Church of the Holy Rosary

News

Holy Rosary Academy Appoints New Principal

July 14, 2023 / Academy News, Father Baker, News, Parish News

Dear Holy Rosary Parish and Academy Community, Praise be Jesus Christ! I want to introduce to you Mary Martin, our new principal. Please read the following announcement that will be released to the public and to the press this afternoon. I very much look forward to working with Mary Martin to carry out the mission of Holy Rosary Academy. I believe that you will be engaged by her humble and humorous personality as well as impressed by her credentials and experience in Catholic education. She is excited to join the team at Holy Rosary. Let us unite in praying for Mary Martin as she begins the great adventure as principal of Holy Rosary Academy.

Faithfully, Fr. Baker

HOLY ROSARY ACADEMY APPOINTS NEW PRINCIPAL

Catholic leader rooted in math and science to welcome students August 7

Nashville, Tenn., July 14, 2023 – Holy Rosary Academy is pleased to announce the appointment of Mary Martin as the new principal of the Donelson-area Catholic school serving grades pre-K3 through 8. Martin’s leadership of Holy Rosary Academy (HRA) will begin Monday, July 17, 2023.

Martin was selected for this important leadership position after a thorough national search, during which Father John Sims Baker, pastor of Holy Rosary Catholic Church, worked with leaders from the parish, school, and the Diocese of Nashville’s human resources office to build a pool of qualified candidates for consideration. Martin comes to Nashville from Milford, Ohio, having most recently served as a middle school science teacher for St. Andrew-St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School.

Martin’s extensive experience in the classroom and in leadership roles spans two decades in Ohio. She served as principal of St. Michael Catholic School in Ripley and Holy Angels Catholic School in Sidney. She also taught science, social studies, math, and religion at St. Mary Catholic School, Holy Family Catholic School, and the public school system in Cincinnati and in St. Patrick Catholic School in Troy.

At St. Mary School, she co-developed a K-through-grade 5 Spanish language program and mentored children in the creation and broadcast of a student-produced foreign language podcast. At St. Michael School, her accomplishments as principal include a significant increase in student participation in school intervention programs and the establishment of professional learning communities (PLCs) to better support teachers.

Martin is a fellow of the University of Notre Dame’s ACE Principal Academy, South Bend, Indiana. She earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education with a science-middle school endorsement from Purdue University Calumet in Hammond, Indiana, and a master’s degree in education administration from Xavier University in Cincinnati.

Martin says she was impressed by Holy Rosary’s tradition of excellence, evidenced by the school’s 2013 and 2020 designations as a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. “The opportunity to lead this talented team of instructors and help propel students along a path of academic success and spiritual formation is both unique and exciting,” Martin said.

She is relocating from Ohio with her dog, Eli, and will be onsite at HRA later this month; however, she is already beginning to recruit staff to round out the HRA team. Martin said, “The commitment to community espoused by the Holy Rosary mission touched my heart. I’m eager to bring the highest caliber teachers and administrators to our school to foster that mission in the hearts and minds of our children.”

Among the pool of candidates, Father Baker said Martin’s experience in middle school leadership and her years as a teacher and mentor in STREAM (science, technology, religion, engineering, arts, and mathematics) subjects stood out. “Her approach to childhood education is modern and engaging in a world where competition for our children’s attention and creativity can be daunting.” Father Baker cited the example of a podcast program that Martin established in a previous role as an approach that was both educational and fun for students. “Mary will support innovative classroom approaches alongside Holy Rosary’s tradition of excellence and strong Catholic mission.”

“As an experienced Catholic school leader, Mary Martin brings the complex set of skills required to foster student success by supporting and encouraging our teachers and administrators. She will further strengthen our focus on academic excellence and Gospel-based Catholic mission.” Father Baker added, “Holy Rosary Academy students and parents deserve the very best. She has it all: credentials, experience, and a living faith in Jesus Christ.”

Martin is a proud Irish Catholic who attended Catholic elementary and high schools as a child. Her children are grown, and she looks forward to visits from them in her new Nashville home. In her free time, she crochets and roots for the Cincinnati Reds and the Bengals.

Receptions for Deacon Christopher and Fr. Steiner

May 31, 2023 / Events, Father Steiner

Please join us on Sunday, June 4 after the 8:30 and 11 am masses for coffee, juice and donuts in the dining hall to welcome Deacon Christopher to Holy Rosary.

There will be a Farewell to Father Steiner gathering in the HRA dining hall after each mass the weekend of June 10-11. Please join us for a wine and cheese reception after the 5:00 mass, coffee and donuts after the 8:30 mass, or appetizers after the 11:00 mass. Please click this link to RSVP or sign up on the sheets in the narthex so we can plan accordingly. If you would like to bring an item for the gatherings, sign up HERE.

