Students Keep Christ in Christmas

(Newburgh) - To counter the commercialism of this Christmas Holy Season, the Catholic War Veterans, (CWV) Newburgh Post 386 challenged the 7th and 8th grade students of four local parochial schools in our community to create a poster that stated the real and only ‘reason for the Season’, the birth of the Christ Child. The students of St. Thomas of Canterbury Parish School, Cornwall on the Hudson, and Sacred Heart Parish School, Newburgh showed without a doubt, with their originality, creativity, and artistic talents that, as a whole, and as individuals, they know exactly what the meaning of this Season is: “Jesus was born in a manger, not a mall...Keep Christ In Christmas”

The Catholic War Veterans Post 386, its Officers, men and women wanted to publicly thank all the students who participated, as well as the Administrators, 7th and 8th grade teachers, and art teachers for encouraging their students.

Two posters have been submitted to the New York State Chapter of CWV to possibly represent New York at the national level for this contest judged by the National 3rd Vice-Commander, Leo Haley. Winners at all levels will be announced at a later date.
The Catholic War Veterans 3rd Vice Commander’s responsibilities entail all ‘youth activities’. The post is proud to announce and sponsor the following poster contests for 2007. In January, a ‘patriotic’ poster contest for 5th and 6th grades; in February, a coloring contest on the theme of ‘safety’ for 1st and 2nd graders; and in April, for the 3rd and 4th grades, a Easter poster contest on a ‘religious theme’. The national organization sponsors the Thomas J. Cuite Scholarship Grant. Any high school senior is eligible if his/her parent or grandparent is a member of the Catholic War Veterans or if he/she is a child or grandchild of a deceased Catholic veteran. We present two awards for outstanding cadets in our local Junior ROTC programs, one for scholastic excellence and the second for general military excellence.

Catholic War Veterans Post 386 is the third most active in New York State. The bulk of our membership served our nation in either World War II or Korea. As such, they are ‘primary sources’ for those teachers from all grade levels, public, private and parochial, who would like to invite these honorable veterans to relate their experiences and perceptions of ‘serving our nation’ to schoolchildren.

Their credo is that the youth of today will be the leaders of tomorrow. Their oath is to promote the family as the basic unit of the American society; and to aid in the development of an enlightened patriotic American youth. They feel an obligation to make these various programs available to all schools in our community. As Catholic gentlemen they believe it is our obligation to protect, promote, preach and practice the Catholic faith. For God, For Country, For Home. Pictured Above: Meghan Freeland holiday drawing