Welcome Fair-Weather Friends

10-08-2023Pastor's LetterFr. John Bonavitacola

Dear Friends,

Time to welcome back our “fair-weather” parishioners! I am finally getting used to the seasonal reality of living in Sun City West. But while you were gone, us, “all weather” parishioners were no slackers. We were busy breaking records and setting new records! Whether we wanted to or not we all participated in the Olympics of Heat. Apparently, the summer of 2020 which went from May to Thanksgiving was just a practice session!

This summer we blew past the record of most days at 110 degrees or higher at 55 days. But within that were several other medal winners: most consecutive days at 110 degrees or higher. Yes, 31 straight days, basically the entire month of July. And that included other honorable mentions: most days at 115 degrees or above, including three wonderful days at 119 degrees. Then there were also the most consecutive days where the low temperature did not go below 90 degrees and one day when the low temperature was the highest daily low ever at 97 degrees. See what you missed! Though I heard that a few of you “fair-weather” friends broke the record for most mosquito bites in a single day.

Anyway, glad to have you back! A great way to reacquaint yourselves is by attending our Annual Pasta Dinner sponsored by the Catholic Daughters on Saturday November 21. Tickets are on sale either on Sundays at Bernadette’s Brew Coffee Shop in Madonna Hall after Mass or during the week at the Parish Office. I am looking forward to seeing you all again! Bring your friends and neighbors so we can get to know our neighbors as well.

For those of you who are up in the Vistancia/North Peoria area and attend Mass at the Mission on Sundays, please join us for a Picnic after the 1pm Mass on October 22 at Paloma Community Park, 20799 N. Lake Pleasant Pkwy, Peoria. Food and drinks will be provided, just bring the fun! This will be a great opportunity to help connect and get to know each other a little more.

Also, while you were gone, we welcomed Chad Pittman as our new Director of Liturgy and Music. If you would like to sing in the Choir or play a musical instrument, anything from the bassoon to the xylophone, contact Chad! We encourage you to use your talents to help us worship the Lord. We also welcomed Nikki Cheshire, who has been a familiar face around here as our new Director of Pastoral Care and Julie Gradillas, who coordinates Safe Environment Training and the weekly Parish Bulletin. If you have trouble taking the Safe Environment Update this year, forgot your username or password, or are just baffled by the computer, Julie will be sure to help you.

And we adjusted the Parish Office hours: Sundays from 7am-1pm, Mon-Thurs. 7am-3pm and Fridays from 7am- Noon. And don’t forget that Patty Romero, our Parish Secretary is a Notary Public and provides notary services to our parishioners at no cost. And my Pasta Sauce is available for sale in the Parish Office (all proceeds benefit the FullCircle Youth at Risk Program).

If you haven’t done it already, please download or Parish App! Just go to our website (ololscw.org) and find the tutorial video that explains how to download the APP. When you do all the Parish info will be available at your fingertips: Parish address, phone number, upcoming events, Daily and Sunday Mass readings, Catholic Prayers and Devotions and many other features that we have added.

And we’ve added a new Hearing Assistance APP. Go to our website, click on the Hearing Assistance banner and learn how to download the App to connect to your hearing assistance device or headphones/EarPods or check out a pair of headphones (if you do not have your own EarPods) from an Usher before Mass.

Finally, please excuse those of us who have been here through this record-breaking summer, if we forgot your name, as our brains are a bit addled from the intense heat!

Love,

Fr. John B.