Serra Dates to Remember.
March 6, 2009. Adoration at St. Isodore. Adoration 9:30-10:30 a.m. There will be no 8:40 Mass on that day as previously stated.
March 9, 2009. Luncheon Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House. Sister Colleen Ann Nagle of the Franciscan Life Center in Lowell will be the speaker.
March 16, 2009. Serra Board Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House.
March 23, 2009. Prayer Service and Luncheon Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Sacred Heart.
April 3, 2009. Mass and Adoration at IHM. Mass at 9:00 a.m. Adoration 9:30-10:30 a.m.
April 9-11, 2009. Triduum.
April 12, 2009. Easter Sunday.
April 13, 2009. Easter Monday. Luncheon Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House. Speaker TBA.
April 20, 2009. Serra Board Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House.
April 27, 2009. Prayer Service and Luncheon Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Sacred Heart.
May 1, 2009. Mass and Adoration at St. Stephen Parish. Mass at 8:30 a.m. Adoration until 10:30 a.m.
May 3, 2009. World Day of Prayer for Vocations.
May 7, 2009. Muskegon Club's 60th Anniversary Celebration. $40 per person. Mass and Dinner at Prince of Peace Parish. Starting time TBA.
May 11, 2009. Luncheon Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House. Speaker will be Msgr. Duncan, Vicar General of the Diocese of Grand Rapids.
May 18, 2009. Serra Board Meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House.
May 21, 2009. Charter Night. Installation of New Members at St. Andrew's Cathedral Chapel and Reception at Cathedral Square. The Induction Ceremony will begin at 5:30 p.m. There will be no Fourth Monday meeting in May.
Programs Chairman Joseph Scoville has chosen a slightly different format for Charter Night this year. After the Installation Ceremony, we will gather at Cathedral Square for a reception and heavy hors d'oeuvres. Sam Gregg, Director of Research for the Action Institute, will speak about his observations about Pope Benedict XVI. According to Joseph, Mr. Gregg is one of the world's foremost experts on the Holy Father, and he is about to publish a book on that subject. Mr. Gregg, whose father was a Serran in Australia, has also served as a Fox News Commentator in Rome.
June 6, 2009. Saturday Morning Ordinations at 9:00 a.m. at St. Andrew's Cathedral. Seminarians Aaron Ferris and Michael Burt will be ordained as priests, and Seminarian David Gross will be ordained as deacon.
June 8, 2009. Luncheon meeting at 12:00 Noon at Louis Benton Steak House. Speaker will be Dennis Marshall of Aquinas College.
About our New Image. I'd like to tell you that I have made the conscious decision to upgrade the appearance of the Serra Newsletter to which you have grown accustomed, staying up with the times and so on. Alas! That is not exactly the case. In a nutshell, my problems in logging in to my regular blog account arose from the destruction of my old hotmail account. Because I can't log in to my hotmail, I can't get into the information I need to change the password to get into my blog account. So, I created a whole new blog and started over again. The image in the corner was supplied courtesy of my daughter Leslie, who pointed out the Blessed Junipero Serra's statue as we were touring Statuary Hall in the Capitol on our recent trip to Washington, D. C. She photographed it because she thought Serrans would enjoy seeing the picture in the newsletter. We found it very heartening that he, along with a number of other religious figures, was considered an important part of our precious national heritage, and that they stand there still. Perhaps next month I'll replace this image with the Serra logo. We'll worry about that when the time comes. I apologize for any inconvenience or dismay these new developments may have caused you. One of my Lenten challenges is to forgive the fictitious Australian traveler who has created such inconvenience. Your log-in address will be different as well. It's http://www.serraclubofgrandrapidsnewsletter.blogspot.com/ I'll confirm that information in the e-mail I send upon publication.
Meet Our New Members. Our club welcomes Francis (Frank) Lake, formerly of Oak Lawn, Illinois. Frank was born in Chicago and served 29 years as a United States Post Office worker until he retired in 2002. He was active as lector and Eucharistic minister at St. Louis deMontfort Parish in Oak Lawn. He also led the Rosary and conducted communion services at a nearby nursing home. He was married in 1963 and has four children. After his wife died in 2004, Frank moved to Grand Rapids to be near his son Jeff and his family. He has sinced joined the Golden K Kiwanis Club and St. Paul the Apostle Parish, although he is often to be seen at St. Stephen because his son and family are members there.
Asked how he became acquainted with Serra, he replied that he has always been aware of Serra's interest in fostering vocations, but even before joining us he regularly observed a Holy Hour each week at IHM, praying for priests and remembering the good sisters who taught him in elementary school. Serran Nate McKenzie invited him to join our club, and he gladly responded to that invitation. Frank looks forward to whatever adventures his Serra membership will bring, and with the help of the Holy Spirit, he hopes his membership will help to encourage vocations.
We also welcome new members Judy LeMieux and Lee Sullivan. More information about them will be published in later issues.
Survey Information. Bob Paul reports 31 responses to our recent survey. He consolidated the replies and reported the results at the February 15 Board meeting. The replies were, in his words, quite positive and included a number of helpful suggestions for present and future activities. He thanks all of those who responded to the survey.
