May Crowning -- Catholic grade schools mark the occasion
by Adriana Janovich
Yakima Herald-Republic
SARA GETTYS/Yakima Herald-Republic A statue of Mary stands in the foyer of St. Paul Cathedral School on Tuesday. Children at both St. Paul’s and St. Joseph-Marquette School decorated statues of Mary with flowers as part of May crowning.
-- "Queen of the May," also known as "Bring Flowers of the Rarest," by Mary E. Walsh, 1883, based on the traditional 13th century Catholic hymn
The procession starts with the smallest of students, some carrying a single daffodil or tulip, others offering bouquets of colorful blooms: carnations, roses, rhododendrons, lilies, daisies.
One by one, schoolchildren place their blossoms in white and blue paper-wrapped cans at the base of the gilded statue in the gym at St. Joseph-Marquette School.
When the containers are overflowing with flowers -- bursts of pink, orange, red, yellow, purple -- they pray: "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women ... "
Students at both of Yakima's Catholic grade schools celebrated the May crowning in two separate ceremonies earlier this month. The traditional Roman Catholic ritual honors the Blessed Virgin Mary, whom Christians view as the mother of Jesus. During the celebration, a likeness of Mary -- usually a statue -- is ceremonially crowned to signify her as the Queen of Heaven.
"It's important to honor her because she's the mother of God," says 12-year-old St. Joe's seventh-grader Erika Aguilera. "She's kind of like the mother to all of us."
At St. Joe's, students honored Mary in the morning with an 8:30 a.m. student-led prayer service May 2.
Aguilera looks forward to the ritual: "It's like this big garden of flowers," she says. "The little kids don't feel left out; everyone can take part and bring a flower."
Students brought flowers from home, but teachers had extra supplies in case kids forgot.
Ten-year-old Hannah Gargus, a fourth-grader, calls the flowers a sign of respect, a gift of thanksgiving. But, she says, "We're not worshipping the thing. The statue is just a symbol of (Mary). It's just a reminder that we're praying to her."
Thirteen-year-old eighth-grader Rachel Gasseling crowned the statue: "It was almost like she was brought to life," she says. "It was a big honor and privilege."
The celebration at St. Paul Cathedral School, organized by art and music teacher Sandy Bennett, began later that day at 2 p.m. As they processed into the dimly lit gym, students placed votive candles and bouquets at the foot of a statue of Mary, resting atop a table covered with a blue cloth. Then, sitting cross-legged on the floor, they bowed heads and prayed the rosary.
May crowning celebrations typically take place on or around May 1. But the entire month of May -- from the May crowning to the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin on May 31 -- is dedicated to Mary in the Roman Catholic Church.
"We are very reverent about Mary," says St. Paul's principal Anne Berg. In a way, she told the students, "it's like Mother's Day."
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