Father John Sims Baker is appointed pastor of Holy Rosary Church

May 18, 2023 / Diocese of Nashville News, News, Parish News

Bishop Spalding announces new assignments for 14 priests including newly appointed pastors for five churches in the Diocese of Nashville. These assignments will all be effective June 26 and include:

  • Father Daniel Steiner is released from the office of pastor of Holy Rosary Church in Donelson and is appointed associate pastor of the Cathedral of the Incarnation with primary responsibility for hospital ministry. He served as Associate Pastor of the Cathedral before being appointed Pastor of Holy Rosary in 2018.
  • Father John Sims Baker is appointed pastor of Holy Rosary Church in Donelson for a term of six years.

Father Baker grew up in Ashland City and has degrees from the University of the South and Vanderbilt University. As a seminarian, he graduated from the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio.

He was ordained by Bishop Edward Kmiec on March 25, 1994, and previously has served as associate pastor at Holy Rosary Church and St. Henry Church in Nashville, professor at Father Ryan High School, chaplain of the Vanderbilt University Campus Ministry, pastor of St. Patrick Church in McEwen and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Tennessee Ridge, St. Mary of the Seven Sorrows Church in downtown Nashville, and St. Rose of Lima Church in Murfreesboro. He also served on the staff at the Josephinum.

You may remember Fr Baker as an associate pastor at Holy Rosary when he was first ordained and more recently he did our parish Lenten Mission in February.

We are very sad to see Father Steiner go as he has been an amazing Pastor and are hoping to have some sort of going away celebration for him. Stay tuned for details, but in the meantime, we know he would appreciate any cards or notes letting him know how he impacted your life as our pastor.

Welcome to Deacon Christopher Hoover and his wife, Christina

May 7, 2023 / News, Parish News

Christopher Hoover was ordained by Bishop J. Mark Spalding as a permanent deacon on April 1st and has been assigned to serve our parish. We look forward to making him and his wife, Christina, feel welcome and getting to know them. We wanted to share a little bit about him and his family with you.

Christopher and his wife Christina come to Holy Rosary from Saint Stephen Parish in Old Hickory, where the family have been parishioners since 1999. They have four children, (three daughters and a son). Daughter Amanda is married with two children, (Oliver and Josephine) and currently lives in Okinawa, Japan with her husband (Theodore) who is in the armed forces. Daughter Hannah lives in Salt Lake City where she is a Child Life Specialist at a hospital there. Son Joshua is a student at East Tennessee State University and the youngest, daughter Angela is preparing to graduate from High School and planning to attend Tennessee Tech in the fall. Amanda and Hannah, as well as five nieces were all students at Holy Rosary Academy.

Christopher was ordained to the Diaconate on April 1st, 2023 which is the same day he crossed the Brimley-Cocoon Line. That is, the day he was as old as the actor Wilford Brimley was on the day the movie Cocoon was released in theaters. (One thing you’ll discover about Christopher is that he’s the kind of nerd who knows what the Brimley-Cocoon Line is, and when his is.)

Christopher and Christina met at Brescia College, a small Catholic school in Owensboro, Kentucky where they earned their undergraduate degrees, Christopher in Accounting and Christina in Elementary Education. They began dating on January 27th, the Feast of Saint Angela Merici, the patron saint of Brescia College, who they now consider the family’s patron saint. After a brief stop in Frankfort, Kentucky after their wedding, they moved the family to Nashville in 1997. Christopher is a practicing Certified Public Accountant at a Tax and Accounting firm downtown and Christina is the Center Director for the Centennial Hospital Childcare Center.

Christopher and Christina’s shared hobbies outside of ministry opportunities include following the Tennessee Titans, dates to the grocery store, and spending as much time as possible with the children and grandchildren. Christopher’s passions include hiking with the family and biking for fun and exercise. He is also a passionate fan of the Superman character who he sees as a compelling Christ-figure in the comics world. You will rarely meet Christopher when he is not wearing a Superman shirt underneath his clothes in remembrance of his father who passed away in 2013.

Christopher’s past ministry includes Marriage Preparation and Enrichment, Religious Education instruction, Sacristan ministry and various youth ministry adventures as chaperone. Christopher and Christina are both excited to meet the people of Holy Rosary and to walk with them on their shared journey of faith.

If you would like to contact Deacon Hoover directly, you may email him at hooverc@holyrosary.edu. Be sure to say hello and introduce yourself to him next time you see his smiling face around the parish.

We need your help for the Habitat for Humanity Catholic Build, 2023!

April 11, 2023 / Events, Ministry, Parish News

Holy Rosary will be participating in the Habitat for Humanity Catholic Build on June 24-25 this summer. This will be the 12th Catholic Build for the Diocese of Nashville. The future homeowner, Wanda, is raising her 14-year-old grandson and your contributions can make affordable housing a reality for her.

For our portion of the build costs, we need to raise $8,325 as part of the total cost of the $66,000 needed to sponsor a home.

You can donate online through WeShare or drop a check in the collection basket made payable to Holy Rosary with HFH in the memo line.
If interested in being a build volunteer CLICK HERE.

Hope you will make plans to join us at our Cookout Fundraiser on April 23. Please click the link below to RSVP so we have enough food for everyone!

We thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to get our parish family together to share about the build process and raise awareness and raise some additional funds too! Kevin, the Habitat Director of Faith Relations, will be there to answer any questions.

Please RSVP HERE for the fundraiser event by April 20.