By Olivia Jones' 26
At the beginning of the 2023 school year, Little Flower welcomed a new member to the staff with open and loving arms. Mrs. Kugler is the Assistant Principal for Student Life at Little Flower. Coming to Little Flower, she told The Theresian, felt like “coming home."
“I felt like God was calling me here. I am a big believer in signs, and I got my fair share of those when the job at Little Flower came up,” said Kugler. “For example - I hadn’t mentioned the position to anyone, and yet, I had more than one person mention that they thought I would make a good APSL - completely unprovoked”.
Throughout her life, Mrs. Kugler knew what she wanted to do: become a teacher. At her previous jobs at Archbishop Wood, Hallahan, St. Catherine of Siena in Horsham, and Holy Saviour, she was a history teacher. However, when it came to becoming an APL, she saw a new challenge: "I wanted to make a positive impact and help students make good choices and this seemed like a way to do that."
Mrs. Kugler has had a positive impact on many students during her time at Little Flower, inspiring them to make better choices in their lives. Mrs. Kugler said she has had a few people who have inspired her in her career and in her life. She said, “The foundational inspiration for my life is my Grandmother. Other inspirations have been Jean Donovan, a Catholic Martyr, Saint Oscar Romero, Miep Gies, Maya Angelou, and Sister Marita, my high school Theology teacher.”
Asked about her strengths and weaknesses, Mrs. Kugler said, “For my strengths, “I think I am loyal and compassionate. My weakness is I am terrible with numbers, and sometimes I doubt myself.”
Asked about her favorite part about coming to work every day, she did not hesitate: “The students.”
In the years to come, Mrs. Kugler wants to be at Little Flower watching as the community continues to grow. She is thankful to everyone at Little Flower for being so welcoming. and grateful that they had made her feel a part of the LF family.
A quote Mrs. Kugler lives by is, “If you want pace work for justice.”~Pope Paul VI.
Holiday Harmonies Extravaganza
By Joana Meminaj' 24
The Little Flower Orchestra and choir performed their annual Christmas concert this past December. Students in the music program have been very busy, working hard in the FAB since the beginning of the school year, whether by learning a new instrument, advancing in their sheet music, or even performing a solo. Joy filled the auditorium when Christmas tunes such as “Jingle Bells” and “Jolly Old St. Nicholas” were played on December 19, 2023.
Members of both the orchestra and concert choir have a ton to say about the concert, one of which being Senior Jessica Krwawicz, from the Orchestra’s brass section. She said, “I'm really happy the music we played for my last Christmas concert was challenging and fun. Jazzy Holidays was easily my favorite Christmas song we ever played in my four years here.” Senior vocalist Nicole Bagniewska shares a similar sentiment, emphasizing how enjoyable the lead-up and concert were: “I had a really fun time preparing and performing for my last Christmas concert, and I am going to miss singing with my friends!”
Senior percussionist Ameena Evans enjoyed the show as well, enjoying “playing Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer with the clarinets. The Jazz components, the swing of the song, and the bass played by Heaven Hernandez ‘25, truly connected every element. By far this was my favorite song throughout this concert.”
The director of the orchestra, Mr. Cutter, conducted his second Christmas concert at Little Flower. He said, “It was a pleasure seeing the new and returning instrumentalists blend so well together. Everyone worked so hard learning the music and performing their parts." He is already planning the next concert. He said, "I'm looking forward to our selection of music for the Spring Concert. Our set list will consist of catchy, recognizable tunes and some surprises in store for Little Flower! It's going to be a lot of fun."
If you were unable to attend the Christmas concert but still want to support the music department, be sure to come to the spring concert that will be held on May 17, 2024, to see performances from all the talented and young musicians in the Little Flower music program.
Love, Love, Love
Hillary Nguyen' 25
The season of Valentine’s Day is the time of the year when American stores start flooding with embellished cards, fragrant bouquets, heart boxes of chocolates, and more. It’s the best time of the year to show someone they are loved! Valentine’s Day began with the celebration of Saint Valentine, a Roman priest who secretly acted as a matchmaker and wed couples despite the outlaw of marriages in 3rd century Rome. Before he died a martyr through execution, he sent a note to his wife signed, “Your Valentine.” His romantic story became globalized into a day of love for many. No matter where anyone is in the world, there is always love to celebrate. So, let’s spread Cupid’s wishes by seeing how different countries mark Valentine’s Day!
Germany (Valentinstag)
Americans exchange heart-shaped gifts, but German couples take a different approach, often exchanging pig-shaped gifts instead. The pig symbolizes luck and attraction, so it is not uncommon to give and receive pig statues, stuffed animals, and all pig things. Flowers and chocolates are also shared, as well as big ginger cookies that often contain messages expressing feelings or describing a lover's intentions. Generally, Valentine’s Day is an adult holiday, and kids don’t exchange gifts or letters.
South Africa (Lupercalia)
Long before Valentine’s Day approaches, South African shops and marketplaces are already beautifully decorated with fragrant flowers, love symbols, love birds, hearts, and traditional African decorations. In addition to exchanging gifts, young girls who want to express their love often pin their lover’s name on their sleeves. During the week of Valentine's Day, extravagant parties and celebrations are held, allowing people to completely indulge themselves in African culture and love. This is the perfect time for lovers to show off their partner or singles to find a partner!
