Welcome to Texas

Written by: Eric Prister

"Yes, ma'am."

"Excuse me, sir."

While in Northern Indiana these phrases might be considered formal, in Texas, they're a way of life.

"Sir" and "ma'am" aren't just words here, they're a sign of a community that embodies a welcoming and kind nature, a nature that pervades everything they do. Ever since the ACE bus pulled into Nolan Catholic high school on Monday evening, through visits to Bishop Dunne high school in Dallas and Saint Rita school in Fort Worth, and all throughout the past week leading up to the football game today, the ACE team has felt incredibly welcomed by this community.

From Bishop Dunne honoring the 57 current and former ACE teachers that have served the Dallas community with balloons and a leprechaun to St. Rita's students (from kindergarten to eight grade) learning and singing the Notre Dame alma mater to close our celebration of the Eucharist, the people of the Dallas/Fort Worth area have welcomed us with open arms and helped us kick off the celebration of our 20th anniversary in extraordinary fashion.

The Fighting for Our Children's Future National Bus Tour is traveling around the country for a particular purpose. We come to these communities, host these events, and engage in fellowship with these people to celebrate them. We celebrate the incredible work they do in strengthening, sustaining, and transforming the Catholic schools in their area. We join together with the students, the teachers, and the members of these communities to honor the academic excellence, the multicultural heritage, the athletic wins, and every wonderful gift given to these communities by the schools we visit.

We've shared our time this week with many extraordinary people: Senator Jane Nelson, who spoke about the importance of a quality education for all children; Sara Martinez Tucker, who shared how grateful she is that her parents sacrificed to give her the gift of a Catholic education; Father Stephen Jasso, who urged people to keep working to support Catholic education in this country.

Each of these people, and the many others who we visited with, told us how honored they felt to be a part of our celebration. In truth, we are the ones honored. We are honored to be able, if only for a week, to become a part of these wonderful communities, and to catch a glimpse of the incredible work they're doing to fight for our children's future.

It's been an incredible week in Texas. Thanks y'all.