Editor's Desk: Gone, But Not Forgotten

By Michael F. Flach
Herald Editor
(From the issue of 9/12/02)

As I mentioned in an earlier column, we lost two staff writers at the end of August, Linda Busetti and Patricia Rudy, who moved to Brooklyn and Pennsylvania, respectively. Busetti is now working for the weekly diocesan newspaper The Brooklyn Tablet. Although they may be physically gone, they are not forgotten. Their bylines appear again this week in stories they wrote about Christendom College prior to their departure. Rudy also authored this week's parish profile of St. John Neumann, Reston.

Their experience and productivity will be missed, but it also opens the door for other candidates to share their writing talents. We welcome on board this week two new staff writers, Irene Lagan and Mary McCarthy.

Lagan was born in New York but grew up in the Boston area. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and art therapy from Regis College and a master’s degree in philosophy from the Franciscan University in Steubenville. She worked as a research assistant at Boston University Medical Center before starting her graduate studies at Steubenville.

She was media relations director for Massachusetts Citizens for Life for two years before being named managing editor at the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Boston. In addition to writing articles, she collaborated with the editor in planning future issues of National Catholic Bioethcis Quarterly and Ethics & Medics.

McCarthy is a native of Winchester who graduated from Catholic University in May 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and Media Studies and a minor in American History. As an undergraduate she produced, filmed and edited a short film, "Control." Her senior thesis was "The Use of American Ideologies in Advertising."

She earned dean’s list recognition four semesters and was a Ryan Scholar based on her SAT scores and maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA. She also was a photographer and assistant editor of the Cardinal Yearbook.

It won’t take long for the two new staff writers to get started. They’ll be covering Sept. 11 memorial ceremonies this week at the Pentagon and National Shrine, as well as receiving their first parish profile assignments.

***

Pass out the shovels, hard hats and holy water. The whirlwind of ground breaking ceremonies and dedications continued this week as Father Gerry Creedon and St. Charles Borromeo Parish broke ground for its new parish center (see front page) and St. Thomas a Becket Parish celebrated the dedication of its new parish center (see page 11).

The immediate future holds more of the same. Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde is scheduled to dedicate the new gym and youth center at Queen of Apostles Parish on Sept. 28. The next day the bishop will travel to Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Vienna for the groundbreaking ceremony for the new parish facilities.

Bishop Loverde earlier dedicated the newly renovated and expanded St. William of York School in Stafford. The ambitious construction schedule includes ongoing projects at Bishop O’Connell and Paul VI High Schools, Corpus Christi School in Falls Church (new parish center) and Christendom College in Front Royal (new library). The new St. Isidore the Farmer Church in Orange is scheduled to be dedicated by the bishop on Nov. 3.

St. Bernadette Parish in Springfield will rededicate its parish center on Sept. 22 in honor of its former pastor, Father John Hughes, who retired in June. Father Hughes and Father Thomas Ferguson, administrator, will concelebrate the 12:30 p.m. Mass.— M.F.F.

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