On Friday, April 18, 10-year-old Christopher Jordan and 13-year-old Kaitlin Karcher will do something most people can only dream of doing.
Not only will the well-rounded students from Ozone Park and Howard Beach, respectively, get to meet Pope Benedict XVI, but the “two youngsters have been selected to present flowers to the Holy Father when he alights from his flight to JFK airport from Washington,” according to The Tablet.
Both were selected by their school’s principals “for the way they express their religious faith, their accomplishments as students and outside involvements.”
“He’s definitely the apple of my eye. He has far exceeded what I thought I could have in a child,” said Scott Jordan of his son, who is a fifth-grader at Divine Mercy Catholic Academy, which was formed after Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Stan’s merged.
“He has a very good character, he is easy going and gets along with everyone,” said Sister Francis, principal of Divine Mercy. “He is very helpful, friendly and outgoing. A lot of elderly parishioners like him, and he enjoys serving [Mass.] It’s an honor for the school.”
Christopher’s first reaction to the news was “Wow - I’ll be giving flowers right up next to him [the Pope].”
Christopher, who is an altar boy and received an “A” in religion, had the distinction of serving Mass at the Vatican every morning for seven days over the Christmas break in 2006.
“He served under Father Francis Colamaria and Father Bryan Carney of St. Helen,” said Scott, who is himself a Eucharistic Minister and one of only 18,000 Knights of the Holy Sepulcher, a Papal designation. “We were seven feet from the Holy Father. We thought that was the highlight of his life. We never thought that this would come.”
The devoted, modest and hard-working 10-year-old has also served under four bishops: Thomas Daily, Nicholas DiMarzio, Frank Joseph Caggiano and Guy A. Sansaricq.
He serves Mass regularly - as many as four in one day - and even fills in at St. Stan’s.
“He is a very, very dedicated altar server,” said Monsignor Gregory Wielunski. “He’s always here whenever we need him for that.”
Of the honor, he said, it shows the “support the Diocese is giving to the school.”
“He has served the Midnight Mass every year for the last four years, the Easter Vigil - all High Holy days - as well as funerals, weddings, Communions and Confirmations,” said Scott, who told The Queens Courier that last year on St. Patrick’s Day his son kissed Bishop DiMarzio’s ring.
In addition, he helps in teaching and training other altar servers.
However, Christopher’s altruism and diligence extend beyond the church.
The animal lover - he especially loves horses - who recently won second place in an equestrian contest, grooms and rides horses and helps with the therapeutic program at the Jamaica Bay Riding Academy in Brooklyn on Sundays.
The money he earns from serving weddings and funerals goes toward paying for his locker there, said Scott, who also noted that his son “is a well-known gas pumper at Marino’s gas station.”
“My son is with a lot of different people from all walks of life,” said the proud papa. “He takes people for who they are.”
The busy 10-year-old, who says that he wants to be a veterinarian, also plays baseball - he is a catcher with the Ozone-Howard Little League - and plays basketball and ice hockey.
“We are very excited about it,” said Barbara Kavanagh, principal of Our Lady of Grace (OLG) in Howard Beach, where Kaitlin Karcher is an eighth-grade student. “The superintendent called and asked me to nominate a student, and Kaitlin was the first to come to mind.”
“She has grace and poise and is a fine example of a Christian.”
The 13-year-old, who will be attending Archbishop Molloy High School in Briarwood in the fall - and who has made the school’s honor program - is “an outstanding student, one of the top,” according to Kavanagh.
“For a girl her age she is confident and very well spoken. She always greets me and is very well mannered.”
Kavanagh said she knew right away which student to nominate, even though her own daughter is a seventh grader at OLG.
“Kaitlin represents our school,” said the principal, noting that Kaitlin is a third-generation student at OLG - her mother, aunts, and her maternal grandmother graduated from the school, and two of Kaitlin’s first cousins will be graduating with her in June.
“Her class is very unique in how they relate to each other - very caring and cooperative - and out of the mix of them, she shines,” said Kavanagh.
Father Joseph Gibino of OLG agrees.
“Kaitlin is just a wonderful young woman,” he said. “She is mature beyond her years and is a very gifted student. She is an ideal choice. When our principal, Barbara Kavanagh, told me [Kaitlin had been selected], it was in some ways overwhelming. It’s such a wonderful feeling to know one of our own has been recognized for her goodness.”
“She has a heart of gold,” said Kathy Karcher, proud mom. “People are very important to her. She is a peacemaker and very family oriented. When I found out [about the honor], I told her, ‘This is the closest thing to God on earth. It’s an honor and privilege.’”
Kathy told The Queens Courier that one of her daughter’s main influences is her family.
“We come from a big family in Howard Beach and she’s always felt very safe and happy there,” said Kathy. “She has an anchor, a sense of community with the church, the people who live there - it’s a family.”
Kathy also credits OLG with who her daughter has become as a person and a Christian.
“I think OLG has such a caring environment,” she said. “Ms. Kavanagh is one of the best principals we’ve had. The school enforces having faith and following God’s rules — this is as important as the ABCs and 123s.”
Kaitlin, who, as an eighth-grader, has a kindergarten “buddy,” also belonged to the OLG youth group, and played soccer and basketball for the school.
She goes to Mass every Sunday.
Of her distinction, she said, “It’s really amazing. It’s hard to believe. I’m trying to let it sink in, because it’s such an honor.”
The scholar has dreams of becoming an anesthesiologist, in part because of seeing her grandfather in pain.
“[Meeting the Pope] is something that will be with me for the rest of my life,” she said.
Also greeting the Pope on April 18 will be 250 singers from parishes throughout the diocese. And when he departs New York on Sunday, April 20, according to The Tablet, the Diocesan Vicariate Choir, the newly-formed Diocesan H.S. Choir, and the Diocesan Youth Choir will perform, along with the St. James Cathedral Basilica Brass Quartet and the 22-member String Ensemble of St. Francis Preparatory School in Fresh Meadows.
- With additional reporting by Noah Rosenberg
