On Monday, 6th February, 328 pupils from all over the diocese of Derry were presented with their Pope John Paul Awards in St Eugene’s Cathedral. They came from 21 schools and represented 44 parishes within the diocese and beyond. This year there were 17 year 14 pupils receiving awards from the College.
The diocese of Derry was celebrating their 16th Annual Awards ceremony with guest speaker, Melany Francisco-Lawless, and Bishop Donal McKeown, presenting the awards.
Ms Francisco-Lawless gave an inspiring testimony of her own call to work in youth ministry in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle and encouraged awardees to continue their parish involvement and be a witness to the good news of the Gospel.
This award continues to be the largest youth movement in the church in Ireland. It encourages young people to be ‘active in their faith’ and enlightens participants to understand the need for selfless community service.
Pictured below are the recipients of the Award alongside their award leader, Mr McGarry, Principal Madden, Ms Francisco-Lawless and Bishop McKeown. (The award leader would like to thank all those staff and community members for their assistance throughout the year).
