Congratulations to the Canton Repository Difference Maker of the month, Beth Frank!
NAME – Beth A. Frank
SCHOOL – St. Thomas Aquinas School
RESIDENCE – Alliance
AGE – Young enough to continue to be of service and old enough to pray for wisdom to know when to retire.
JOB TITLE – Campus minister
HOW LONG WITH THE DISTRICT – Eighteen years as a teacher; and 30 years as an administrator. Four years with St. Thomas Aquinas. All within Diocese of Youngstown.
FAMILY – I am the second oldest of 14 children. My parents went to heaven several years ago. They gave us, their children, many wonderful gifts, like the example of loving each other, how to work hard, an appreciation of Mother Earth by living on a farm, and a strong love and care for each other. We love to get together and talk, laugh, eat and enjoy each other. Traveling is beginning to be a luxury we are all starting to thoroughly enjoy.
WHAT IS MOST CHALLENGING? – The impact of this pandemic and its variants, and how it affects students, faculty, staff and families continues to concern us. For more than a year, the safety precautions would not allow us to celebrate at Mass, have assemblies, pep rallies, or pray together in large groups. Our students have always been so service-oriented, but familiar places like nursing homes, elementary school visits, the local fish fries were not permitted.
IF YOU WEREN'T DOING THIS, YOU'D BE – Unhappy. Providing opportunities that allows STA to resume (with caution) to serve, engage in group-learning, etc. is all part of development. If I can help facilitate this growth, then the students can learn they can make a difference in any are to which they aspire.
TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT THE STUDENTS YOU DEAL WITH THAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T KNOW OR APPRECIATE – Our students are diverse in culture, religious backgrounds, ethnicity, and race, which adds to the rich variety of ideas, practices, discussions, and charism of this school. A variety of programs are being implemented which is slowly helping to develop students’ abilities to share, listen and appreciate each other.
STUDENTS AND COWORKERS WOULD BE SURPRISED TO KNOW THAT YOU – Love to pencil-color intricate pictures of various themes. At times, I am true to real colors of reality and at other times I am totally outrageous with the use of color. It is so much fun.
WHAT IS ONE RESPONSIBILITY ABOUT YOUR POSITION THAT YOU DIDN'T KNOW EXISTED BEFORE TAKING IT? – Since this is my first year as campus minister, I have not experienced most of what a campus minister’s job description includes. At the same time, this allows for a lot of creativity. I look forward to each day.