Letter from Fr. O'Brien:
This letter is a follow-up to the “Parish Renewal through Stewardship” program which was held during the month of March. Some of you may have asked the reason this program was chosen and how it differed from our usual manner of doing things. My role as pastor involves many responsibilities, an integral one being the strengthening & building up of our parish community. ...more
Parish Renewal through Stewardship Report
Did you know…
A Look at Pledge Weekend
Pledge weekend occurred March 24th and 25th and was a success. Baskets were placed in the vestibule of the church for collection of the pledge sheets and the basket was brought up to the altar as part of the Offertory gifts....more
The 2001 Ministry Fair
During the weekend of March 17, the St. Joseph Oratory (lower church) was transformed into a hall to host the 2001 Parish Ministry Fair. The air was filled with bubbles. Sounds of children laughing, people socializing, and instruments being tested at the choir table brought a festive atmoshpere to the fair....more
Volunteerism Workshop
On Thursday, Feb 15, 2001, Ann Lally from the office of Volunteer Resources gave a workshop to parishioners of Sacred Heart at the lower church. The workshop enjoyed a tremendous success as parishioners listened to Ann talk about the business of their ministry....more
The Road to Stewardship
The road to Stewardship at Sacred Heart is one that began several years ago as Fr. O'Brien began research on Archdiocese's Stewardship Program. In September of 2000, Fr. O'Brien appointed a Stewardship Commission to look at the possibility of implementing this program at Sacred Heart....more
May 19, 2001
Dear Parishioner:
This letter is a follow-up to the “Parish Renewal through Stewardship” program which was held during the month of March. A summary of results appears on the back of this page.
Some parishioners have asked the reason this program was chosen. My role as pastor involves many responsibilities, an integral one being the strengthening and building up of our parish community. In my experience, this process of growth is achieved by and through the active participation of the members of the community. The spirit of this program was invitational and was extended to all registered parishioners as well as those who worship here.
It was my hope that parishioners would read the mailed materials, listen to the lay witnesses, attend the Ministry Fair and respond to the invitation. Many did respond and I am grateful. Some parishioners accepted the invitation with increased commitments of time, talent and/or treasure, while others sent their regrets. Ill health, age or caring for a family member were some of the reasons which prevented them from doing more than praying for the success of the program and the parish. The varied responses manifested an understanding of the key concept of stewardship – it is proportionate to one’s ability to give.
In closing, I would like to express my gratitude to all parishioners. To those who are senior to me in the parish, I thank you for your stewardship at Sacred Heart Parish throughout the years. To those who have become members in the last 5 years, I thank you for allowing us to continue with a renewed energy. To those, who are senior to me in age, I thank you and your generation for those never forgotten lessons of stewardship I learned as a child. They continue to sustain and inspire me.
Sincerely yours,
(Rev.) John W. O’Brien
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2001 Parish Renewal through Stewardship Report
Did you know…
Did you know that parishioners suggested the following...
Social
Youth
Support Groups
Education
Outreach
Communication
Did you know some of the talents of our parishioners include…
Thank you notes have been sent to all parishioners who have returned a pledge sheet or otherwise expressed an interest in a ministry or group. If you expressed an interest but have not received a note, please accept our apologies and contact a member of the Stewardship Committee by leaving a message at the rectory.
The parish leadership and the Parish Pastoral Counsel will evaluate the ideas for new ministries and groups. These ideas have the potential to develop into parish based or cluster based groups. The Liturgy Committee will evaluate those ideas relating to liturgy. A Skills Bank is being developed to register the talents and skills of our parishioners. The leadership of the parish will contact you if your skills are needed.
Again, thank you all and thank you for choosing Sacred Heart Parish!
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Pledge weekend occurred March 24th and 25th and was a success. Baskets were placed in the vestibule of the church for collection of the pledge sheets and the basket was brought up to the altar as part of the Offertory gifts. To date, more than 225 pledge sheets have been received from parishioners who would like to continue or join a parish ministry. In addition, there were parishioners who wrote they were unable to increase their participation because of a variety of reasons.
