May 19, 2022

Greetings,

This weekend marks our final days with Msgr. Chima Nwamadi. It has been so fascinating having him here with us. Please read his kind letter inserted into this bulletin.

Msgr. Chima first came to the parish during the pastorate of Fr. William Karg. During that time, they set up the Nigeria, Enugu, American Rescue (NEAR). This was an independent 170 (b)1 organization run by some of your fellow parishioners. This allowed any contribution made to Monsignor’s projects to be tax deductible in the United States. Unfortunately, NEAR ceased to exist as a recognized organization able to grant tax deductions for donations sometime in the late 90s. This is important to know if you are contemplating gifting Monsignor anything for his projects back in Nigeria. They are not tax deductible nor do we have any reporting mechanism.

If you would like to bid him a fond farewell, please come to the 11:00am Mass this Sunday, May 22.

IN OTHER NEWS:

SEMINARIAN UPDATE:  You may have seen Mr. Charlie Bulger in our sanctuary once again. He is on summer break and living at St. Sebastian as he prepares for an adjustment in his vocation track joining the Jesuits this coming fall. Also joining us for part of the summer is Mr. Jonathan Green who you may remember gave the vocation talk this past year. And finally, there is Mr. Joseph Ho, who will only be with us for a couple of weeks before going away for further studies for the remainder of the summer. Please keep these men, all of our seminarians and those of the parish who are considering various Church vocations in your prayers.

ST. SEBASTIAN IN THE NEWS:  Most of you should have received the Northeast Ohio Catholic Magazine recently. You have a connection with the cover story on Fr. Alex Clark and the vestment he is wearing. “Father Alex told (his mother) about Karen Spangler (catholic-vestments.com), a sacristan at St. Sebastian Parish in Akron, who makes vestments.” Enjoy reading “the rest of the story . . .”

ORDINATION:  Ordination to the priesthood for service to the Diocese of Cleveland takes place this Saturday, May 21, at 10:00am at our Cathedral. You are invited. Your priests will be gone much of this weekend for the festivities.

CONCERT:  There is a concert this Sunday, May 22. Singer’s Companye will be performing in the church at 4:30pm. Free and open to the public.

RECITAL:  Over 100 people showed up for the Academy of Culture and Arts at St. Sebastian (ACA) recital last weekend as those tackling various arts showed off their progress. Well done everyone!

The ACA offers courses in visual, musical and physical arts and other cultural subjects, and is for persons of all ages interested in learning about, experiencing and/or influencing arts and culture in a Christian atmosphere. It is designed to help both young people and adults climb to the next level of cultural engagement and influence, not merely being spectators or instruments of culture.

The ACA is also responsible for the extensive concert series at St. Sebastian Parish. The purpose of it is to bring to the greater Akron community quality musical performances at a minimal cost. This helps keep the arts strong in Akron by developing audiences, employing artists, giving them opportunities to perform, making quality performances local and keeping them accessible, affordable or free especially for those who would normally find ticket prices out of their budget. If you are interested in sponsoring concerts or donating, please contact Lynn Steward at 330-836-2233 ext. 104.

God bless,

Fr. Valencheck