South Boston Catholic Academy News 4th Grade News

The Easter Season is called the Great 50 Days and celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It begins on Easter Sunday and ends on Pentecost Sunday, the 50th day after Easter. It also includes the Ascension of the Lord, which occurs on the 40th day after Easter. The Easter season is a joyful time for celebrating the presence of the risen Christ in the church and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Some Christians observe the Easter Octave, which is the eight days from the first to the second Sunday of Easter. The first seven of these eight days are also collectively known as Easter Week. The Easter

Octave is concluded by the Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday. In Christian churches that celebrate the Easter Octave, it marks the beginning of Eastertide referring to the week following Easter, or the fifty days from Easter to Pentecost Sunday. It is a joyful feast and a special festival season for the church.

During Easter Week, on Thursday, April 13, 2023, the students, families, faculty, and staff at South Boston Catholic Academy celebrated a special school Mass celebrating the Easter Octave. Ms. Samantha Guildford’s and Mrs. Patricia Coleman’s 4th grader students did a wonderful job participating in this Mass, as Greeters, Readers and bringing up the gifts of bread, wine, and water to the Altar. Our SBCA Children’s Choir, led by the Music Teacher, Mr. Carlo Bunyi sounded amazing as they sang the joyful songs of the Easter Season. Father Robert Casey, our Pastor, was the celebrant at this Mass. New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

Every year, a 23-person committee picks three finalists for the New England Patriots Hall of Fame. This year, that committee selected head coach Bill Parcells, linebacker Mike Vrabel, and offensive lineman Logan Mankins.

One of these three former Patriots will now be voted into the team’s Hall of Fame by the fans, with voting ending on May 2. You can vote at patriots. com/hof.

The Patriots are the only team in the NFL that allows its fans to make the final selection for the team Hall of Fame.

Personally, I always enjoy going over the finalists, even if this year’s finalists have all been finalists several times before.

Out of the three, Vrabel has been nominated the most. This will be Vrabel’s seventh straight time as a finalist. Parcells has now been nominated five times, while this is Mankins’ second straight nomination.

Here’s a breakdown of each finalist from the Patriots’ website, to better serve you before you vote:

“Mike Vrabel is a three-time Super Bowl Champion and is recognized as one of the most versatile linebackers and best free agent signings in team history. He joined the team before the

2001 season, following a four-year career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he was used primarily on special teams and as a reserve linebacker. During his eight-year tenure in New England, Vrabel played a major role in the Patriots dynastic run that included three Super Bowl championships in four years (2001, 2003 and 2004).

He exemplified positional versatility during his Patriots tenure by starting at both inside and outside linebacker, regularly lining up on offense in shortyardage and goal-line situations, and continually making valuable contributions on various special teams units.

As a Patriot, he caught eight regular season passes and two more in the playoffs. All 10 of his receptions were for touchdowns, including touchdown receptions in back-to-back Super Bowl wins over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII and Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX. He earned Pro Bowl and first-team Associated Press All-Pro honors following the 2007 season, the year the Patriots became the first team in NFL history to win 18 consecutive games in one season.”

“Bill Parcells was the head coach of the New England Patriots for four seasons (1993-96) and led the team to two playoff berths. After inherit- ing a team that had finished 14-50 in the previous four years, including an NFL worst 2-14 season in 1992, he brought the clout of a two-time Super Bowl Champion to the Patriots sidelines, infusing instant credibility in 1993 and finished his Patriots career with a 34-34 record, including 2-2 in the playoffs. In 1994, a seasonending seven-game win streak allowed the Patriots to clinch their first playoff berth in eight years. The performance earned Parcells NFL Coach of the Year honors. After finishing 6-10 in 1995, the Patriots rebounded with an 11-win season in 1996, tying the then franchise record for wins and earning their first division title in 10 years. After a convincing victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, 28-3 in the divisional playoff game in foggy Foxborough, the Patriots hosted their first AFC Championship game and defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars, 20-6, to earn a trip to the Super Bowl for just the second time in franchise history. This is the fifth time that the Patriots Hall of Fame Nomination Committee has nominated Bill Parcells for Patriots Hall of Fame induction (2011, 2012, 2014, 2020 and 2023). On Feb. 2, 2013, Parcells was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is the only coach in NFL history ever to lead four different teams to the playoffs and three different teams to a conference championship game. He is a member of the Patriots 1990s All-Decade Team.”

“Logan Mankins is recognized as one of the best offensive linemen in franchise history. He played nine of his 11 NFL seasons with the New England Patriots after joining the team as a first-round draft pick in 2005. The three-time team captain earned six Pro Bowl selections and six All-Pro honors (2007, 2009-13) during his time with New England, including firstteam Associated Press All-Pro honors following the 2010 season. Despite playing his entire collegiate career as a left tackle, Mankins was moved to left guard when he joined the Patriots and was immediately inserted into the starting lineup. Mankins started all 130 regular season and 17 postseason games in which he appeared as a member of the Patriots. With Mankins in the lineup, the Patriots offense finished in top 10 in eight of his nine seasons with the Patriots - 2005 (7), 2007 (1), 2008 (5), 2009 (3), 2010 (8), 2011 (2), 2012 (1), 2013 (7).”

Me? I’m going with Vrabel. It’s actually long overdue.

Follow Danny on instagram @ DannyPicard.