Jul 11, 2024

Greetings,
This past week I was out of town on retreat. If you were trying to reach me specifically, you might want to try again this week.

IN OTHER NEWS:

INTERNATIONAL PILGRIM VIRGIN STATUE OF FATIMA: St. Sebastian Parish will be one of fourteen parishes in our diocese to host a day with the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Fatima. We will welcome her this Sunday morning and continue through Monday morning. Please see elsewhere in this bulletin for a complete list of activities and times.

According to the website:

“The National Pilgrim Virgin Statue is a beautiful, hand-carved image of Our Lady of Fatima. It was given to the United States by the bishop of Fatima after being blessed by Pope St. Paul VI in 1967. She was crowned by Cardinal O’Boyle at the National Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC in 1971. The purpose of a Pilgrim Virgin Statue tour is to introduce people to Our Lady’s message of hope, peace and salvation, and to bring the graces of Fatima to those many millions of people who may not otherwise have the opportunity to make a pilgrimage to Fatima itself.”

BALLET AND ORCHESTRA AT FOREST LODGE: Once again the giant stage will be set up in Elm Hill Park (Forest Lodge) for the Heinz Poll Dance Festival on July 26 and 27 followed the next day by the Akron Symphony Orchestra on Sunday, July 28.

PARISH FESTIVAL: August 1-3 will be our Annual Parish Festival. The first night is a Wine and Art Evening and tickets are available online. The second night is the Pig Roast and Bourbon Tasting, but unfortunately, it is already sold out. Get your tickets early next year!

The final day is a Family Fun Day. Festivities begin following the 4:30pm Saturday Mass and include a procession with the St. Sebastian Statue from the church to the festivities site. This event roughly marks the day in early August when, in 1928, our parish was founded. This event, which is being developed by agroup of volunteers in the parish, is slowly being built up to become our “gem in the ring of events” celebrating our 100th anniversary come 2028.

OTHER THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND: On July 15, Fr. Pfeiffer will be speaking at our Theology on the Rocks. Doors open at 7pm and tickets are $15.

Vacation Bible School is right around the corner July 22-26. Unfortunately, the roster is filled at this time.

The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) will be beginning in about 2 months. If you or someone you know are interested in becoming Catholic, this is the time to begin making contact! Please see elsewhere in this bulletin for more details.

God bless,
Fr. Valencheck