Where there’s a will, there’s a way. St. John’s Catholic School students staged their second annual drive-thru Nativity this year in lieu of a Christmas pageant, which has been sidelined by the pandemic. From left are Luke Agnor, Silas Wheeler, Madeline Barone, Shannon McGuire and Murphy Frye. Contributed / Portland Diocese

Drive-thru Nativity draws spectators at St. John’s Catholic School

For years, families, parishioners and members of the community gathered to enjoy the annual Christmas Pageant presented by the students at St. John’s Catholic School in Brunswick.

It is a tradition that, like many others, has been suspended due to the pandemic, but leave it to the creativity and desire of the St. John’s community to find a way to spread cheer and the spirit of the season.

For the second year in a row, students at St. John’s presented a drive-thru living Nativity in the school’s parking lot on Dec. 15, drawing nearly 150 carloads of people in just an hour. As cars drove into the campus parking lot from Pleasant Street, they slowly moved through 10 “stations” of the Nativity. Each grade level was assigned a station of the Nativity story and presented it tableau style as motionless figures in a scene with costumes. Each station also had a phrase or verse written on a poster that described the scene for those passing by.

“We are so grateful to the teachers for preparing our students and our students for holding character out in the cold,” St. John’s Principal Shelly Wheeler said. “It was another great turnout!”

Local student nominated for military academy

Hudson Holden of Harpswell, who attends Mt. Ararat High School, has been nominated to attend the United States Naval Academy in  Annapolis, Maryland, by Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine). To be considered for an appointment to a service academy, applicants must be nominated by an authorized source, which includes members of Congress.

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