St. Louis Medallion winners are unsung heroes

Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond
Archdiocese of New Orleans
Clarion Herald
 

Last Sunday, you bestowed the Order of St. Louis IX Medallion on 240 men and women in the archdiocese for their often-hidden work in the life of parishes and archdiocesan institutions. How did the award ceremony come about?

It was Archbishop Hannan’s idea back in 1965 to honor members of the laity who have made outstanding contributions of their time and talent to the church, and it’s become one of the most cherished awards presented in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Archbishop Hannan felt it was very important to recognize the significant contributions of lay people and to highlight what they have done to make the church more alive, and particularly the parish community. There was an important document from the Second Vatican Council, “Ad Gentes,” that lifted up the role of the laity in the life of the church. One of its important messages is that the church is not yet fully alive, nor is it a perfect sign of Christ among the people, unless there are laity working along with the clergy. The Gospel cannot be deeply grounded in the abilities, life and work of any people without the active presence of laity. Therefore, even at the very founding of a church, great attention is to be paid to establishing a mature, Christian laity. The people of God are called to share in the work of the parish or the diocese and other Catholic ministries.

As you make your way around the archdiocese, have you run into people who have received the St. Louis Medallion?

Every year as the ceremony draws closer and I go to various parishes, people will identify themselves as recipients. It’s also very edifying to go to parishes for various events, including confirmations, and see people wearing their medal. It’s an opportunity for them to say, in a very humble way, that they have been given this honor and they are glad to be of service to the church.

Probably, many people have been shocked to have been nominated.

I do get letters, phone calls and comments all the time asking, “Are you sure you got the right person?” And I always tell them, “Yes, we are more than sure.” Every person who receives the medal obviously has been recommended by their pastor and by others in the parish or diocesan community who have seen their very significant contribution to parish and diocesan life. These are women and men of faith who have shown incredible generosity and incredible leadership. For the prayer service, we proclaim the words of St. Paul in his Letter to the Ephesians: “We have heard of your faith in Jesus Christ, and we have heard of your love for others.” That is true of all the recipients.

Who was St. Louis King of France?

He is the patron saint of our archdiocese. He lived from 1214-1270 and succeeded to the throne at the age of 12, with his mother as regent. He and his wife Margaret had 11 children, and he reigned for 45 years. Even in his lifetime, he was regarded as an ideal ruler and model father, and he was noted for his prayerfulness and charity. Louis was canonized in 1297, and his feast day is observed on Aug. 25. He did his best to bring together his faith with both his family life and his kingly rule. That’s exactly what we see in the recipients of the St. Louis Medallion – they bring together their personal faith and their family with their parish or ministry. It’s inspiring to me that people take their faith so seriously and are willing to give of their time and their talent to serve God and others.

Questions for Archbishop Aymond may be sent to [email protected].

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Two hundred forty laypersons who have devoted themselves to the work of the Catholic Church throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans were awarded the Order of St. Louis IX Medallion in ceremonies May 7.

Archbishop Gregory Aymond presented the awards at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Metairie. The ceremony included a prayer service and presentation of the medals.

The Order of St. Louis IX award was established in 1975 to honor laypersons who have contributed their time and talents to the church. In the past 48 years, more than 10,000 men and women have received the medallion as a token of thanks for their Christ-like service to the church.

This year’s recipients of the Order of St. Louis IX were:

Abita Springs
Blanche and David Myers; Ray Simon

Algiers
Rae-Lynn and David Abbott; Kelly and Joseph Batiste; Nell and Gerald Faulkner; Gregory LeRouge; Magdalena Kiêutiên Thi Trân and Phêrô Nghia Hùng Nguyên; Elizabeth Poole Sliman

Ama
Elaine Barnes

Avondale
Nhung Thi Pham and Hoai Minh Ho, Brenda Jones

Belle Chasse
Caren and Robert Johnson; and Teal St. Marie

Bogalusa
Mitch Russo

Braithwaite
Karen and Glen Carpenter

Bridge City
Rosa Medina

Chalmette
Cynthia and Victor Hattier; Julissa Hernandez and Leonel Montes

Covington
Anthony Avallone; Sandy and Gerard Brantley; Channon Horner; Peggy and Ronald Ronzello; Marilyn Schoen; Carol Wallace

Destrehan
Lisa and Noble Benoit; Donna and Larry Fisher

Edgard
Katherine and James Pierre

Folsom
James Fanguy

Franklinton
Clifford Kass

Garyville
Kim and Rickey Louque

Gretna
Kathleen Danjean; Peggy Le Blanc; Geri Mayville; Donna and Darren Melanson

