Pier Giorgio Service Program

Service to others draws us out of ourselves and teaches us to respond to Christ’s call to "Love one another as I have loved you". Serving others gives us the opportunity to put our faith into action and discover who we are through making a sincere gift of ourselves.

Jesus tells us, "Whatever you did for one of the least brothers of mine, you did for me." (Matthew 25:40) The students of Frassati Catholic High School strive to live out this Gospel message through their high school years. In order to cultivate the whole person, it is important to practice the corporal and spiritual works of mercy which are an integral part of our Catholic faith. Charity is the greatest of all virtues and we encourage all members of the Frassati Catholic community to give of themselves in order to draw closer to the heart of Christ.
 

Pier Giorgio Service Program

 

The Frassati Catholic High School Pier Giorgio Service Program seeks to provide our students with opportunities to grow in love of God and neighbor by putting their Catholic faith into action. Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati’s life illustrates that when young Catholics serve the poor, their faith blossoms and their hearts are purified.

Pure of heart and ardent in charity, Pier Giorgio Frassati lived the Beatitudes and so was able to see Christ in the Eucharist and in the poor. For Pier Giorgio, the Eucharist was the source of his devotion to the poor: “Jesus comes every day to visit me sacramentally in the Eucharist; I return the visit by going to find him among the poor.” When his friend asked him how he could enter certain houses cheerfully where the first welcome was a nauseating smell, Pier Giorgio answered: “Don’t ever forget that even though the house is sordid, you are approaching Christ. Remember what the Lord said: the good you do to the poor is good done to Me. Around the sick, the poor, the unfortunate, I see a particular light, a light that we do not have.” Like Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Pier Giorgio’s purity of heart allowed him to recognize the Lord in His distressing disguise in the poor.

In imitation of our patron, the Pier Giorgio Service Program of Frassati Catholic High School seeks to help our students learn to serve God in the poor, the homeless, and the vulnerable members of society. As Frassati Catholic students mature in their faith and life of service, they not only will become God’s instruments of peace in the world but they also will know the personal joy that comes from a life of self-giving.
 

Ninth Grade Service

The freshmen of Frassati Catholic begin to develop the disposition of service by serving the local school community. Our freshmen are assigned a duty each week which they, as responsible members of our school community, will do daily or as needed for the common good.
 

Tenth Grade Service

Our sophomores take what they have learned by serving their school and put it into action in the local community. Sophomores participate in monthly Pier Giorgio Days which consist of a half day of classes and a half day of service. For the half day of service, the students board buses and travel together to work on a service project in our area.
 

Eleventh Grade Service

Juniors learn how to make an authentic gift of time by participating in weekend service projects. In their first semester, juniors will choose 3 out of 6 Saturdays offered by the school to complete a service project. In their second semester, juniors are required to complete 20 hours of service with local agencies or parishes that serve those who are underprivileged or underserved. The purpose is to put into practice a corporeal or spiritual work of mercy, so it must be for the underprivileged and/or underserved and must be done free of charge. This would include service to the elderly, the poor, the homeless, the sick/dying, the disabled, and children who are poor/at risk/special needs. Teaching religious education would also fulfill the requirement.
 

Twelfth Grade Service

In the first semester, seniors complete 20 hours of service with local agencies or parishes that serve those who are underprivileged or underserved. In their second semester, seniors complete a service learning project within the context of the Ethics and Culture Seminar course. Seniors will group themselves into small teams, identify a need or problem in the Houston community, analyze its root causes, select a solution, and then implement it. This capstone service project prepares students to be magnanimous leaders who contribute to a culture of life in which people truly flourish.