I hope Fr. Andrew is having a good week in Poland, and I hope you had a good week, too!

We are very grateful to everyone who helped us reach our CSA goal of $70,851. As of Monday, June 23rd our total was up to $84,380. Perhaps you already know that funds received over our goal are returned to our parish and may be used for special projects or to assist us with operating expenses. Your prompt and generous response to our Catholic Services Appeal is deeply appreciated. Thank you!

We are happy to report that 41 new families joined St. Clare Parish in the past fiscal year (July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014). Be sure to welcome new parishioners when they visit St. Clare. They are often seeking a church to call their own. As families register in the parish, they tell me that they chose St. Clare because our parishioners spoke to them, and made them feel welcome. Keep up the good work! We are hoping to have an official welcome for new parishioners in early September.

This week we celebrated the funeral of James E. Knaus, Sr., father of our Sacristan: Sharon Freitas, and our 8th grade teacher and Assistant Principal: Lou Ann Knaus. We extend our sincere sympathy to Sharon and Lou Ann and their family. Mr. Knaus was 99 years old. Please keep the Knaus family in your prayers.

Last year Fr. Andrew appealed to parishioners to volunteer to serve at Funerals. At the time, we were thinking that each of the three teams would serve about once a month, or every other month. But that was not the case. Between November and March, we had a record 25 Funerals! We found it necessary to call on our volunteers weekly, and they really stepped up to the plate—sometimes serving more than once a week. As a result, we are again seeking volunteers to make up a fourth team. Servers usually arrive at the church about 45 minutes before Funerals begin. They welcome people at the door as they arrive, and hand them a funeral booklet. Some of the volunteers also serve at the altar as altar servers for funerals. Not every volunteer feels comfortable doing this. Only those who wish serve at the altar are asked to do so. I cannot tell you how much our bereaved families have appreciated this personal service. If you feel that you can help, please call me at the parish offices 313-647-5015, and we can talk about it. Training will be provided during the summer months.

All of a sudden we are noticing an increase in the number of Baptisms! Congratulations to the families whose babies we recently welcomed into the Church through Baptism. Now that Fr. Andrew has started celebrating some of our baptisms during Masses, parishioners can assume their proper role of welcoming these new little Catholics, and supporting their families as they strive to bring up their children in the Catholic faith.

Fr. Andrew expects to be back from Poland in time to celebrate our 8:00 a.m. Mass on the 4th of July. Until then, we will enjoy the presence of visiting priests and deacons. This weekend, we welcome back Fr. Jan Burczyk, former administrator of St. Clare, who travelled from London, Ontario to be with us. Slowly, we are coming to know and appreciate our Michaelite Fathers!

Have a restful week, and enjoy this long awaited summer weather!

Blessings,
Janet Guensche