The information on the pledge sheets was recorded on a grid using a password-protected computer at the rectory. A limited number of individuals were responsible for inputting the information.
Thank you notes have been sent to all parishioners who completed a pledge sheet.
Pledge sheets continue to be returned at a slower rate. Pledge sheets are available at the rectory.
Some of the things that we’ve learned from the pledges received are:
If you’d like to learn more about the Stewardship Program, please contact a member of the committee.
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During the weekend of March 17, the St. Joseph Oratory (lower church) was transformed into a hall to host the 2001 Parish Ministry Fair sponsored by the Stewardship Committee. The air was filled with bubbles. Sounds of children laughing, people socializing, and instruments being played at the choir table brought a festive atmoshpere to the fair.
Father O'Brien made a special appearance at each mass and invited parishioners to attend the ministry fair while juggling three balls. There were approximately 25 ministries and groups affiliated to Sacred Heart represented. Each group brought with them an array of displays and give aways. Parish children giggled and chased the bubbles that were blown over the center of the fair by a bubble machine from the Prayer Group. Parishioners had the opportunity to learn about and sign up for the various Sacred Heart groups. Many mingled over coffee and baked goods in the social areas. A few lucky parishioners received private viewing of Fr. O'Brien's juggling talents.
Many parish groups obtained new membership. Parishioners also shared ideas of new groups or activities that they felt could enrich the Sacred Heart community. For some, the day was about getting to mingle with other parishioners. For others, it was a day of exploring possible ways to contribute their time, talent and treasures.
Click here to see more pictures from the Parish Ministry Fair.
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At the end of all masses during the weekends of March 4 and March 10, we were priviledged to have some of the Sacred Heart parishioners share with the congregation their personal stories of stewardship. Each story was a unique tale of their journey to becoming Christian stewards. The "lay witnesses" shared stories of:
These powerful testimonies were shared by:
Please email us if you would like to obtain audio and written copies of their testimony or to share your pesonal stories of stewardship and its rewards for you.
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On Thursday, Feb 15, 2001, Ann Lally from the office of Volunteer Resources gave a workshop to parishioners of Sacred Heart at the lower church. The workshop enjoyed a tremendous success as parishioners listened to Ann talk about the business of their ministry. Here are some of the topics that were discussed:
Some of the sound bites from the workshop included:
"People are afraid that if they raise their hand, you'll take their arm."
"Make sure you have something for them to do when they show up."
"If you have been in a ministry for many years, you should consider stepping down and creating a hole for someone else to come forward. You can take on the role of mentoring the new volunteers or explore other ministries."
The evening was filled with enthusiastic discussion and concluded with an exercise of creating and discussing sample role descriptions. Thank you for all those who supported the workshop with their participation, and of course, for the delicious refreshments.
If you are interested in finding more about the evening's events, or would like to obtain some of the handouts from the workshop, please email us.
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The road to Stewardship at Sacred Heart is one that began several years ago as Fr. O'Brien began research on Archdiocese's Stewardship Program. In September of 2000, Fr. O'Brien appointed a Stewardship Commission to look at the possibility of implementing this program at Sacred Heart. Since then, the committee set out a timeline that would lead to the Parish Renewal through Stewardship month in March 2001.
In December 2000, a meeting was held for the leaders of Sacred Heart Parish ministries and affiliated groups. During this meeting, the Stewardship Committee unveiled the plans for the Parish Renewal through Stewardship program.
In the first two months of 2001, the Stewardship Committee made presentations to most of the ministries and affiliated groups. Enthusiasm for he program seems to be wide spread as all the parish groups plan and prepare for March.
A Volunteerism workshop was held as part of the preparation for the Stewardship events. Participants learned about the logistics of recruiting and managing volunteers.
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