
Fifth graders at Saints Mary and Mathias Catholic School in Muscatine held a bake sale last month to raise funds for the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital in Iowa City. The class organizes a fundraiser each year and votes on where to send the funds. The class raised about $500 from the bake sale and additional $200 from an out-of-uniform day, bringing the donation total to $700.

St. Mary Parish in Solon hosted a live Nativity on parish grounds last month. Nearly 400 people attended. Event co-leader Josie Rozum said the turnout was less than organizers hoped for, but “those who did come received so much from the experience. We both witnessed adults openly sobbing while others were holding back tears. We saw parents kneel to eye level with their young children, pointing out Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus — telling the Christmas story. And I was quickly reminded how powerful this simple nativity scene is for so many.”







