9/24/2023

Fr. Karl and I will be gone October 2 after 8:05 Mass through October 5th. We will be going to Assembly Days with the other priests of the diocese. Notice that Mass is moved on October 2nd from noon to 8:05 AM.
The REBOOT! event by Chris Stefanick has been well received and appreciated by many who have spoken to me. It was a lot of work for the Outreach Team headed by Chris Kuhlemeyer, Jill Gockel, Kaity Holtman, Fr. Peter, and all who worked to have him come. He was here for dinner beforehand with the team and then prepared in quiet, gave the talks, and left after seeing everyone who wanted to talk to him or get an autograph. The tickets paid for his coming (we counted 615 people in our church), but the people who prepared for his coming spent a LOT of man-hours to get ready. Thanks to all who made this a successful event!
Fr. Ferrero had a good but brief visit last weekend. He got to experience some home cooking and even had a Colorado peach on the way to the airport. He seemed to be genuinely appreciative of the kindness and the parish in general. Thank you for making him feel welcome!
We are moving along in our plans to create space for CGS (Catechesis of the Good Shepherd), as we are using borrowed space right now for levels I and II. Martha Kauffman, the Construction Manager from the Diocesan Property Management Office, was here on Friday to walk through our facilities. She looked over the atria, one of which was being used at the time, and the school and gym in particular, then the parish office and the church quickly. She did not need to see the rectory, as she said, “I am familiar with the rectory. We show parishes the plans as an example of how to build a rectory in the diocese.” Consider yourselves complimented on the job well done with the house I live in. As one who lives there, I concur that it is a well-designed and built house. We have received the go-ahead from the Bishop to explore building more space. We will be looking for an architect to help us evaluate our needs and to do a Master Plan. That means we will be talking about our needs and wants, prioritize, and then evaluate what we can afford. All of this is NOT something I came here planning to do, but it appears to be necessary if we are going to provide CGS to our students. They deserve the best we can give them, and I am hopeful we can give them good religious and spiritual training. If you don’t know what I am talking about, go to our school website and watch the CGS video. It says much more than I can say here.
Let us enjoy the fall weather and the parish picnic coming up September 30th as we continue our pilgrimage to the Lord. It is a joy to be your pastor.

Father Albert, O.S.B