By Florida Catholic staff - Florida Catholic
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Cub Scouts from one of the parishes get ready to pray at the annual Catholic Scout Awards Mass.
MIAMI | Brownies, Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Sea Scouts: An ocean of green, blue and brown filled the pews of St. John Vianney Seminary as Scouts and their leaders from across the archdiocese gathered for the 2016 Catholic Scout Awards Mass, the annual recognition program conducted by the Archdiocesan Catholic Committee on Scouting.
The committee operates under the auspices of the Office of Youth Ministry and is chaired by Barry Ekle of St. Rose of Lima parish. Piarist Father Rafael Capó � himself a Scout chaplain � celebrated the June 4 Mass, assisted by the committee’s chaplain, Deacon Emilio Blanco.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Piarist Father Rafael Capo takes a selfie with Scouts at the end of the Mass.
Father Capó directs the U.S. bishops’ Regional Office for Hispanic Ministry and its educational branch, the Southeast Pastoral Institute (SEPI).
During the Mass, each Scout received an age- and program-appropriate Catholic Scouting Award that they had completed this year. In all, 83 Scouts from 20 different parishes participated.
The Girl Scouts who received The Spirit Alive, their highest award, were: Maria Pardo and Samantha Romero of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Doral; Elsie Gomez of St. John Neumann in Miami; and Michaella Beecher and Lourdes Lopez from St. Mark in Southwest Ranches.
The highest award for the Boy Scouts, the Pope Pius XII Award, was presented to Nathaniel and Zachary Anzalone of St. John XXIII in Miramar.
The committee also presented the St. George, its highest adult Boy Scout award, to Lawrence Hribar of San Pablo Parish in Marathon.
During his homily, Father Capó shared his experience attending the last World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, where Catholic Scouts from around the world were represented.
The Scouts also received a surprise quiz on the Gospel reading as Father Capó relayed that Sunday’s Gospel in a Scouting context.
For more information on Catholic Scouting in the Archdiocese of Miami, please visit: www.catholicscoutsonline.com or email [email protected].
This article was submitted by Barry Ekle, chair of the Catholic Scouting Committee. Photos were taken by Ayesha Carter of the South Florida Boy Scout Council, and Lisette Naranjo.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Scouts and their leaders pose with Piarist Father Rafel Capo, front left, before the start of the Mass.
