This weekend, we pray with Psalm 113… “Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.”  I have to say it again, praise the Lord!  This past week I have been so very grateful for how God blessed last Saturday’s Parish Festival!  Thank you to Fr. Bline who made the trip down to kick it all off with Mass.  As we welcomed him home, my hope for all who came to Mass was that they could experience this parish as their HOME.  He reminded us all of where our true home lies—at the Altar in the church.  Below is a picture he took while we sang ”Happy Birthday” to him.  A packed church indeed!

What followed continued to be packed, and praise God for that.  It was a wonderful evening with great music, fellowship and fun!  A parishioner shared with me the next day…. “That was the greatest parish festival I’ve seen at this parish in the 25 years I’ve been here.  The Saturday night was a great idea, the set-up design was amazing, I heard nothing but compliments about ALL the food, it was packed, the DJ was perfect volume, and the games looked amazing!”  Another member said this… “I was amazed at all the volunteers we had to make it a success!!  We are a super blessed parish!”

By having it on Saturday evening, many families were free to come, as it no longer competed with CYO sports on Sunday.  A great idea from Jonelle Vatalaro!

Special Thanks!  A special thank you to all the volunteers that made the parish festival a success!  Once again, thanks to Jason VanDevere for organizing and leading this for the last three years.  I also thank the parish and school staff for what they did to make it a success.  I echo Jason’s words at the end of the evening when he gave special thanks to Jonelle, Vic and Tom Vatalaro, Tim Effinger, Jerry VanDevere, Joe and Mary Turk, Scott and Linda Reese, Natalie Hammer, Therese Holderbaum, Colleen Wilson, Patty Burkley, Dennis Ott, and the maintenance staff.  We couldn’t have done it without you!

Praise the Lord!
Fr. Jeremy