Stewardship Update
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May 2008
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As we celebrate Memorial Weekend, many of us have spent the last month with family togethers on Mother’s Day, numerous graduations and many end of season events. We now look forward to the summer season with vacations, outdoor sports and al fresco concerts. Queen of Apostles parish is also gearing up for the summer. This month we not only recognize those who have already joined in , but also encourage everyone to become a particpant in the Stewardship Pillars of Hospitality, Prayer, Formation and Service. BACK TO TOP |
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Hospitality
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 Fr. Dan enjoys the slide at the 2007 Fun Day |
| When was the last time you could take your family out for lunch, enjoy inflatable games, socialize with friends, and not spend a dime? It’s possible at Queens Annual Parish Family Fun Fest, which will be held this year on Sunday, June 1. The fun fest will begin upon the conclusion of the 11:00 Mass. The Knights of Columbus will be serving hot dogs and burgers for lunch. People should plan to bring lawn chairs as seating is limited outdoors. After eating, the fun begins with various inflatables available. You can challenge Fr. Dan on the bungee, take a trip down the slide or work your way through the obstacle course. The younger parishioners will also be able to take turns in the bouncy house. After all this excitement, those lawn chairs will feel wonderful as you visit with old friends and the new ones which you may make at the Fun Fest. This is also the day in which the $2500.00 raffle drawing is held. In addition to the main prize, a secondary drawing will be held in which the seller only will be awarded $500.00. All tickets for this event have to be turned in by Sunday, June 1st at 1:00 pm. Families may also sign up children for this summer’s day camp. What a great time to get your friends together to plan for this summer’s activities. Of course, rain will not deter Queens from coming together. In case of inclement weather, the inflatables and other events will simple move into the parish hall. If you missed this spring’s parish dance and later regretted the fun you missed, be sure not to miss this big parish summer party. BACK TO TOP |
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Prayer
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 The Feast of Corpus Christi is one time when Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament is exposed not only to faithful Catholics, but also to the entire world. This year the feast falls on Memorial Day weekend and so Queens will celebrate our fourth annual Eucharistic Procession on Sunday, June 8, to encourage greater participation. The procession will begin at Queens following the 11:00 am Mass and travel to Holy Family. Special altars are set up in the yards of parishoners along the route and prayers and songs are offered at each stop honoring the Lord. There are also inspirational signs along the route for meditation. The festival was inspired by the religious experience of St Juliana (1193-1258), a Belgian nun, who dreamed repeatedly of the Church under a full moon with a black spot. According to legend, the dream was interpreted to her in a vision by Christ. The moon, she said, was the Church’s calendar of festivals and the black spot was the lack of a festival to celebrate the holiest element of the Church - the Eucharist. Juliana shared this with her local bishop, who in 1246 issued a decree for such a festival to be celebrated in his territory. The festival was instituted throughout the Church by Pope Urban IV in 1264. Before that there had been no universal festival to mark the sacrament of the Eucharist. Families are encouraged to bring children. In past years those who had recently celelbrated their First Communion wore their outfits and held a special place in the procession. Others decorated their bikes, strollers or wagons for the event. For those who are not able to walk the route, arrangements can be made through the rectory for rides. Come out and make this year’s possession a colorful one. It is a wonderful way to share Our Lord and Savior with our neighbors. BACK TO TOP |
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Formation
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BY STACY GENEREUX Stacy Genereux and son Jacob |
| During this RCIA process I have come to realize that this is another step in my walk to try to get closer to Jesus, to try to keep Him the focus of my life and my actions, to try to live in a way that shows my son that I believe we all need the grace of God to survive. I was raised a Methodist. My parents did a great job making sure I attended church, Sunday school, Bible School in the summer & youth group every Wednesday night. When I went to college, I stopped going to church except for Christmas and Easter with my family. I just sort of lost my way, I guess you could say. I was so focused on my classes and grades and getting accepted to graduate school, that I was distracted from any focus of Jesus. The few times I did attend church in college, I went to the Newman Center with some of my Catholic friends. I had many Catholic friends in high school and was always secretly curious about that “something extra special” that came with the tradition and ritual of Mass. After graduate school, I started a great job and made some great new friends. I traveled and spent time doing all my favorite hobbies, but there was always something missing. I had a tremendous loneliness that I couldn’t shake. This is when I believe God started to intervene in a major way that I couldn’t ignore. I started treating a new patient that was a Baptist minister. He had a severe fracture of his upper arm and needed extensive and painful rehab to regain his function. We became well acquainted during our treatment sessions and chatted about many different things. One day he told me that I was sent to him by God to help him through this. I was speechless, but his comment made me think. At around the same time, I met two new friends that were very open and enthusiastic about their relationship with the Lord. I think God plopped these three people in my lap to get my attention to say “Hello...Here I am....Stop ignoring me....You need me!” That was when I finally started to get it. I realized that I needed to give control of my life to God and trust that he had a plan for me. I started attending a women’s bible study and trying out different churches to find one where I felt I belonged. In the middle of all of this I met my husband and decided to move to Council Bluffs. I started attending Mass with him and became very comfortable in the Catholic Church. I have a feeling of closeness to God when I am at Mass that I haven’t found in any other church I have attended. I think going through RCIA and joining the Catholic Church is another step in my relationship with Jesus. It has strengthened my faith. It has brought me closer to Him, made me a better mother and maybe a better wife. I don’t know.... you will have to ask Mark! I owe a big Thank You to the RCIA team and my sponsor Bonnie Helms, Father Dan and Father Lazarus for answering all my questions and welcoming me into the Church. BACK TO TOP |
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Service
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 Mark Sundrup |
The formal building & grounds committee has only been in existence for 5-6 years, and is an extension of the dedicated work of Parishioners that worked diligently for many years. The committee works closely with Brian Cihacek our Maintenance Man, Fr. Dan, Fr. Lazarus and the Parish staff. The B&G Committee is always looking for skilled volunteers or just people that want to lend a helping hand. All are welcome. The Committee has 6 or 7 members and can always use some more help. The following are just a few of the projects accomplished along with upcoming projects: -Clean up day in April – Clean up the Parish grounds and buildings. -Several new windows in the rectory -Gutter cleaning -Trimming trees -New concrete near the Great Hall garbage dumpster -Concrete parking curbs on the edge of the parking lot -Regular maintenance -and many more The Knights of Columbus have been very generous in their donations to the Buildings and Grounds projects and there is also an opportunity for all of us to help financially. Don’t forget the yellow envelopes in with our monthly tithing envelopes. Please place a donation in this envelope, so it can go directly to maintain the physical presence of the Parish property. Thank you to everyone on the building and grounds committee and anyone that will help in the future. We all have talents to share. Mark Sundrup works around the parish and shares the following:“When asked to speak about Stewardship, relationships come to mind. You can have the best relationship possible with God through Stewardship. We are all gifts from God and He has given us a great gift, the gift of His son Jesus Christ. God has given me this chance to ask all of us to share our gifts with His Church. No matter how small or insignificant, you have a gift from God. I ask you to share that gift through Stewardship. Give back what God has given us, share the many blessings we all have been given. We will all be paid back, what? At least seven times seven!” BACK TO TOP |
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Would you like to Nominate Someone for Steward of the Month? Do you have suggestions for What Should I Do? Your ideas for future issues are welcome. Contact the stewardship committee: Queensstewardship@cox.net BACK TO TOP |