February 25, 2016

The Hand of God

I would like to share a story with you. It is a story about the making of a video. It begins back in early fall of 2015 when I was approached by an Everest staff member who knew of a film production company called the Catholic Legacy Network of Michigan (CLN). The staffer thought it might be good for us to connect.

As it turned out, the company consists of two men who are devoted to telling positive stories about the Catholic Church, its members and the good works being done. They are so dedicated to their mission that even though we had no money in the budget for an expense like this, they agreed to provide us with their services on what most would call a budgetary “shoestring.” The Hand of God.

Our intent was to produce a piece titled “The Beauty of Everest” which clearly articulated who we are and what makes us so unique. The original plan was for a 3-4 minute segment that would air on an upcoming CLN program about Catholic Education. As a result of God’s Plan, the final output ended up being so much more. 

It might be easy to focus on what some might see as imperfections: lighting that might not be exact in every shot, graphics that might not be state of the art, or even the students and classrooms in slight disarray. However, by looking beyond what meets the eye and listening to the message, we realize it is in the message that the Hand of God becomes even more apparent.

The message is perfect. It perfectly reflects what our school stands for and the attributes we hold so high. It embodies excellence in the complete development of the human person. Our students are human and that is okay because we work with their humanness to help them become whom God intends. It speaks to our amazing academics with single gender focus by highlighting our students’ strengths, their God-given differences, and how we cater to both. It exemplifies our authentic Catholic perspective with an emphasis on the gifts of the sacraments we cherish. It clearly demonstrates the virtue based athletics program at our school which helps students to acknowledge God in their talents. The Hand of God.

The message is honest. It reflects the pure intentions and feelings of our community. The feelings expressed by our parents are real and heartfelt, not rehearsed. The perspectives of our staff members are courageous and convicted, not contrived. Everyone speaks from the heart without reading from a script. We were even able to film the renowned Fr. Stravinskas in an impromptu interview sharing his perspective on the strengths of Everest. The messages they conveyed accurately reflect who we are. The Hand of God.

The CLN crew of two visited our campus about a dozen times. They captured film from a much wider range of activities than we ever could have hoped for. We have our younger students talking about why they “love Jesus,” and our older students discussing why it is “cool to be Catholic.” We have many more parents, students, and alumni talking about the impact of Everest. What started out as a 3-4 minute piece has turned into a 12-minute video with over a terabyte of additional film that Everest can use in the future to tell its story. The Hand of God. 

Having said all of this, when you click on the link below to watch the video, you can do so with full knowledge of the Hand of God at work. The Beauty of Everest is perfect, even with some of its imperfections.

THE BEAUTY OF EVEREST VIDEO


In Gratitude,
Michael J. Nalepa
President

 
 

EVEREST COLLEGIATE HIGH SCHOOL AND ACADEMY

 

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