Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Five Grand JackPot!
At the time of this writing, it is still unknown who the winners are. But most of us woke up and discovered that we did not win.  However, remember what our Blessed Lord says in the Gospel, “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of Heaven,” and “Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” 
With that being said, we of course congratulate the winners and thank all those who participated.  Thank you to all who helped sell the tickets and in a special way thanks to Ron McAvoy, who you saw in the Narthex after Masses and events manning the ticket table. 
The combined effort of both St. Paul and Visitation Parishes raised $12000 for each parish.  This will help us keep the lights on.

Great Generosity!
Speaking of lights and money, I just want to thank everyone who continues to be so generous to the parish.  I know it is tough right now with economic issues, inflation, and uncertainty.  Just as our personal bills go up so does the parish’s.  Your sacrifice every week in the offertory is so necessary for us to fulfill our mission.  The five grand Jackpot has helped too.  The Ladies Guild fundraisers give us a boost.  Sometimes people come to me and say, “Hey, Fr., is there a certain need that I can help with?”  Let’s not forget the “Heart of the Shepherd” campaign we pledged last year.  We have started getting some returns on that and we are looking to putting it into action soon.  On top of this are the volunteers who take care of the grounds and church.  We have liturgical ministers who dedicate their time. Our outreach to the poor shows your great generosity.  Thank you for that continued inspiration.  Let’s keep it up and show forth God’s glory through our sacrificial giving.   

New School Year
This hot summer will be coming to a close in the near future.  It of course is a time for many to prepare for school.  As a reminder for those parish families that have children in elementary grades and are wishing to send them to a nearby Catholic school, please contact the rectory.  When we closed our parish school four years ago, the parish wanted to continue helping parishioners get a catholic education if they desired.  Often parishes have higher “non-parishioner” tuition rates as opposed to a lesser “parishioner” rate. So, in order to help our parishioners, the parish offers to subsidize the difference of those rates.  This way they benefit from a catholic education but they continue to remain active at our parish.

Even though we do not have a parish school, our building continues to be used for different apostolates of education.  This year there are four different entities using our building!  “The Way” and “The Nativity” homeschool co-ops continue their presence. The Chesterton Academy of Akron was new last year and continues.  New this year is the “Oaks of Righteousness” homeschool co-op. We are looking forward to helping our parishioners as well as many others from the area to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ.

Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Pfr