Please note that three documents are attached to this newsletter as pdf files. Two are related to the dinner, and one signifies Serra International's connection with the Vatican in our mission to pray for and support priestly vocations. Dennis Leiber brought the letter back from Mallorca and we copied it for our use.
When you get to the documents, click on File, Open, go to blogspot files, and click on the first one. Press Control P to print. Go to the Back button each time to get into the second and third files. If all else fails and you can't print, send me an e-mail and I'll mail the documents to you. At any rate, try these directions and see whether they work for you. I extend my thanks to my nephew Andrew for his technical support in converting the scanned documents to pdf files.
Calendar of Events.
August 12, 2013. Luncheon Meeting and Speaker, 12:00 Noon at the University Club.
August 13, 2013. Saginaw Club's Seventh Annual Dinner to benefit the Robert J. Carlson Seminarian Endowment Fund at Swan Valley Banquet Center, Saginaw. Social Hour begins at 6:00 p.m. Call Pat Leikert if you're still interested in signing on. You may also call Marian and John Moll at 989-751-2228.
August 15, -2013. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Holy Day of Obligation.
August 19, 2013. Serra Board Meeting and Luncheon, 12:00 Noon at Sacred Heart of Jesus.
August 22, 2013. The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
August 26, 2013. Prayer Meeting and Luncheon, 12:00 Noon at Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Let us be reminded of the upcoming discussion of Dr. Robert Schuller's The Be-Happy Attitudes, Chapter 1. This book discussion and those to follow come at the direction of our president Aggie Kempker-Cloyd. Jim Hunter will lead the first discussion. The book can be bought at Barnes & Noble or through Amazon.com
September 28, 2013. The 2013 Catholic Legacy Dinner, 7:00 p.m. at the Grand Rapids Hilton Hotel, 4747-28th Street SE. Invitation and sign-up forms have been sent as part of this newsletter, as noted above. At this point, the Muskegon Club has committed to a table. We look forward to making this dinner a success!
Priests' Anniversaries for August.
The Reverend Donn Tufts, August 20, 1980.
The Reverend George Darling, August 11, 1984.
The Reverend Stephen Dudek, August 11, 1984.
The Reverend Dennis Morrow, August 24, 1985.
The Reverend Dennis O'Donnell, August 20, 1983.
The Reverend James Wyse, August 29, 1987.
Notes from Dennis Leiber. Along with Msgr. Hankiewicz, Dennis and Margaret attended the Serra International Convention in Mallorca and participated in the pilgrimage to Petra, the birthplace of Blessed Junipero Serra.
"This year marks an historic FIRST for the Serra Club of Grand Rapids--we have two members serving on Serra International Board.
One benefit is that we get the most up-to-date information straight from the source. The challenge, of course, is to be the model for other Serra clubs to emulate, but we have already led the way in the United States by being the first Serra Club to sponsor a Venture crew, for example, and I remain grateful to our leadership for their role in continuing a program deemed worthy by the United States Catholic Committee on Scouting and others.
I take the liberty of sharing with you an initiative of Serra International president Sean Yeo. I can tell you from personal experience about the fierce dedication that the Singapore Serrans employ to attend to their spiritual growth. For me, it is most humbling.
In any event, I share this with you for your information and consideration.
Respectfully,
Dennis
Editor's Note: Our two members serving on the International Board are Dan Grady, President-Elect of Serra International, and Dennis Leiber, Trustee.
We thank Dennis for his remarks at the July 26 meeting summing up his experiences at Mallorca and Petra. The main theme one can derive from his talk is the inspiration one gets from being with Serrans from all over the world, all united in our common goal of praying for and supporting priestly vocations, and from seeing for oneself the birthplace of Blessed Junipero Serra.
Dennis brought back a postcard depicting the six statues of Fray Serra around the world. They are located in Petra, Spain; Palma, Spain; Mexico City, Mexico; Sierra Gorda, Mexico; Carmel, California, and Washington, D. C. He also brought pamphlets on Praying the Rosary for Vocations and Adoration for Vocations.These pamphlets, among other items, may also be purchased at the Serra Store, which is linked to the Serra Connects website.