Nominations Committee. President Pam McKenzie has named Dan Grady to our Nominations Committee. Dan selected Bob Paul and Mark Kubik to assist him.
Saginaw Anniversary Dinner. Abe and Anne Rossi attended from Grand Rapids, along with approximately 200 members and guests of the Saginaw Club. Bishop Carlson spoke about vocations. Abe notes that under Bishop Carlson's leadership, the Diocese of Saginaw now has 24 seminarians.
Update on Catholic Radio in Grand Rapids. Broadcasts are as follows.
WTKG (1230 AM) Catholic Answers Live (Rebroadcasts)
Monday, Tuesday, and Friday 6 to 8 a.m.
Wednesday and Thursday 6 to 9 a.m. (The 6-7 a.m. program is repeated at 8-9 a.m.)
WPRR (1680 AM) The Holy Family Radio Sunday Sampler
Sundays 9 a.m. -12:00 Noon and 7-10 p.m. ( 6 hours of repeated programming).
The Sunday program schedule, as well as other Catholic radio updates, can be found at http://www.holyfamilyradio.net/.
Source: Cheryl Doyle's e-mail. Remeber that Dan Grady and John Osterhart are serving on the Board at Catholic Radio in Grand Rapids.
THE ANIMA CHRISTI OF ST. ELIZABETH ANN SETON,which she originally composed as a prayer for the first week of Lent:
Soul of Jesus, sanctify me.
Blood of Jesus, wash me.
Passion of Jesus, Comfort me.
Wounds of Jesus, Hide me.
Heart of Jesus, Receive me.
Spirit of Jesus, Enliven me.
Goodness of Jesus, Pardon me.
Beauty of Jesus, Draw me.
Humility of Jesus, Humble me.
Peace of Jesus, Pacify me.
Love of Jesus, Inflame me.
Kingdom of Jesus, Come to me.
Grace of Jesus, Replenish me.
Mercy of Jesus, Pity me.
Sanctity of Jesus, Sanctify me.
Purity of Jesus, Purify me.
Cross of Jesus, Support me.
Nails of Jesus, Hold me.
Mouth of Jesus, Bless me in life, in death, in time, and eternity.
Mouth of Jesus, Defend me in the hour of death.
Mouth of Jesus, Call me to come to Thee.
Mouth of Jesus, Receive me with Thy saints in glory evermore.
Let Us Pray:
Unite me to Thyself, O adorable Victim. Life-giving heavenly Bread, feed me, sanctify me, reign me, transform me to Thyself, life in me; let me live in Thee; let me adore Thee in Thy life-giving Sacrament as my God, listen to Thee as to my Master, obey Thee as my King, imitate Thee as my Model, follow Thee as my Shepherd, love Thee as my Father, seek Thee as my Physician who will heal all the maladies of my soul. Be indeed my Way, Truth, and Life; sustain me, O heavenly Manna, through the desert of this world, till I shall behold Thee unveiled in Thy glory. Amen.
Letter from our President. Dear Serrans:
The Sisters' Appreciation Dinner on February 21 was a great success. Six years have passed since we started this Appreciation Dinner. Each year has featured a different theme (mostly based on the food), and creating the themes has been great fun for us. Hats off to Nate and Mark as head chefs! Each sister I talked with at the dinner said the same thing, "This is such a wonderful opportunity for us to get together. We look forward to it each year. Thank you." And yes, the thank-you notes are coming in. I will get them to Nancy so that they can be published for you to read. Thumbs up to all who helped make this evening a success for our sisters. You can mark your calendars for next year, as I have booked the Monsignor Brophy Center at St. Jude Parish for Friday and Saturday, April 17 and 18, 2010.
As you know, the Nominations Committee has been appointed. There are positions on the Board that need to be filled. If you are asked to serve, I hope you will respond with a willing, "Yes, I will."
After our nominations have been approved, Joseph Scoville and the Programs Committee can finalize details for our 61st Charter Night, scheduled for Thursday, May 21, 2009. Not only will Board members be inducted, but the new members as well. We are happy to be adding Judy LeMieux, Lee Sullivan, and Frank Lake to our membership. With regrets we have received some resignations from our club: Paul Nelson, Elizabeth and Bill Bjork, and Leonard Grotenrath. We thank them for their time with us and wish them well in their new endeavors.
With the first full week of Lent 2009 upon us, I hope everyone is taking a few minutes each day for some quiet time with our Lord. Lent is a time for renewing our baptismal promises. As Jesus spent 40 days in the desert, may our 40 days of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving lead us closer to Him.
Prayer: Jesus, thank You for being tested for the sake of helping me. Holy "ekballo" me wherever you will.
Promise: Christ died for sins once and for all, the just Man for the sake of the unjust...that he might lead you to God: 1 Pt 3:18.
Praise: Praise Jesus, obedient Son, alive in the Spirit, who sent that same Spirit to us.
Lenten Peace,
Pam McKenzie
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