2011 BREATH OF THE SPIRIT AWARD
Adam Antone
St. Patrick, Chesterton

Each year at CYX, the Diocese of Gary awards the BREATH OF THE SPIRIT AWARD to a teen who goes above and beyond, to fulfill his or her baptismal call, and to allow the Holy Spirit to work through him or her to build the Kingdom of God.

This year we honor Adam Antone, an incoming senior from St. Patrick Catholic Church in Chesterton.

For Adam, this is not the first time he’s seen one of these Awards presentations: he has attended all four CYX’s for which he has been eligible to attend. He’s also attended the diocesan TAPT retreat. Throughout high school, Adam has been an integral part of St. Patrick Youth Ministry. Adam facilitated an opening prayer at a recent Drug Awareness session. He was part of his parish group that attended the annual March for Life in Washington DC, where he joined hundreds of thousands making a stance for the value of human life. He’s been a part a scavenger hunt to collect food for Thanksgiving baskets for the needy, a lock-in about the history of the Catholic Church, visits to the Shrine of Christ’s Passion and the Holy Walk in Bremen, and virtually every other youth ministry activity they’ve offered at St. Patrick. He’s also been part of efforts to actively reach out to other teens not currently attending youth ministry events.

For Adam, attending these activities is more than just being part of something fun. It’s about the continuation of a very deep and profound relationship with Jesus Christ. It is also a part of a Spirit-filled discernment process. What follows now is a reading of the nomination submitted by Adam’s brother Pat.

“If the Holy Spirit is working through anyone in the Diocese of Gary, it’s working through my brother Adam! He goes above and beyond his baptismal call every single day that he wakes up. He does so many things in the Parish to help out, its ridiculous. He trains the incoming altar servers, teaches religious education, is very involved with the youth group, and also helps with the new vocations ministry at St. Patrick’s Parish. He goes with Fr. Meade to administer Holy Communion to the homebound in the area. He has also given numerous witnesses on the Eucharist at the St. Pat’s men’s Christ Renews His Parish Retreats.

“Ever since Adam was in 2nd grade, he knew that God was calling him to consider the priesthood. From then on, everything he did, he did it for God. In order for him to play baseball with me I had to promise him that I would “play Mass” with him. When Adam was in 3rd grade, he wanted so badly to be an alter server that he couldn’t wait until 5th grade. He had read a book about St. Dominic Savio and how he had become an altar boy at the age of 9 and told Fr. Meade. After that, Fr. Meade couldn’t say no to him any longer and had him trained to be an altar server.

“Adam doesn’t only do God’s work and spread and defend the faith in the parish, but at school as well. Every paper he writes he writes it on the Catholic Church, a Saint, one of the Church’s teachings, or the history of the Church. Even when he is persecuted, which happens a lot at school, he never backs down and always stands up for our faith. He is ridiculed everyday but never breaks down; he just becomes stronger in his faith. There are also people at his school who seek him out for spiritual guidance or advice, and he is always there to help them. He has never fallen into the temptation of partying even when people have asked over and over. He never gives in.”

“Usually it’s the older brother who sets the example for the younger brother, but in this case he is the one who is an example for me. I look up to him for how I should be in my faith, and as a person. He is truly a man of God and I am proud to be able to call him my brother. He is a great example of how we should all do God’s work. No question or doubt in my mind he deserves this award. When you look at him you can truly see Christ.”

Congratulations to Mr. Adam Antone, the winner of the 2011 Breath of the Spirit Award.

2011 award winner Adam Antone, pictured with Bishop Melczek and his nominator, brother Pat.