[Chicago Slices raw: Sister Nancy Murray]

SISTER NANCY MURRAY at St. Sylvester's Parish in Palmer Square/Logan Square/Humboldt Park: Interviewed about her summer theater program for children and her relation to her brother, BILL MURRAY. Kids do their skits and painting a dinosaur for their version of "Jurassic Park."

00:00Copy video clip URL B-roll of a Chicago Slices “Watch Yourself on Chicago Slices” post card.

00:02Copy video clip URL Videographer follows Sister Nancy Murray down the hallway of St. Sylvester Parish into an office where a little boy sits waiting. She asks if he’s calmed down and if his ribs feel okay. She sends him on his way, shaking his hand and making him promise that he will be good, cooperative and respectful.

00:48Copy video clip URL Murray heads outside talking with older kids discussing plans for the day.

01:15Copy video clip URL Interview with Murray as she walks around the side of the building. She describes a typical day. It’s not always predictable. There are interruptions, including emergencies, not finding a key to the gym, disciplinary issues, lunches. She says she is a pastoral associate and youth minister, a Jack-of-all trades. She works with adults, kids, and senior citizens. The people define your job for you, she says.

02:43Copy video clip URL Murray heads to a space between the church and the shelter, a grassy area where the kids will have a mock archaeological dig to be able to experience their own Jurassic Park. She talks to someone working on the park.

03:46Copy video clip URL The videographer asks a kid nearby, Ronald, what Sister Nancy is like. Ronald, the boy seen earlier in the office, answers, “she’s all right. I don’t see her that much.” He says he was in the office earlier because he got hurt. Someone took his hat and when he gave chase he hurt his back and stomach.

04:30Copy video clip URL Murray walks with Ronald to the stage inside the shelter. Lots of kids are in seats waiting. Murray enters and restores order. She announces that the videographer Doug Sawyer is visiting today and is going to videotape them for TV, channel 50. She announces that Doug wants to see a slice of what goes on in their summer camp. She organizes the little kids to perform their rehearsed play first.

06:25Copy video clip URL B-roll of teenage counselors working with kids preparing to present their play.

07:58Copy video clip URL Murray with older kids in the audience preparing them to be respectful and supportive of the younger kids about to perform. Camp counselor introduces the first play. Little kids come out and sing a song. Audience claps vigorously.

11:22Copy video clip URL The curtain closes to prepare for the next act. Murray talks to kids in the audience, but we cannot hear the conversation over the room noise.

11:50Copy video clip URL Murray helps coordinate getting the young kids off the stage and getting the 3rd and 4th graders on stage to prepare for their performance. Murray agrees that this is chaos, but that’s how creation starts. We are part of an on-going creation everyday. You have to learn to settle for less than perfect when working with children. She points out that there is a large paper dinosaur being built by the counselors to be placed at the entrance to their Jurassic Park.

13:18Copy video clip URL A group of three kids trying to rehearse their play, joke around with each other.

13:37Copy video clip URL Murray hushes the the crowd and the 4th graders come on stage to perform a version of the three little pigs.

16:46Copy video clip URL The kids exit the stage. Various b-roll of kids in the audience while the stage is re-set for the next performance.

17:20Copy video clip URL The videographer is on stage with the next group of kids, who do a short play about the consequences of violent acts.

20:35Copy video clip URL The play ends. The kids laugh and prepare for the next performance.

21:10Copy video clip URL The next show in progress, another story about the consequences of violence.

22:35Copy video clip URL The videographer with Murray in the audience surrounded by little kids.  The videographer asks one little girl, Tiara, if she likes the camp, but she is too shy to answer.

24:14Copy video clip URL The next performance begins, a short play about the dangers of inner city life and the value of family support when someone make a wrong turn in life. Various b-roll of the performance at different moments. B-roll of the audience watching the play.

28:00Copy video clip URL The show ends and kids prepare for the final performance. Kids mug for the camera. B-roll of Murray with kids, reviewing and critiquing the performances. She notes her approval of how the kids in the play helped someone who was in trouble. She advises them not to let people take advantage of them. “You’re too precious for that.” Murray comments to the kids that everyone in camp must be nice and caring towards one another. She asks the kids about certain scenes and what people thought about them, and emphasizes the lessons learned. The kids discuss the lessons they learned from each of the plays presented.

