez of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Miami, and her husband Jorge Luis Lopez, raised five children, three of whom still attend the parish elementary school. Marile Lopez has been involved in a number of education and technology projects at Sts. Peter and Paul School as well as many other charitable activities in the wider community.

Dawn De Frietes, left, Paul Ludwick, Marie Ludwick, seated, and Darlene Ludwick were on hand for the first annual Women of Faith event. The Archdiocese of Miami honored Marie Ludwick and nine other outstanding women from across South Florida for their work, dedication and commitment to the Catholic Church.

Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC

Dawn De Frietes, left, Paul Ludwick, Marie Ludwick, seated, and Darlene Ludwick were on hand for the first annual Women of Faith event. The Archdiocese of Miami honored Marie Ludwick and nine other outstanding women from across South Florida for their work, dedication and commitment to the Catholic Church.

“As parents of five we understand the importance of education and in particular a Catholic education,” Lopez said, adding that her husband went to Msgr. Edward Pace High School, where he will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year for a scholarship program he supports there. The Lopez family also support educational programs at Immaculata-La Salle High School in Miami.

“We are also part of the Miami chapter of the Catholic Association of Latino Leaders (CALL) with 15 local members who show the involvement we Latins have in our faith,” she said.

Winifred Amaturo and Msgr. Franklyn Casale, president of St. Thomas University in Miami, attend the first annual Women of Faith event.

Photographer: TOM TRACY | FC

Winifred Amaturo and Msgr. Franklyn Casale, president of St. Thomas University in Miami, attend the first annual Women of Faith event.

Sally Russomanno has been a member of St. Louis Parish in Pinecrest and a religious education teacher for 27 years. She has been teaching preschool for 18 years in St. Louis Covenant School.

Faith and church, she said, are a family tradition: Her husband Herman Russomanno is a past chair of the board of trustees and an adjunct law professor of the School of Law at St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens. 

“The reason they chose me for the Women of Faith award was apparently for the love I have given to these children for over 27 years: I love their innocence, their wide eyes, and their expression when you teach them something new,” Russomanno said, adding that her two adult sons attended school there. “The students give back tenfold to me and I hope I can continue teaching for many years.”

One of the senior members of the Women of Faith honorees is Marie Ludwick, who has been at St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Lighthouse Point for 22 years. She was a member of the choir and a longtime supporter of charities associated with the Archdiocese of Miami. Before that, she was a member of the Ladies of Charity of New York.

“God is the only power in my life and faith is something I depend upon every day, and I turn my life and will over to him and I leave it in his hands,” Ludwick said, adding that she has lived in Toronto, Maine, New York and Florida. “My faith is the strongest thing in my life.”

Wini Amaturo of St. John the Baptist Parish in Fort Lauderdale, is a mother of five who has been promoting reading skills and Catholic education through family foundations that she and her husband Joseph oversee; that includes an advanced reading program impacting 6,000 students in Broward County and at St. Mary, Star of the Sea Parish in Key West.

“Catholic education is a jewel in the crown of the Church, and I have always loved to read — it’s a special thing to pick up a book,” Amaturo said.

She added that the average number of books read by local children in the advanced reading program is now 41 books above and beyond the required reading at school.

“The impact has been that marks are through the roof,” she said. “Each child has read the books and then answers questions on the computer so that the teacher is able to see their comprehension level.”

 

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