From the Desk of our Pastor, Fr. Mike ...

 

On this Memorial Day weekend, we Americans take the opportunity to remember the brave men and women who have worn the military uniforms of our nations.  It is an honorable and noble gesture to remember our fallen heroes who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms we enjoy in this country.  We remember them all in our Masses and prayers, not only this weekend, but always.  We also pray for the safety of our service men and women who are    presently serving in many troubled places in the world. My godson is a West Point graduate, now serving in a dangerous area of Iraq, and I pray the he and others return safely to their parents and families unharmed.

 

The Parish Office will be closed this Monday in honor of Memorial Day.  On Tuesday, I will join my fellow priests in congratulating Fr. John Schmoll for his 25th anniversary of ordination in Lamont, south of Bakersfield.

 

A reminder that our monthly Spanish Mass will be next Sunday, June 6th at 12:30pm. Please pass the word along.

 

 

 

From the desk of the Pastor, Fr. Mike ...

 

Today the Church celebrates Pentecost Sunday, the mystery of the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and the holy women who had gathered in the locked room.  We know well that the Holy Spirit has guided the Church, even in her darkest hour, and we rely on the Spirit power and grace through this time as well.

 

I want to express my sincerest thanks to all who made the Confirmation Mass last week memorable for our young people who received the sacrament from Bishop Steinbock.  He also expressed to me personally how well things went and how pleased he was with all the ministries, including music.  Thank you all.

 

This coming week, Monday thru Friday, May 24 to 28, I need to cover the Mass at the Convent of the Sisters of the Divine Master in Fresno since their pastor will be away for vacation.  These Sisters are Eucharistic centered in their spirituality thus Mass in essential for their prayer life.  Their Mass is at 7:30 am every morning. I will celebrate Masses here at Our Lady of the Sierra Church on Monday and Tuesday at 9:00AM.  There will be a Communion Service on Wednesday and Thursday mornings at 8:00 a.m. I apologize for the inconvenience this may cause anyone.

 

Next weekend is the Memorial Day weekend.  There will be NO MASS OR COMMUNION SERVICE on Monday, May 31st.  The Parish Office will also be closed on that day.

 

On Tuesday, June 1st, I will be joining Father John Schmoll in celebrating his 25th Jubilee.  Father John and I were ordained in the same year, though different days.  He is pastor of St. Augustine in Lamont, south of Bakersfield.  We congratulate Fr. John for all the hard work he has done.  When he went to Lamont, he alone replaced three to four priests, since the parish was staffed by the Augustinian Fathers, who left the diocese in the early 1990's.

 

Next Sunday, May 30th, is the fifth Sunday of the month.  We have begun to have a special second collection whenever there is a fifth Sunday for the Parish Maintenance Fund.  These funds, as explained in prior bulletins, help us to do upgrades, updates and repairs on our aging buildings.  Remember that both St. Dominic Savio and St. Joseph the Worker where built well over fifty years ago.  Our newest church, Our Lady of the Sierra was built eleven years ago.  We have already spent considerable funds on re-staining the wooden poles and we need to fix curbs that are crumbling and the repairs at the missions continue.  We must seriously consider the installation of an alarm system at OLS Church since we have been made aware of break-ins and damages suffered by other churches in the Oakhurst area.

 

We do hope you will seriously consider your parish next weekend in the second collection.  There is a FYI feature box that outlines our completed repairs in the recent past and those that need to be made.

 

From the desk of our Pastor, Fr. Mike

 

Today we welcome Bishop Steinbock as he comes to confer the sacrament of Confirmation on five of our young people at the Sunday morning 11:00am Mass.  We want to congratulate the following :

 

Tyler Grocholski

Nathaniel Luna

Eloisa Ortiz

Pierrette Peredia

Samantha Shackelton

 

The Knights of Columbus will again host a luncheon following the Confirmation Mass for the Bishop and the families of those who receive confirmation in the parish hall. Thanks to the Knights again for their hospitality.

 

I, as mentioned in last week's bulletin, am presiding at the Basque Festival Mass in Los Banos this morning.  I will return in the  afternoon for Mass at Bass Lake.

 

With Deepest Gratitude!!!

 

I want to extend this weekend to all those who were responsible for organizing and executing all the festivities that were recently held for my 25th Anniversary of Ordained Ministry.  So many of you dedicated months of effort in planning the event that came to a conclusion on April 27th.  I want to thank Barbara Nadeau and her wonderful committee for organizing the wonderful meal, along with the parish Women's Guild and the Knights of Columbus who barbequed the meat.  The decorations were beautiful as well as the table settings in the hall.  I was told that nearly 250 people were fed that evening, as well as many of the priests who came to share the day with us.  Great fun was also had with Father Cardoza and Father Bulfer providing the roast that evening.  Father Cardoza brings a lot of memories of our time together since we were teen-agers in Hanford.  I also want to extend thanks for the kindnesses shown to my mother in the jubilee celebrations by many of you. As you honor her, you honor me. I am also very grateful for the many gifts that were showered on me as well.  Your generosity was overwhelming.

 

The Choir and Friends of the Choir collected nearly $1300 for a wall statue of St. Therese, the patroness of the Diocese of Fresno, which will be placed in the sanctuary at a future date in honor of my Silver Jubilee.  I am not certain what the final cost of the statue will be but if anyone is interested in donating to the cause, you many call parish office.  I am grateful for this honor and it is a way to give thanks to the Little Flower for all she has done for me and for all of us.

 

I also want to profusely thank Kevin, the choir, and all the liturgical ministers who participated in the most beautiful and solemn Mass that afternoon.  Everything went so well.  The church was full and the music was out of this world.  The art and environment was stunning, especially all the roses that adorned Our Lady of the Sierra Church.  Several priests who drove a great distance to be here (Bakersfield, Lamont and Gustine) as well as from closer locations were amazed at the talent in our parish.  They were also once again taken back by the warm hospitality they were shown.

 

All in all, it is an event that I will never forget.  When Bishop Steinbock named me pastor a few days later, it was a great finish to the event.  I feel I belong and I know that we can continue to work together to build up the Kingdom of God in these mountain communities.