Carleigh Rodriguez, 5, of Oxford, received quite the honor recently when she was selected to carry in the Baby Jesus and lay him in the manger during the Christmas Eve Mass at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Lake Orion.
‘I think she just felt very honored by it,? said her mother Laurie Rodriguez. ‘She realized what a special thing it was. She practiced doing the sign of the cross to make sure she got it right. She treated the whole thing with reverence.?
Carleigh is a kindergartner at Daniel Axford Elementary School in teacher Nicki Bauer’s classroom.
Laurie and her husband, Rich, were astounded their little girl was chosen for such an important task.
‘We were very proud of her,? she said. ‘I was honored to be asked by the church because there’s quite a number of families that attend St. Joe’s. For Sister Theresa to pick her, I just thought it was very special.?
? Editor C.J. Carnacchio