Casa Maria Marianists

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From pretzels and frankfurters (hot dogs) to apple strudels and a Black Forest chocolate cherry cake (Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte), Casa María hosted an Oktoberfest-themed evening on Tuesday, October 19.

Texas has a sizable German community so it was appropriate to celebrate diversity this month. More than 60 students and staff from St. Mary’s and guests enjoyed dinner, decorations and Deutschland folk music.

Marianists of German heritage—Aspirant Mark Motz, Sister Gretchen Trautman, Brother Brian Halderman and Father Bill Berenger—cut the cake together. Prosit!

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Casa María was joined by a slew of Marianist Leadership Program students. MLP is a formation program for student leaders in the Marianist tradition. Mr. Chris Cantu, MLP coordinator and Aspirant Mark Motz both organized the event with the Brothers along with the help of Katie Green, MLP student. Everyone enjoyed cups and cones of ice cream with an assortment of premium ice cream toppings.

With hymns, prayers and lots of food, the celebration of the feast of Our Lady of the Pillar was an exciting and colorful one. Beginning the day with the celebration of the Eucharist Rev. Kip Stander, former resident of Casa María, wore the blue Hawaiian chasuble in honor of Our Lady.

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With a crowd of about 40 students, staff and faculty joining the community for Casa Tuesdays, the prayer that evening was Marian is style because of the feast of Our Lady. A combination of Spanish, in honor of Zaragosa, and Hawaiian, in honor of the Hawaiian heritage of our two Hawaiian Marianists. St. Mary’s student Mākena Hamilton enhanced the prayer experience by accompanying the hymn “Queen’s Jubilee” (adapted for the Queen of Heaven) with a graceful hula. Dinner included sub-sandwiches with french fries and a chocolate fudge pillar cupcakes for desserts.

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To celebrate the vigil of Our Lady of the Pillar, the Marianist Sisters hosted the Marianist brothers of Casa María for homemade cookies, ice cream and a viewing of a DVD prepared by Brother Mike Sullivan of footage taken in Zaragossa.

And, just like last year, the brothers were able to enjoy ‘parting gifts’ in the form of cookies to take home and enjoy!

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The brothers of Casa María enjoyed a Sunday evening barbecue at the Pardo residence on Sunday, October 10.

With temperatures in the lower-80s, the backyard dinner offered a comfortable atmosphere to enjoy a home-cooked meal; a few of the brothers opted to walk from campus to the Pardo’s residence, located about 2 miles away.

The barbecue featured Mexican cuisine from Monterrey, Mexico, as well as Tex-Mex fare.

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Brothers Brandon, Dennis and Brian, guests of Rev. Rudy Vela, were treated to a night watching the San Antonio Spurs defeat the Miami Heat 90-73 in a preseason NBA game at the AT&T Center on Saturday, October 9.

The brothers enjoyed the ‘superbox’ seats which featured complimentary food and drinks, as well as seats in Section SB2B, Row 2; the tickets were complimentary gifts to the brothers.