As for the Venturing, our board voted to continue our participation in Venturing. Our club is funded for Venturing through December 31, 2013. Weldon Schwartz will serve as one of the adult sponsors.
Serrans United in Prayer.
We join new Serra International president Sean Yeo, of the Singapore Club in a series of prayer initiatives, the first of which is scheduled for August 4. In a recent e-mail he writes,
"Shalom! In line with Serra's Third Objective, and in order to unite Serrans from all over the world through prayer for a common intention, I would like to implement a new prayer initiative called, Serrans United in Prayer (SUIP for short--pronounced as 'soup' as in 'soup for the soul'). This is a monthly Serra International prayer initiative, where Serrans all over the world recite a prayer for a particular intention related to the Serra lay apostolate on a particular feast day, for example.
To kick off this initiative, it would be most appropriate to start on 4 August 2013 (Sunday), the Feast of St. John Vianney, Patron saint for all priests. Our common prayer intention on that day will be for the sanctification of our Holy Father and priests all over the world. The simple prayer is attached for your reference.
The prayer is as follows:
Prayer Date: 4 August 2013 (Feast of St. John Vianney, Patron of Diocesan Priests).
Prayer Intention: For the sanctification of our Holy Father, priests, and seminarians all over the world.
Prayer for Priests:
Lord Jesus, Guide and Shepherd of Your people, we thank you for the gift of all our priests. We ask for your special blessings upon them that they may be worthy representatives of You, the Good Shepherd.
May they wholeheartedly devote themselves to prayer and penance. By examples of humility and poverty, may they be shining models of holiness, tireless and powerful preachers of the Word of God and zealous dispensers of God's Grace in the Sacraments.
May their loving devotion to You in the Eucharist and to Mary, Your Mother, be the twin foundation of our faith.
Amen.
Sean will be sending subsequent SUIP prayers at least 10-14 days in advance so that Serra leaders have ample time to keep their fellow Serrans informed accordingly.
Sean continues, "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks always for you because of the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus (I Corinthians 1:3-4).
Mary, Mother of Vocations, Pray for us.
Yours Sincerely in Christ,
Sean Yeo, President, Serra International
New Members. We welcome three of our recently enrolled new members: Chet Collins, Mike Fiorenzo, and Scott Przekop.
My apologies for not passing along Dennis's note about Chet Collins, which reads as follows:
March 4, 2013. Dear Tim: Welcome with me, as indicated below, Chet Collins, who accepted my invitation to join Serra during our recent New Members reception. Chet is a graduate of Steubenville and a classmate of Serran Ken Baldwin.
Together with Ken and me, Chet has already been in close communication with Phil Dolci, who also attended the reception. Phil is the successor to Kathy Pierce, who was instrumental in the creation of the nation's first ever Serra-Venturing partnership at West Catholic. It appears there is a core group of students at West Catholic who would greatly profit from our continued partnership with Venturing. Perhaps we can expand the base to include Catholic Central, but I will let Chet fill you and the Board in on what is developing. We hope that the Board will continue to support this effort.
A Message from our President.
Dear Serrans:
I ask you to pray for our local Serra Club as we grow in God's word, have fellowship with one another, and prepare for our vocations work via the 2013 Catholic Legacy Dinner on Saturday, September 28, 2013. We all need to do our part by signing up to attend the dinner, bring a significant other or friend and sell two tickets. If we join with another Serran, you will have a table of eight for a cost of $720 versus $800...or $90 a ticket. If we do this, we will fill 20 tables. This will get us halfway to our goal. The dinner committee is busy getting sponsorship and selling the other 20 tables.
Hope everybody is enjoying the Club Book, Be Happy Attitudes @chapter 1, which we will discuss at the second meeting on August 26, 2013. Jim Hunter has volunteered to lead the club in our discussion.
I'd like to take a moment to thank Pat Leikert for his many years of service as our club treasurer. He is a hard-working board member who has worked wonderfully with each and every president.
Mary, Mother of Vocations, Pray for Us.
Aggie Kempker-Cloyd.
