St. Paul Street Evangelization's 'Spiritual Care Unit' — a converted former ambulance — offers confessions, prayers during game
CLARKSTON — It’s the final week of the Michigan High School Athletic Association football season, with the state finals set to take place at Ford Field in Detroit, Nov. 29-30.
Three schools from the Catholic High School League and six Catholic high schools from across the state are in contention for a state title after 13 weeks of competition.
But perhaps the best conversion of the season happened off the field — or right next to the field.
Everest Collegiate High School in Clarkston recently renovated its football/soccer field with new artificial turf, a press box, bleachers and permanent lights, thanks to the generosity of a parent.
The upgrades to the facility have made quite the impression on Everest fans and visitors, said Ann Serra-Lowney, athletic director at Everest.
“We had a parent who was kind enough to renovate the whole stadium, bringing in more seating, revamped the press box, and really turned it into one of the more picturesque settings for a high school football game,” Serra-Lowney told Detroit Catholic. “We had one of the State Champ Network crews come out to cover the game, and all their reporter kept saying is, ‘I’ve been to a lot of football games, but I haven’t seen anything like this.’”
The highlight of the renovations was the installation of a 14-foot-tall crucifix with a 7-foot corpus on top of a hill next to the field, a prominent display of the school’s commitment to its Catholic identity.
“We are blessed to be on a property that sits up high in the community,” said Lowney (fittingly enough, Everest’s mascot is the Mountaineers). “Because of the way our football stadium is built, the field is down, and everyone sits on the hill, and with the crucifix overlooking the field, you get these most beautiful sunsets during the game. It’s really a statement of what the school is about.”
The crucifix was blessed during the Oct. 13 home game against Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes. The CHSL contest also saw an appearance from St. Paul Street Evangelization’s Spiritual Care Unit, a converted ambulance the Warren-based apostolate brings to various events to evangelize.
“It really is an old ambulance that is repainted and has some images on it,” said Beth Schuele, associate director of St. Paul Street Evangelization. “The inside was gutted, and a confessional is in place of all the medical stuff. We have a kneeler and a screen, so people who want to make a confession can do it right in the Spiritual Care Unit.”
Schuele’s husband is an assistant coach on the Everest football team, and St. Paul Street Evangelization throught the dedication of the renovated field and crucifix would be an appropriate place to preach the Gospel.
Priests from the Legionaries of Christ, the religious community that sponsors Everest, and Fr. Stephen Moening from nearby Our Lady of the Lakes Parish in Waterford heard confessions while members of St. Paul Street Evangelization passed out holy cards and rosaries and took in prayer requests as spectators walked toward the concession stands during the buildup to the game and halftime.
“People would come up, and the first thing they would see is this ambulance in the parking lot, and it drew a lot of attention,” Schuele said. “A lot of kids helped me pass out rosaries and saint cards.
"Having priests to hear confession was really nice," Schuele said. "Because we are so busy with our lives, some people don’t have time to go. So, at halftime of a football game, when everyone is standing around, you might as well go to confession. And we got a number of people.”
St. Paul Street Evangelization usually ministers at public events where the religious tendencies of the crowd are more diverse than at a Catholic High School League football game.
But even among the Catholic community, there is always a call to evangelize, Schuele explained.
“There is always room for prayer and talking about Jesus, no matter who the audience is,” Schuele said. “It does change a little bit when the people are Catholic or associated with the Catholic faith. You find relatives who aren’t Catholic or aren’t practicing the faith. So many times we come across fallen-away Catholics who are just looking for an invitation.”
The Spiritual Care Unit’s presence at the game was a big hit with fans, Serra-Lowney added.
“People thought it was wonderful, thought it was a great testament to our Catholic faith,” Serra-Lowney said. “We weren’t able to get the ambulance out again this year, but I think it will become a yearly tradition. It’s the goal of our president to offer confession at every football game, so to see it come to fruition at one game, you start something small and hope it builds into something bigger each year.”
Fans young and old were drawn to the presence of the Spiritual Care Unit, prompting questions for Schuele and her team.
“Part of our mission is proclaiming the Gospel in the public square,” Schuele said. “And when you are in the public square, and you roll up to the Riverwalk or a festival or Eastern Market, and people see the ambulance, it stands out. It’s a good vehicle — pun intended — to bring people in and ask if they have questions about the faith. They know what we are there for; we are not hiding an agenda. We are preaching Christ.”
The CHSL has long had a tradition of praying the Our Father before every game.
Likewise, Everest Collegiate has undertaken more initiatives to embrace its Catholic identity, including having Eucharistic adoration available during lunchtime on Wednesdays while the school chaplain is offering confessions.
But Serra-Lowney said there is something about athletics that tends to draw a wider audience to the school and serves as a great opportunity to preach the Gospel.
“Obviously, we like to have our Catholic identity in all of our programs, but athletics draws the largest amount of people onto our campus,” Serra-Lowney said. “When we have people of all faiths, all origins of life coming onto our campus, it allows us to plant those seeds about the value of Catholicism and how it can enrich a life; that’s the beauty of athletics; it draws people in.”
At the end of every game, Everest coach Mike Pruchnicki invites the other team to join the Mountaineers in praying before the crucifix, a reminder that Christ has secured the final victory.
“Mike and I used to say, we used to run a successful athletic program on a shoestring budget, where we didn’t have much in the realm of facilities for the kids, but always had the faith,” Serra-Lowney said. “Now we have the facilities and the faith, and it’s beautiful to see how it’s all coming together. I’m just grateful to all the donors.”
