Dear Parish Family,
On Sunday, November 16, our very own Bishop Earl Boyea is coming to our parish to install me as your new pastor. The Installation will be at the noon Mass that Sunday, as well as some type of reception in the parish hall afterwards.
Fireside Chats Have Begun!
We have kicked off our “fireside chats,” our local gatherings where I go and meet with the parishioners who live in that neighborhood. The evening begins at 6:30pm and goes until 8:30pm. We have an official ending time not only to respect our hosts who have graciously opened their homes to me and their neighboring parishioners, but also so that people do not feel like they have to stay any later than that time. We know babysitters often have bedtimes as well.
The very first one was on October 9 at the lovely home of Mo & Barb Dwyer, who hosted the South West Ave. neighborhood. The first half-hour is enjoying the delicious hors d’oeuvres and drinks. Tim Powers brought along his own home brew, and I was very impressed with his kolsch-style beer.
At 7:00pm, nineteen of us all gathered together in the Dwyer living room for the fireside chat, literally around the fireplace. Everyone introduced themselves, and we just chatted the evening away. Time flew as 8:30pm quickly rolled around, so we gave everyone the opportunity to leave if they needed to. Our hosts, however, welcomed anyone who wanted to remain and continue chatting. No one wanted to leave, so we stayed and chatted for another half hour before the first folks needed to go home. We posted a few pics on our Facebook page for anyone interested.
I look forward to the next one this Thursday night, October 16, at the Vandercook Lake neighborhood, hosted by the Kapugas, which will have already happened by the time you read this. For the last two this month, October 23 will be hosted by Nick and Genevieve Januszewski in the Arbor Hills neighborhood, and October 30 will be hosted by Mary Konkol in the Northwest neighborhood.
Finally, gauging from the various kind comments I’ve received, many of you saw my appearance on the Bart Hawley Show on JTV. We did post that on our website. So, if you missed it but are interested in seeing the interview, you can view it at http://www.stjohnjackson.org/2014/see-fr-chas-jtv/.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Chas