Ursuline Academy was thrilled to share earlier this month the 2022 recipient of the Archbishop May Service Award – Leah Anderson! Each year this award is given by the Office of Catholic Education and Formation to a senior from each of the 26 Catholic high schools in the archdiocese to recognize the outstanding leadership and community service shown through their actions.
In our vision statement, we talk about committing ourselves to SERVIAM as a way of life, in response to our Gospel call to service. Leah connected to this vision early on and has embraced the concept of service as a way of life during her four years at Ursuline.
Leah’s passion for serving the poor and vulnerable has been a part of her story for many years. She volunteers regularly at the Sr. Christine’s Food Pantry on the St. Joseph Parish campus and has been committed to this organization for the past seven years. She also has spent time volunteering with local parishes for various summer programs and retreats. Her Ursuline Academy Junior Service Project included volunteering at St. Louis Area Food Bank, St. Vincent DePaul, Feed My People, Shepherd’s Center and Almost Home. Leah has a compassionate heart and contemplative spirit and with each different place she gives of her time, she seeks to connect with those she serves. She leads this by example too, through her involvement at Ursuline. As a four-year varsity softball player, she served as a team captain for the past two seasons. Her teammates look to her for leadership which is rooted in her strong faith. Leah is also very active in the school’s Generation Life club. She is committed to bringing awareness to the sanctity of life and she does so in a gentle and loving manner.
“As I look back on my seven years of serving at Sr. Christine’s Food Pantry, I can confidently say I have been interrupted by grace. So many times in society today many people who are in need and go to food pantries are overlooked and generalized just by that one aspect of his/her life. In my time of volunteering here, my main goal is to see God in all, because he works in each and every one of us, no matter the circumstance.”
Leah brings joy, enthusiasm, and whole-hearted commitment to any task in which she is involved. She is an outstanding example of SERVIAM, and Ursuline is proud of her service and achievements. Congratulations!