On June 19, St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School student Katelyn Ruff was presented with the Craig T. Noble award from ICAN (Independence Centre and Network) Sudbury. Ruff, a student in the lifeskills class was born with a condition called Tetra X Syndrome which is a rare chromosomal disorder caused by the presence of four X chromosomes instead of two X chromosomes. This often results in learning difficulties, joint problems and emotional stress. Ruff has had a number of surgeries over the years and often experiences pain. According to her teacher, Pam Colasimone, Katelyn works very, very hard every day to overcome her physical challenges. At school she is quite independent and extremely helpful towards her peers.
Nominated for the award by her teacher, Katelyn received the Craig T. Noble award in front of a group of her friends, classmates, staff and ICAN representatives. The Craig T. Noble award is named after a twelve year old student – Craig Noble – who was one of the first participants in the ICAN afterschool program. Noble began the program a shy, quiet student and very quickly became a confident role model for the other participants. In 2006, at 15 years old, Noble passed away, and the Craig T. Noble award was established to support youth with physical disabilities to reach their goals of independence. The award is given every year to a teen who demonstrates similar qualities to Craig; an ambition to be independent, a positive attitude, a strong work ethic towards independence, an involvement in the community and record of volunteering and has set goals for independence.
Marie Leon, C.E.O. of ICAN presented the award to Katelyn and described her as a “friend, daughter, student, classmate and a very special person who is willing to help her friends and teachers.” Leon told the group she was proud to know Katelyn.
Colasimone echoed Leon’s comments and described Katelyn as a wonderful student and friend and is involved in a number of extra-curricular activities including taekwondo and swimming.
Upon receiving the award, Katelyn was visibly moved and very quietly thanked the group and ICAN for giving her this award.
Month: June 2013
St. Benedict CSS Sr. Boys Soccer finishes 4th at OFSAA
St. Benedict Bears Senior Boys Soccer Team completed a fantastic season June 6 – 8 at the OFSAA “A” Championships in Timmins, Ontario. After an undefeated season locally in Sudbury (winning the “A” division city championship), St. Benedict won NOSSA versus Franco Cite in convincing fashion on May 31st. At OFSAA, St. Benedict posted a round robin record of 2 wins and 2 ties, good for 1st place in Group A. In the Quarter-Finals, St. Benedict defeated Glengarry Secondary School 4-2 on goals from Shawn Wilcox (with 3) and Brandon Moxam (1). Unfortunately, the undefeated season came to a halt in the semi-final (Saturday morning) versus private school Ridley College from St. Catharines. Battered and bruised, the Bears dropped a 4-0 decision to their opponents. In the bronze medal game (with numerous players injured and/or in different positions), the Bears lost a tight 2-1 decision to London Christian private school. The Bears finished their 2013 season with a record of 11 wins, 2 losses (only on the last day of the season), and 4 ties – good enough for a 4th overall ranking in the province of Ontario. This is the greatest result for boys soccer in school history. St. Benedict teacher and coach Giuseppe Politi stated, “All in all, it was a positive result for the team, the program, the school, and the city. If you would have told me at the beginning of the season that we would finish top 4 in Ontario I certainly would been ecstatic. Looking back, in the group stage we ran into some trouble finishing off opponents (gave up a few leads). This didn’t let our starters get the rest they needed to last through 3 days of intense competition (7 games total). In the end, it caught up to us on Saturday morning. We just didn’t have the gas or capacity to keep up to more-balanced and fresh opponents in Ridley College (St. Catharines) or London Christian. Both George Urso (co-coach) and I are extremely proud of this squad and its accomplishments this season. We certainly overachieved in the group stage (considering the number of competitive players we have on our team, compared to the other teams at the tournament). A lot of our students played beyond their means and that should be recognized. It’s a bit frustrating to know that we could have won the bronze if we were a bit more fresh. That said, the boys should be proud of what they’ve accomplished (best result in school history) and it was a great student-athlete experience for the entire team. Hopefully, we’ll get another opportunity to showcase our program at next year’s championships.”