Day 20 of 25 DAYS OF HUGGING:
Christina attended Queen of Peace High School in Burbank, IL, along with 20-some of her cousins; it was like their home away from home. It also allowed her to branch out with a new group of friends, and she followed the family path to work at the Egg Store on Archer (if you’ve never been to the Egg Store, you have no idea what you missed in that old-fashioned neighborhood market!!!).
These were the years when Christina learned about support, support from people as her Mom began a long fight against breast cancer. There was huge hugging to celebrate an early diagnosis of remission, and then there were hugs to support the troops when the cancer came back. But Christina’s circle was growing fast, and there were even more people who got to share in those hugs and smiles from her new group to hug at Queen of Peace.
Christina and her cousin Laura at their high school graduation from Queen of Peace
Queen of Peace and its “brother school” St. Laurence came on hard times in the early 2000s. Christina remained a supporter of “Peace” all those years, understanding what a close-knit group of people can mean to one other. Through dedicated alumni and devoted staff, those two schools have merged and again are thriving as a place that can help produce more young men and women with the virtues that institution has to offer now. To see how close Christina and her classmates remained is to understand what made Christina the empathetic and caring person she was, the great hugger.
For more on the remarkable St. Laurence and Queen of Peace revitalization story, please visit http://www.stlaurence.com/
Please consider a donation to CCCF: www.celebratingchristina.org/donate
One day, one goal, one huge hug.