Taiwan (Qixi Festival)
Taiwan celebrates a Chinese mythology tale called “The Weaver Girl and the Cowherd.” The story follows the love between Zhinü and Niulang who were banished to opposite sides of the Milky Way, forbidden to meet. However, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month of every year, a flock of magpies form a bridge to reunite the lovers for just one day. Couples celebrate the day by going on dates, exchanging gifts, and attending Qixi street festivals and events. Many of those who don’t have lovers go to the Temple of Matchmaker (Temple of Yue Lao) to pray for a good partner in the future.
Philippines (Araw ng mga Puso)
For Filipinos, Valentine’s Day is as much a day for lovers as it is for family. They enjoy spending quality time with family and making memories on the special day of love. They exchange flowers and gifts, and sometimes, Filipino couples even exchange vows. Many couples schedule a second marriage ceremony on February 14, whether simple, private, or extravagant, to affirm their devotion to one another. Additionally, mass weddings have developed into a new custom among Filipinos during the month of love. These weddings are free, funded by the government, and consist of group marriages where many couples get married at once. Filipinos believe that love doesn’t depend on how grand a wedding is but rather on the amount of love and trust between a pair.
NCYC Trip Diary
By Class'26: Lilly Fiske, Angelina Pinson, and Aislin Slook
In November, a group of Little Flower students accompanied by Ms. Radebaugh and Ms. Sawick spent a long weekend (November 16-18) in Indianapolis attending the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC). NCYC is a three-day experience of prayer, learning, evangelization, and empowerment for Catholic teenagers. Lilly Fiske, Angelina Pinson, and Aislin Slook chronicled the trip for The Theresian.
Thursday, November 16, 2023 (noon)
By Angelina Pinson
At 8:30 pm last night, Aislin’s mom drove Aislin, Lilly, and me to Epiphany of Our Lord Church where we picked up the charter bus that took us, along with students from other Philadelphia Catholic schools to Indianapolis to attend the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC). After driving through Pennsylvania through the night we made our first stop in Ohio to get breakfast as the sun rose. We all stopped at Dunkin’, and the Little Flower girls were among the first in line. We got back on the bus, and after one more stop, we arrived in Indianapolis at around 11:30 am this morning.
Thursday, November 16 (evening)
By Aislin Slook and Angelina Pinson
After we settled in at our hotel this afternoon, and before the scheduled events started, we
went with Ms. Sawick to get lunch at the convention center where some of the NCYC events
were scheduled to take place. Other Little Flower girls headed to the mall. Later, we attended a concert at Lukas Oil Stadium. The band was For King and Country, and 13,000 students from all across the country were in attendance. It’s an NCYC tradition to wear funny hats and accessories, and there was a confetti cannon. The music was great! The stadium had never been so loud!
Friday, November 17 (evening)
By Angelina Pinson
We started the day by heading to the stadium again where speakers talked about different
topics related to the Catholic faith. Then we headed over to the convention center and
attended smaller group sessions. There were several going on at once, and each of us could
decide which topic interested them the most. One session Aislin and I attended was titled, “I
Know You, But I Don’t Feel You.” After we attended our sessions and ate our lunch, we went
back to our hotel rooms to relax. Later we headed back to Lucas Oil Stadium for Mass. Bishop Joseph Espaillat processed the Blessed Sacrament from the convention center to the stadium. At the end of the Mass, Bishop Espaillat removed the Eucharist from the monstrance, held it to his chest, and processed out of the stadium. We had floor seats, so we were close to the Eucharist. It was an emotional, faith-changing event. After such a long day, an hour with the Eucharist was the perfect way to end it.
Saturday, November 18 (evening)
By Angelina Pinson
This was a slow but sad day. We knew were leaving the next day. As we had done previously,
we went to Lucas Oil Stadium and listened to various speakers. After a few sessions, the Little Flower girls were interviewed by PhillyOMY about our experience attending NCYC. Here’s the interview:
After our interview, there was an opportunity to attend more sessions as well as games,
shopping, and talking to representatives from colleges. After the long day, the Little Flower girls went for dinner at a Mexican restaurant, visited the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, attended a closing Mass, and finally walked back to our hotel to pack our bags for the trip home.
Sunday, November 19 (morning)
By Lilly Fiske
I am lucky to be sitting by myself for this ride home because I have so much homework to do. I already know I’m going to miss this trip so much. Reflecting on what we have done these past few days helps me realize how much we have grown as young sisters in Christ. Over these few days, we have learned and experienced so much that I feel refreshed and almost like a new person. Many people have already asked me questions about the trip and why it was so refreshing and here is why: I didn’t have to deal with any feelings other than joy. While on this trip I realized that spending too much time being angry, anxious, or sad is useless. It wastes time and energy being negative when you could be spending your time doing something positive. The places we went, the music we heard and the people we met helped me understand the simplicity of life. It helped me realize how unnecessarily serious people can be. Some events that helped me realize this were the concert and the breakout rooms. I also spoke to some nuns and priests about their call to religious life and it helped me to hear that “being serious and stern all the time does not lead you far.”
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