Archbishop Gregory Aymond has asked pastors throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans to offer prayers Sept. 10-11 for the workers of Avondale Shipyard who are facing the prospect of losing their jobs.

The St. Louis Cathedral Boychoir is accepting new members for its 2011-12 season. The boychoir, under the direction of Dreux Montegut, is open to boys, ages 8 and up, with unchanged voices. Any boy with an interest in singing can join the boychoir.

Dominican Sister of Peace Mary Colette Philips died July 26 at Our Lady of Wisdom Healthcare Center in New Orleans. She was 82 and in her 55th year as a woman religious. Born Ruth Mary Philips in New Orleans on June 28, 1929, Sister Mary Colette entered the novitiate of the former St. Mary’s Dominican Sisters in New Orleans and made her profession of vows in 1957.

Getting off the grid and leaving behind the city is a great way to bring some much-needed silence to one’s life, Pope Benedict XVI said. “Silence is the condition of one’s surroundings that best fosters contemplation, listening to God and meditation,” he said Aug. 10 at his weekly general audience at the papal summer villa courtyard at Castel Gandolfo.

Imagine 2,300 teenagers in an auditorium, jumping up and down to the pulsating rhythm of a loud rock band, singing and shouting along with the music. Now imagine the words they’re singing are giving glory to God.

Las escuelas Católicas se preparan para volver a abrir este mes. ¿Cómo va el proceso de planificación estratégica que usted comenzó a principios de este año? Hemos tenido un poco de descanso de verano, pero la planificación ha ido muy bien.

Teens and young adults around the archdiocese are familiar with the Teens Encounter Christ (TEC) retreat sponsored by the Archdiocese of New Orleans, a three-day weekend filled with prayer, reflections, discussions and activities centered on paschal mystery spirituality.

With all of the hype surrounding the final “Harry Potter” film and the epic battle between “The Boy Who Lived” and “He Who Must Not Be Named,” it’s easy to see how the battle between good and evil attracts all people.

The prevailing wisdom is that Tulane has to reach a bowl for Bob Toledo to be the head football coach in 2012. Instead, I give you some out-of-the-box thinking. Bob Toledo already has been successful as head coach of the Tulane Green Wave.

There is no reason to break out the black armbands just because the Catholic League is void of enough teams to continue to play as a unit. High school football will hold just as much interest as was prevalent when there was just one city league made up of both Catholic and public schools.

Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond announces the following appointments:

It had all the subtlety of walking headfirst into a brick wall at midnight. Even though Deacon Dave Farinelli sensed there was something puzzling and even scary about his wife Peggy’s recent memory losses, he was able to push those anxieties to the side until December 2005 when what she said couldn’t be wished or explained away.

With hundreds of thousands of young people gathered in Madrid for World Youth Day, can you reflect on the World Youth Days you have attended? I went to Denver in 1993 and to Toronto in 2002 with Blessed Pope John Paul II and then to Cologne in 2005 with Pope Benedict.

The members of the Corporation of Our Lady of Holy Cross College issued the following release on August 16: “The Members of the Corporation of Our Lady of Holy Cross College announced that they are forming a new Board of Regents.

Catholic Schools:

Many remember Msgr. Robert Guste for his faithful prayer life, reading his breviary while walking the south Kenner neighborhood where he lived or even giving his last dime to someone in need. His priestly life will be forever commemorated at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Kenner with the dedication of its perpetual adoration chapel in his honor.

Not that citizens of the Greater New Orleans area need any encouragement to reflect again on a life-changing event, but the sixth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina will arrive later this month – Aug. 29.

• Who is he? Physical plant supervisor for Christopher Homes, Inc. (CHI); parishioner of St. Rosalie, Harvey; member of St. Anthony Church, Lafitte, KC; graduate of Immaculate Conception Elementary, Archbishop Shaw High (1976) and Jefferson Parish Vo-Tech School; married for 32 years to Greta Rolland DesRoches; three children; recipient of the 2007 Caring Hands Award from the Gulf States Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, an annual distinction that recognizes elder care professionals who go beyond the call of duty in their service to seniors.

Looking out from a second-floor window of her New Orleans high school, the teenaged Musette Barrouquere could see into the backyard of the neighboring convent, its clothesline laden with the distinctive habits of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.

A school-improvement tool with an impressive track record of raising student achievement will be introduced to all interested Catholic school principals this month. The tool – known as “Discovery Walks” or “e-Walks” – involves quarterly visits to each classroom by a team of educators, led by the principal.