34:34Copy video clip URL Murray leads the kids in song.

35:34Copy video clip URL Each of the kids and counselors introduce themselves to camera.

36:41Copy video clip URL A young kid, Hector, raps an original anti-gang song for camera. The videographer asks what he thinks about Sister Nancy. “She’s great!”

37:55Copy video clip URL B-roll of counselors painting the dinosaur made of newspaper, wood, chicken wire and muslin.

40:40Copy video clip URL Counselors introduce themselves and continue painting the dinosaur. Continued b-roll of counselors painting. The videographer asks them what  they like best about the camp: the kids. Sister Nancy is great. She’s wonderful. What’s the secret to painting a dinosaur? Filling in the holes. It’s all in the wrist. Who is your favorite of The Flintstones: Fred, Bam Bam, Pebbles, Dino?

42:30Copy video clip URL B-roll of the counselors painting the dinosaur.

43:11Copy video clip URL Murray turns off the stage lights, descends stage steps and heads outside. Interview question: What did you think of today, the program? “It certainly gets people excited … tongue tied and sometimes they forget their lines. But overall they were pretty excited.”  Where do you get your energy? “Special K and blueberries. The energy comes from really believing the kids need this. A sense of self-esteem and cooperation is important.” They need a supportive place to work out issues and questions they have. The encouragement of the team and of the parents.

45:40Copy video clip URL Murray notes that the neighborhood has the potential for greatness but also the reality of drugs and crime. The children are victims. We want to teach kids to deal with conflict. Words like peace and let’s work it out need to be part of their vocabulary.

47:55Copy video clip URL B-roll counselor working with little kids, sing songs in the gym. B-roll of gym activity, kids and counselors congregate. Murray organizes the next event with counselors.

49:24Copy video clip URL B-roll counselors working with the kids to prepare for a relay race they’ve invented on a course that stretches the length of the basketball court. Kids versus counselors. Murray makes sure the kids not playing are enthusiastic in cheering the players on.

51:10Copy video clip URL The race begins. The first leg tosses a ball through a hula hoop. The second leg runs from the hula hoop to a toy golf club and tries to putt a golf ball into a paper bag. The next leg runs to a baseball bat and tries to hit a ball. The next leg runs to a basketball positioned on the court under the basketball net and tries to make a shot. Finally, the entire team links hands in a circle and tries to pass a hula hoop from body to body without it touching the ground.

53:10Copy video clip URL Snacks are handed out to the kids.

53:50Copy video clip URL B-roll of Murray enters the church, kids follow behind.

54:10Copy video clip URL B-roll of counselors attending to paperwork in the office while Murray deals with administrative issues. Interview with Murray who mentions that her brother is the actor Bill Murray. He has helped fund a performing arts program for teens. Her other brother Joel taught at Second City. They taught classes at the summer camp. She goes through newspaper articles neighbors give to Murray about her brothers. She notes she has six brothers and two sisters. She is the third oldest daughter. As a kid she went to a makeshift summer camp in Wilmette that focused on arts and craft, but it was nothing like the performing arts camp she runs.

57:40Copy video clip URL She notes that after high school she went to night school at Northwestern before entering the Dominican order. She knew she wanted to be a nun and help people. She became a drama major because the subject interested her more than any of the others. She continues telling more about the story of how she got to where she is today.  She taught drama and theology at Salve Regina University. Someone at St. Sylvester Parish knew of her work with teens, involving them in work at soup kitchens and getting involved in urban social issues. She was hired as a youth minister at the parish to help organize programs for teens.

01:00:19Copy video clip URL Murray says to the videographer that she hopes he can select moments from today’s video footage that shows the creative, fun and chaotic. You have to be crazy to be a youth minister. I like the people who work with me. It’s been good. She gives permission for her image to be used on TV.

1:00:47Copy video clip URL END

 

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