#tertiumkid

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Catherine of Siena (25 March 1347 – 29 April 1380) Sometimes when I am doing research for this blog I have a hard time finding out if someone was a Tertium Kid. However in St Catherine’s case it was blessedly easy. She was the 23rd (or possibly 24th, she had a twin sister, Giovanna, and no one is saying who was first.) out of at least 25 children. 

There’s so much one could say about her, She is a saint, a Doctor of the Church, a prolific  author, and was active in influencing many political scenarios of her day.

But here on this blog we like to say the same thing about everyone: no one is simply replaceable. And in St. Catherine’s case, it’s very easy to see.

Here’s a couple of articles about her, enjoy:

https://www.opnunsmenlo.org/blog/2020/4/29/suffering-grace-and-love-catherine-of-siena

https://www.opwest.org/catherineofsiena/

It’s her feast day today! 

Need a party idea? Join the Dominican family at 9pm local time in saying the Glorious mysteries of the rosary! If you are on the Pacific coast, you can livestream here.

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Virginia Apgar (June 7, 1909 – August 7, 1974)  was the third and youngest child in her family. While pursuing a groundbreaking career in Anesthesiology she noted that while infant mortality had been on the decline for the previous 50 years, it had not declined among infants under 24 hours old. This led to her creating the now famous “Apgar Score” to assess the health of newborns. This scoring system is now in use world wide, and there is no way to quantify how many lives have been saved because of it. Interestingly, it was one of Virginia’s students that discovered that APGAR made a handy mnemonic for the assessment!

She is remembered as a warm, caring, person; an avid musician,and to have cherished an ambition to fly a plane under the George Washington bridge in New York.

  "Nobody, but nobody, is going to stop breathing on me!" --Dr. Virginia Apgar, ca. 1950s, explaining why she kept basic resuscitation equipment with her at all times.

She is, of course, illegal in China.

No one is simply replaceable.

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Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982) Princess of Monaco, wife, mother, actress and philanthropist. Always classy. Third of four children.

No one is simply replaceable.

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Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (2 August 1834 – 4 October 1904) was the fourth and youngest of his family. He was a sculptor best known for designing the Statue of Liberty.

No one is simply replaceable.

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Jane Austen, 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) the beloved English novelist, was the fifth of seven children. She had four older brothers and a younger brother and sister.

She is thus very illegal in China!

For the last 200 years, her books have been widely read and enjoyed. Her characters have become the mutual friends of many generations of readers and she has inspired countless new writers.

As Rudyard Kipling says in the introduction to his story The Janeites:

“Jane lies in Winchester - blessed be her shade!

Praise the Lord for making her, and her for all she made!

And while the stones of Winchester, or Milsom Street, remain,

Glory, love, and honour unto England’s Jane!”

No one is simply replaceable.

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Cornelius H. Charlton (July 24, 1929 – June 2, 1951)

Eighth of 17 children. I think his Medal of Honor citation speaks for itself:

 - Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company C, 24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division.

- Place and date: Near Chipo-ri, Korea, 2 June 1951.

- Entered service at: Bronx, N.Y. - G.O. No.: 30, 19 March 1952.

Citation: Sgt. Charlton, a member of Company C, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. His platoon was attacking heavily defended hostile positions on commanding ground when the leader was wounded and evacuated. Sgt. Charlton assumed command, rallied the men, and spearheaded the assault against the hill. Personally eliminating 2 hostile positions and killing 6 of the enemy with his rifle fire and grenades, he continued up the slope until the unit suffered heavy casualties and became pinned down. Regrouping the men he led them forward only to be again hurled back by a shower of grenades. Despite a severe chest wound, Sgt. Charlton refused medical attention and led a third daring charge which carried to the crest of the ridge. Observing that the remaining emplacement which had retarded the advance was situated on the reverse slope, he charged it alone, was again hit by a grenade but raked the position with a devastating fire which eliminated it and routed the defenders. The wounds received during his daring exploits resulted in his death but his indomitable courage, superb leadership, and gallant self-sacrifice reflect the highest credit upon himself the infantry, and the military service. (source)

No one is simply replaceable.

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Sir Joseph Lister (5 April 1827 – 10 February 1912)

Lister took the germ theory of Louis Pasteur and carried it to its logical conclusion. Lister reasoned that if germs cause infection, then killing germs would prevent infection.

In 1865 Lister began treating everything used in an operation with carbolic acid in the hope of reducing infections. He was successful, the mortality rate from operations decreased dramatically.

Basically, he showed that the germ theory works whether you believe in it or not.

Antiseptic techniques owe their common acceptance if not their invention to Lister.

And, being the fourth child in his family, he is #illegal in China.

No one is simply replaceable.

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Buzz Aldrin (born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) The second person to ever walk on the moon (and I mean THE moon. Our moon. The Earth moon. The one up in the sky.)

Before that he was a fighter pilot during the Korean Conflict. After that he was the Commandant of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School . He also once punched a hippie in the face.

He has two older sisters and is therefore illegal in China.

No one is simply replaceable.