Hahnville
Catherine and Brian Stauss

Harahan
Bryan Rauch

Harvey
Paula Atchley; Antoinette Blanchard; Gail Jackson; Luca Nguyên Anh Toàn; Toni Savona

Jefferson
Joseph R. Parker Jr.; Franklin Rhea

Kenner
Shannon and Garrett Fried; Joshua Fuentes; Lawrence M. Piglia Sr.; Aaron Savoie; Urania and Jack Vega

Lacombe
Linda and Joseph Allen; Pat Taucer

Lafitte
Clothilde C. Cobert; Aleay and Chris Dufrene

LaPlace
Linda and Gene Fryoux Sr.; Jeri Landry; Irene Rauch; James Schexnayder

Luling
Jerilynn and Charles Bush; Maria and Ted Ecuyer; Sheila Plaisance

Madisonville
Wendy and Tim Hymel; Mary and Brian Webre

Mandeville
Mary Mock and Dwight David Johnston; Jane Kolb; Erwin William “Bill” Olexa; Shirley Pettijohn

Marrero
Dana and Kevin Brown; Maria and Barron Burmaster; Valerie and Philip Hemphill; Elaine Lesnak; Arvella Lesnak; Larry Melancon; Brian Propps; Endora and Leroy Prout; Nam Tran

Metairie
Kay and William Boutte; Sandra Brehm; Marianne Eyles; Laura and Anthony Hagstette Jr.; Bonnie and Myron Hartdegen; Judy Fontenelle Himel; Elsa Schroeder Hodges; Anna and Charles Hollinger; Patricia Jourdan; David S. Landry; Dianne and James McBride; Joan Melancon; Lucy Miranda; Lynda Mobley; Jody L. Moreau; Monie Mouton; Clare and David Muscarello; Mary Kathryn and Lonnie Renfroe; Judith Scholzen; Monique and Jeffrey Serpas; Dora and Philip Sison; Kay and Payne Stiles; Loretta Whyte

New Orleans
Clifton Allen; Katherine and Barry Almon; Glenn Becnel, posthumously; Michele Berger; Judy Wilson; Tia Bishop; Charlotte Brown; Juanita Calvillo Fino; Lois Cambre; Hope Cambre; Mary Nell Carmichael; Annie Chiasson; Gary Demesme; Brian Dufrene; Bernardine Dupre; Marion Eagan; Laura and David Fakier; Monty Fernandez; Janine and Darren Ferrier; Nicacio Flores; Karen Friley; Gabriel Aguirre Gudino; Paula Hines; Dr. RaeNell Houston; Hilary Huck; Dianne and Lionel Jupiter; Sgt. Kyle Russell Kenney; Vera Poole Landry; Peggy Lehane; Shanna Lucien; Philip Martin; Andrea and Todd Matherne; Mary J. Maurice; Joseph Mazzarella; Ryan McCall; Dr. Anthony Miller; Emile Miller; Ann and Edward Moll; Joseph Vu Ngoc Nguyen; Thomas Cuong Nguyen; Vicki P. O'Brien; Bruce Pleasant; Cissy Poindexter; Geraldine Berger and William Joseph Rapp Sr.; Michelle and Keith Raymond; Henri G. Reed; Darlene P. and Marc L. Robert; Chloe and Samuel Rottman; George Schiaffino; Kathleen and Vincent Signorelli; Mary Guong Tran; Edna Valius; Kimberley Valteau; Donna Voros; Wayne Wallace; Kathleen Zuniga

Norco
Ronald Lambert

Paradis
Debra and Kent Frickey

Pearl River
Karen and Steve Fecke

Pointe a la Hache
Mary and Claude Barthelemy

Port Sulphur
Allison Taliancich

Reserve
Rodney Blanks; Donald Semien; Pauline Triche

River Ridge
Trudy and Louis Flores; Mary Gibbens

Slidell
Elizabeth and Duncan Arnoult; Mary Ann Belko; Amie and Ovid Davis; Jatonne and Aqeel El-Amin; Rebecca Ford; Mary Ann Huerstel; Amanda and Thomas Schneidau

St. Bernard
Julie Kenney

Terrytown
Kay Gauthreaux; Maria A. Ramirez; Priscilla and Leon Scoriels

Violet
Michele and Cliff Bertucci

Waggaman
Juana and Irvin Troxler