Everyday Holiness

This year, Sawyer Hartman, who just completed fifth grade at St. Mary’s Nativity School, was named Catholic Student of the Year for the State of Louisiana. In this edition of Everyday Holiness, we invite the Hartman family to reflect on faith, family, and what the award means to them.

Can you share a little about your family’s faith life and how it has shaped your home environment?

For us, life is always in motion. Every morning, we commute from our home near Lockport to Raceland, but we like to use that time to listen to The Bible in a Year podcast, and now The Catechism in a Year podcast (both by Fr. Mike Schmitz). We also like to ask for prayers from the Saint of the Day, and then listen to K-Love on the radio. Like hidde broccoli or cauliflower, we like to sneak in prayer where we can. We like to also pray together before meals and bed, and then we build our week around mass and make it a priority, regardless of where we are (or which language the mass is being said in).

What role has the Church played in your family’s journey – both as individuals and as a unit?

Our home parish, St. Hilary, has played a major role in our lives. They welcomed us with open arms when our family moved back to the Bayou, and while we were nervous about bringing out toddler to mass, we were always met with friendly and reassuring faces. That’s continued to be the same throughout the years, and now we like to attend daily mass when we can, attend adoration, and say the rosary when we can.

How did you react when you learned Sawyer had been named Catholic Student of the Year for the state? What did that moment mean to your family spiritually?

 Like every good parent, I had my phone out with the video ready – but I dropped the phone out of shock and excitement! Then I started crying. I was so proud. Being named State Student of the Year is a major recognition, but the Catholic qualifier makes it mean more. It is exciting to know that God is working through her already.

In what ways have you and your husband intentionally nurtured faith in your children?

Intention is a word that Jye and I often discuss. We are very lucky to have an extended family who are strong in their faith and exude love for Christ and the Church. However, we try to surround ourselves with like-minded families and friends. Having the kids in an environment that immerses them in our faith has been so important to us. Prayer throughout the day, opportunities for Mass, special acknowledgement of feast days, and visible reminders of faith that surround them every day are so important to their formation.

Parenting in today’s world comes with unique challenges. How do you and your husband navigate forming your children in the faith amid those pressures?

They say “it takes a village” to raise a child. We, fortunately, have a village here on earth – and in heaven. I often laugh at how outnumbered we are when we gather as friends with other families because we have been blessed with being able to surround ourselves with other large like-minded families. We are also part of a small group with other parents, where we navigate these waters together by mutually supporting each other.

Can you share a moment or a story that reflects the presence of God in a recent season of family life?

This year, our son Linden received his First Communion. Our two older girls, Sawyer and Cecilia, were so heavily invested in the occasion. Leading up to the mass there was so much discussion and intense pride as their little brother was able to experience receiving the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus for the first time. As I sat and reflected on the way that they were able to find joy in their sibling’s milestone, I was able to see how God uses each one of us to bring one another closer to Him.

How do you encourage your children to live out their faith outside the home – at school, with friends, in the community?

We often talk about human dignity and respecting all people. I try to remind the kids that everyone is loved by God. Each and every person that we come in contact with is special to God and we should treat them like they are loved by God.

What advice would you offer to other Catholic parents striving to raise faithful children in a world that often pulls them in the opposite direction?

Bring your kids to Mass. I’d feel a little embarrassed sometimes when well-meaning individuals would approach us with words of encouragement when they saw us bringing our children with us to Mass: “Stick with it”; “Hang in there” “It’ll get easier,” they would kindly say. It felt like we spent more time cowering under the pews than we did kneeling, but it helped to hear their words of encouragement. Now, I feel like we blinked, and a new generation of fresh families are coming through, and my children are now the ones encouraging them! That is great to see. Finally, I’d remind other parents that it’s our responsibility to get our spouses and kids to heaven, and going to Mass is a great way to do that.

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Dr. Megan Hartman is a family physician at the Family Doctor Clinic of Mathews and cares for patients at Ochsner St. Anne General Hospital. Jye Hartman is a FEDC at Halliburton, and he recently started an archery business out of their home. They reside with their five children, Cohen, Sawyer, Cecilia, Linden and Emilia in Lockport and attend St. Hilary of Poitiers Church in Mathews.