To entice students into a new high school club, organizers followed the strategy of other groups: they brought donuts. But this club at Chantilly High School is different.
“At the end of every meeting, they pray a decade of the rosary. It is wild to watch all these kids praying,” said John Downes, club moderator and faculty sponsor.
The Catholic Student Association at Chantilly starts its second year this month, hoping to build on a successful beginning that featured 60 members on the roster by the end of last year.
“We developed a community in the school,” said Johnny Fernandez, a senior and association president, who began the club with three friends last October, under Downes’ guidance. He said the club is expanding to nearby Centreville High in Clifton and Westfield High in Chantilly.
“We’re trying to make CSA an organization that has different branches (at other schools),” Fernandez said.
The club’s purpose is to promote a deeper understanding of the Catholic faith. Meetings are usually biweekly and feature prayer, talks and group discussions. The club is open to both Catholics and non-Catholics.
“We want to give Catholic kids help keeping their faith and to explain (the faith) to (non-Catholics),” ,” said Matias Reyes, another founder.
The inspiration struck Fernandez, a member of the broadcast journalism team, when he was assigned a story on a Muslim club and its observation of Ramadan.
“I was thinking, Catholics should have something like this, recognizing the different seasons in the church,” said Fernandez who, along with Reyes, Nick Zingarelli and Tony Kitherian, approached Downes about being the faculty sponsor.
Downes, a parishioner of Holy Trinity Church in Gainesville, has been a history teacher at Chantilly High for 30 years. He previously sponsored clubs but was not looking to do it again. “I told the Lord that if a student wanted me to sponsor a club (like the CSA), that would be the only one I would.”
After getting school approval for the club in October, the boys got the word out. Fernandez spoke to his youth group at St. Timothy Church in Chantilly, started an Instagram account, and talked to others. Then there was the sugary enticement.
“Our secret was donuts,” Fernandez said. “St. Francis said to preach the Gospel and, if necessary, use words. We used donuts.”
Meetings are held during the school’s “flex period,” a time for students to study, meet with teachers or attend club meetings or other activities. Fernandez said a meeting draws 20 or more students, depending on students’ commitments.
“We start with prayer, then have a talk,” said Fernandez, who often conducts the talks. “We talk about the sacraments, feast days. We did Our Lady of Guadalupe. That was pretty cool.”
Other student leaders join in. “I was really impressed with their knowledge of the church, of Scripture, of the sacraments,” Downes said. “I just sit back and marvel at what they come up with. They come across as very human — ‘I’m one of you. I’m an everyday student and this is how I live my faith.’ ”
Clare Muskett, a senior, attended St. Timothy School through eighth grade. Joining the CSA “made me feel like I was back at St. Tim’s. I really missed that (Catholic identity).”
Muskett will be an officer in the club this year. She said that the discussion groups helped people get involved. “People felt like they had a chance to share what they believed. Everyone felt welcomed.”
Guest speakers last year included Father Parthi Raj Soosai, parochial vicar of St. Timothy, and Legionaries of Christ Father David Spillane from Washington.
This school year looks promising. Fernandez said, “We had a club fair for rising ninth graders and we had kids lining up.”
Thomas is a freelance writer in Front Royal.
Find out more
For more information about starting a Catholic student association at your school, contact Fernandez.
