January 29, 2016 at 1:42 p.m.
Faith kept them strong: Nativity youth group participates in special Mass in middle of East Coast blizzard
Faith kept them strong: Nativity youth group participates in special Mass in middle of East Coast blizzard
By Kayla Thomason-
The group was returning home from the National Rally and March of Life, an anti-abortion/pro-life event held Jan. 22 in Washington D.C., when their coach bus was forced to pull over due to heavy snow.
The bus was transporting 42 people, including 12 people from the Diocese of Superior. The Rhinelander/Diocese of Superior group included eight students from Rhinelander, one from Superior and three adults.
Students present were Killian Berscheit, Isaiah Piosalan, Noah Roe, Cami Buchmann, Megan Fernandes, Cara Dreifuerst, Jada Appling, Abby Krueger, and Emma Alonso. Adult chaperones were Christopher Rogers, Laura Fenzl, and Janelle Roe.
They were part of a three-bus caravan carrying a combined 126 individuals from the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.
Fenzl, director of youth (grades 6-12) and young adult (age 18-35) ministry at Nativity of Our Lord, said chaperones had been keeping an eye on the weather before they left for the pilgrimage on Tuesday, Jan. 19.
"We knew we would need to leave D.C. at some point to avoid getting stuck in a city that literally stops for 1-2" of snow," said Fenzl. "On Thursday morning the storm track widened to include all of Maryland and eastern Pennsylvania."
The parents of the Minnesota students were calling the group leaders to express concern about the impending storm, Fenzl said.
"I think Hodag parents must be tough or trusted us, because I didn't get that reaction from our people," she said. "I am a cautious person, so I called my weather sources and we agreed to trust the Minnesota (coach bus) drivers who said it would be heavy snow but nothing that they haven't handled before."
The group left the rally at 2:30 p.m. Jan. 22, when the first flakes started to fall. By 6:30 p.m. they stopped in Breesewood, Pennsylvania for dinner and left the Gateway Plaza at 8 p.m.
The bus drivers were communicating with Pennsylvania State Troopers prior to departure and the troopers trusted the drivers' skills, according to Fenzl.
The bus was on I79, Pennsylvania Turnpike in Schellsburg, Pa., about an hour or two away from clear roads, when it pulled over at 8:30 p.m., Fenzl added.
The group was informed that two semis were unable to climb the hill, slid off and blocked the roads.
The coach buses were two miles behind the semis., however the traffic jam eventually stretched for 10 miles.
Fenzl said the students remained calm throughout as they were aware that their choice to stay at the rally meant they might get stuck on the road.
"The reaction (to the situation) was calm because (the students) knew it was a pilgrimage, not a trip, tournament, or tour," Fenzl said. "A pilgrimage means that we will accomplish a goal no matter what the suffering. The students were asked on Friday morning if we should head out and avoid the storm, get home sooner, or stay and march. They all said loudly, 'Stay.' Bishop Cousins from Saint Paul then told them that 'by choosing to stay, they were willingly choosing suffering' (and) 'suffering' he said 'gives power to prayer ... the prayer that will ultimately bring respect for the dignity of all human life from natural conception to natural death.'"
With the bus stuck in traffic the group continued its educational and spiritual activities as if the bus was still moving, said their prayers and went to sleep at 11 p.m.
"We are very structured with educational, spiritual, and social activities throughout this pilgrimage every year," Fenzl said. "The other bus captain and myself continued as if we were rolling."
They watched two videos, "The Gift of Life" by Mike Huckabee and "Gimme Shelter," played games, made pro-life bracelets, and shared the previous days snacks and leftover food.
The snow continued to accumulate, dumping approximately 18 to 20 inches. The National Guard arrived with bottled water at 10 a.m. Saturday.
While waiting to be dug out of the snow those on the buses held Mass.
The Saint Paul group didn't have a chaplain, the priest who had intended to travel with the group fell ill with the flu prior to departure, so Bill Dill, their coordinator, needed to find a priest and supplies for communion.
The Diocese of Omaha and Dubuque had what they were looking for. That group had been planning to hold an in-bus Mass, but broke the host (the body of Jesus, according to Catholic doctrine) into tiny pieces and held Mass outside.
They built an altar out of snow and invited all Catholics into the line, including those who weren't part of their group. Truckers and strangers who were stranded alongside the caravan took part.
One of the students took a video of the Mass and paired it with Matt Maher's "Lord I Need You." The video went viral on Facebook and YouTube, tallying half a million reposts by Saturday night. It was tagged as #turnpikemass.
By 7:30 p.m. Saturday the bus was moving again and the group was left with the memory of a lifetime.
Kayla Breese may be reached at kayla@ rivernewsonline.com.
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