A Statement on the Philosophy and Objectives of COMMUNITY SERVICE at Notre Dame Preparatory/ Marist Academy

COMMUNITY SERVICE is an integral part of the Notre Dame Preparatory/Marist Academy experience. To be a good Christian person is to live the gospel dictum:  What you do for the least of my brothers and sisters is what you do to me.

As a school conducted by the Marist Community we learn from our good mother, Notre Dame and from her experience at Nazareth and in the early church how we can be effectively present as disciples of the Lord in our world today.

We do not look at COMMUNITY SERVICE as an item on a list to be checked off. Just as exercise is a lifelong commitment to one's own physical health, community service is a life long commitment to one's spiritual health and the health of the global community in which we live. One does not engage in community service for public recognition but because the faith we espouse demands that we reach out to others in their need.

Wherever there is hunger, nakedness, suffering, thirst, disease, poverty, and other ills, the Christian must be concerned as a good citizen to reach out and help. This is especially true in the local area where we live and work.

COMMUNITY SERVICE helps to build a good and just society where each person is valued and respected as a part of the whole and the rights of each individual are balanced by the obligations owed to the society.

COMMUNITY SERVICE is the actualization of our educational philosophy whereby we help to form good Christian people, upright citizens and academic scholars.