Burkhardt said she has come to respect and rely on the review board, not only to review individual allegations brought before them, but also to help shape archdiocesan policy in the future.

A funeral Mass was offered Jan. 11 at Villa Assumpta in Baltimore for School Sister of Notre Dame Joan Hart, a teacher and advocate for social justice. Sister Joan died Jan. 1. She was 87. 

Catholics of all ages represented the Archdiocese of Baltimore well at the annual March for Life in Washington Jan. 19.

Josephite Father Joseph Francis Xavier Del Vecchio, whose gruff exterior could not hide the compassion he showed several generations of children in West Baltimore, died Jan. 13

School Sister of Notre Dame Sister Caroleen Baummer, who spent most of her 43 years in education teaching music at Notre Dame Preparatory Lower School in Towson, the former St. Ann School in Baltimore and the Institute of Notre Dame in Baltimore, died Dec. 4 at 94.

A funeral Mass for Sister Mary Teresa Carmichael was offered Jan. 2 at Assisi House in Aston, Pa. A professed member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 71 years, Sister Mary Teresa died Dec. 28 at Assisi House, at age 93.

More than 1.5 million hands have held the pro-life brochures created by Linda Brenegan, former director of the Respect Life Office of the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Building a culture of life is not solely the work of bishops and ordained clergy. Laypeople take the lead in diocesan and parish settings, and in independent organizations, to make the case for life.

“Whenever you feel down or if you feel like you don’t have anyone, you always have God,” said Melanie Cabo, a student at St. Frances Academy in Baltimore. “He’s there for you.”

“Many of these individuals have lived in the state of Maryland for 15 years or more,” said William J. McCarthy, executive director of Catholic Charities of Baltimore, in response to the DHS announcement affecting Salvadorians.