Today is Respect Life Sunday and October is Respect Life Month. When most of us think about respect life or pro-life, often we limit our thoughts to abortion and the legality of abortion in the United States. True, abortion is a great moral evil, not only here in our country, but in many parts of the world. All of us do need to show our support for anti-abortion legislation, keeping this issue in the open, and work and pray to end this evil in our world.      But being pro-life is much more. To call oneself a believer or supporter of life, one is committing themself to support the dignity of all human life from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death. Issues of euthanasia, assisted suicide, and capital punishment are important pro-life issues in our society, as are issues of crime, poverty, and starvation. It is too easy for us to just ignore these issues as most of us live a comfortable healthy life. Yet, our call as Christians and as Catholics is to form our conscience to see the dignity of all human life and to take whatever actions we can to support efforts to address our social ills and to see the dignity of each person in our world as a creation of a loving God.      We can do this first by prayer, then by supporting legislation that protects all people, and then by being involved in our own communities working to improve the quality of life of everyone, especially the most vulnerable people among us. When we are able to do these things, then we can truly call ourselves pro-life.         God Bless! Fr. Joe Bacevice

FALL FUND RAISER   Our Ninth Annual Clambake/Steak Bake/Autumn Raffle will take place on Saturday, October 26th, beginning after the 5:30 Mass in our upper hall. Raffle tickets are now available at the back of the Church. All parishioners are asked to pick up their envelope with Raffle tickets, as this will save us the cost of mailing them to everyone.     DINNER (as well as extra lottery drawing) TICKETS ARE NOW AVAILABLE after weekend Masses at the main entrance to the church, in the cafeteria after the 10:00 Mass, and during the week at the rectory during business hours. Ticket prices: Clambake - $30, Steak-bake - $35, extra dozen clams - $10. In addition to great food, there will be plenty of refreshments, a basket auction, split raffles, sideboards and much more.       WE ARE LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS to help with this project: help set up, clean up, bake, and help in other ways. Please sign up in the church’s main entrance to help us out.      PROGRAM BOOK Again this year, we are printing a program book for our Fall Fund Raiser. Parishioners, Parish Organizations, and businesses are invited to advertise or send their greetings showing support for our Parish. An ad can be placed in the book for as little as $10. Ad forms are in everyone’s ticket envelope. Additional forms are available at the back of the church. Everyone is invited to participate.

THANK YOU
 

We thank all who participated at our Pancake Breakfast a few weeks ago. Though only 89 people joined us for breakfast, after all expenses were paid, the parish realized a profit of $475.00 The First Catholic Slovak Ladies Association matched this profit as a gift to the parish. So in the end, we made $950.00. Thank you for your generosity!

 

BLANKET SUNDAY:
 

The weekend of October 5-6, marks the 33^rd Annual Blanket Sunday Collection to aid the needy, sponsored by the Diocesan St. Vincent de Paul Society.  Due to a lack of storage space, we will gratefully accept your donation and do the shopping for you, making your money go even further with bulk purchases of blankets and other items needed by the homeless and disadvantaged. So “blanket” someone for the winter – and give yourself a warm feeling! You may also donate online at www.svdpcle.org    Envelopes are available at the entrances to the Church.

 

A NEW WAY TO GIVE

Beginning this weekend we now offer a new way to donate to St. Casimir’s. You can now give online using your credit card (MasterCard, Visa or Discover), or have the funds taken out of your checking or saving account. To enroll in online banking, simply go to our website, click on the button marked online giving, and follow the prompts. You will have the ability set up a whole year of giving at one time, and you will have the ability to change your offerings at any time, or make special one time offerings.
     For your convenience, you will find simple to understand instruction sheets at the entrances to the Church. The process is simple and secure. Using online giving will help you be a more responsible donor to our parish.

PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

Over the next few weeks, you will hear about the upcoming “Respecting our Past, Serving in the Present, Growing our Future” program here at St. Casimir’s. This effort is very important as we move forward with the mission and our vision for our parish. We as a parish family have changed many lives in our community. In order to continue our mission and ministries, we encourage everyone in the parish to spend time in prayer and discussions with your family reflecting on the work we do. Each weekend, we look forward to seeing all of you at Mass, and would like to see everyone here on our special Commitment Sunday, the weekend of October 19-20, 2019. If you have any questions about this upcoming “Respecting our Past, Serving in the Present, Growing our Future” program, feel free to contact Father Bacevice. 

ALL SOULS DAY

Saturday, November 2^nd, is the Feast of All Souls, the day we remember our dead. Since All Souls Day is a Saturday, we will celebrate only one Mass at 7:30am. We invite families who have lost a loved one since last November 2^nd to participate in this Mass. An All Souls Day envelope is included with the offering envelopes with space to include the names of the dead you want to be remembered during the Mass.
    All Souls Day candles, which can be inscribed with the name of the deceased you want remembered, are available at the Rectory. They will burn for 5 days beginning Nov. 2^nd; the donation for the candle is $5. All are invited to join in lighting a memorial candle.

PASTORAL COUNCIL

 

This year, we will be electing four members to our Pastoral Council for a two year term beginning January 1, 2020. Application forms are available in the Book Room and will be accepted through November 3, 2019. Voting begins on the weekend of November 16-17, 2019 and concludes December 1, 2019. Any member of the parish, age 16 and older, with a few exceptions, is eligible to run for a seat on the Pastoral Council. We invite you to seriously consider serving on this important advisory body in our Parish.