On my desk is a large pile of cards, most of which have yet to be opened, which express the sympathies of parishioners on the deaths of my dad & stepmother. And so many of you expressed verbally your condolences and the assurance of your prayers. I continue to grow in my gratitude to you for your support of me and my family during this time. I have reflected on the fact that I tend to go into “work mode” when planning and celebrating a funeral as I do so often, and that is even true when it becomes personal as in the death of a family member. It takes a while for me to process everything that has happened & to deal with the feelings of my heart. But your presence in my life allows that to happen because of our shared experiences of grief and because of our shared faith. So thank you again for the many ways you reach out to me and my family. It means a lot to us and I continue to thank God for you in my life.

Last Saturday was the 4th anniversary of my cancer surgery & I’m amazed at how fast that time has gone. I had my annual check up with my urologist to review my blood work which continues to be clear of any indications of remaining cancer cells. I am reminded to pray for all the sick of our parish, especially those who are presently going through treatment, that God may give them strength, hope and the trust needed to know that whatever happens, God will be there for them through us.

This weekend we will have our Annual Catholic Charities Appeal. As usual (and against the suggestions of the Diocese), I keep it short and to the point because I know that the majority of you have heard over & over again the necessity of helping those in need and because you have proven, over & over, year after year, your willingness to be generous in this appeal. So thank you in advance for your generosity to those who stand in need of our financial support and again, know that what you do for them, you do for the Lord Himself.

Happy 50th Anniversary to Bob & Barb Ceccarelli! They will be celebrating this special occasion this weekend & we are happy to pray with and for them for many more years of sharing love & faith. Both of them are active parishioners who have been faithful to each other, to God and to our parish, so please join me in extending to them our congratulations.

This Wednesday, February 22nd, begins the Holy Season of Lent. Mass on Ash Wednesday will be at 8:30am with the parish school students (all are welcome to attend) and at 7pm. The Deacon will also have a short service at Noon with the distribution of ashes for those who would like to attend during their lunch break for work. Guidelines for the 2 fast days of Lent (Ash Wednesday & Good Friday) & for abstinence from meat on all Fridays of Lent can be found in this bulletin. Just as when we tend to lose our appetite when grieving or upset about something, so too do we fast on these days so as to focus our energies on grieving our selfishness during this time.

I really encourage you to consider joining us for the Stations of the Cross which Deacon Pat & I will be leading each Friday of Lent at 7pm in the church. You can begin by having a good Lenten meal during our Fish Fry (again, details in this bulletin) & then coming over to the church for about 25 minutes of prayer. As we hear in the gospel every year on Ash Wednesday, the Lord encourages us to pray, fast and give alms as a remedy to sin. We provide the opportunities to do all three of these Lenten disciplines and hope you will take advantage of these so as to find the joy of learning the art of love.