News from The Heart. Parish Pastor: Fr. Phil Shangraw. Newsletter Editor: Liz Barnes, Parish Secretary

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1 News from The Heart A Prayer to the Most Sacred Heart Most gentle and loving heart of Jesus, fill us with the peace, joy and love that only you can offer. Make us fully aware and alive to the comfort you offer as we bind our hearts to Yours. Sweet Jesus, we love You. Amen. Parish Pastor: Fr. Phil Shangraw Newsletter Editor: Liz Barnes, Parish Secretary Volume XVI Issue II February 2019

2 Happenings in our Parish Sacred Heart s Valentine s Dinner & Dance Saturday, February 16, :30 p.m. hors d oeuvres 6:00 p.m. Dinner Tickets $20.00 per person On sale in the office through February 12 Sacred Heart s Confirmation candidates Elana LaGuire, Kenneth Lehan and Ross Sanford will receive the sacrament from Bishop Walkowiak at Saint Andrew Cathedral on February 17 at 3:00 p.m. May the Holy Spirit be with you! Key Dates as Lent Approaches: Ash Wednesday, March 6, Fast & Abstinence Noon Mass at St. Thomas 6:00 p.m. Mass at Sacred Heart 2019 Catholic Services Appeal (CSA) Lenten Campaign Announcement Weekend March 9/10 Stations of the Cross followed by Soup/Bread Supper Stations will be held each Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. beginning March 13 and ending Wednesday, April 10 Holy Week begins Palm Sunday, April 14 Born into Eternal Life: Art Buday, age 94 years, on January 16, 2019 Eternal rest grant unto him oh Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul rest in heavenly peace. 2

3 If your birthday is incorrect, or was missed, please call the office. February Birthday Blessings 1 st Noa Gould 3 rd Ned Durgan Mike Gabris 4 th Richard Dreger Shirley Stoner 5 th Leti Longoria 6 th Craig Lehan 7 th Karina Cruz 8 th Chris Lyonnais 10 th Ron Stuhan John Williams 11 th Mary Butcher Camden Jett 13 th Mike Berghuis 14 th Betty Bickford Martin Nic 15 th Sasha Rudolph Ann Lynn Cindy Schofield 16 th Marti Santose 17 th Dan Campbell Norma Vida 19 th Makaily Vieyra Herb Whelpley 20 th Nate Cierlak Eric DuBois-Quail Tracy Powell 21 st Luria Anderson Jackson Anderson 22 nd Lowell Munson Rodney Shunta Emmalyn Sibley 23rd Linda Seastrom 24 th Maurine Gutowski 26 th Marie Preston Ed Sanocki 28 th Chuck Stuhan 3

4 More Happenings in our Parish Have you seen our billboards? Five are posted in Muskegon County: MAPLE ISLAND RD facing west; SEAWAY.1 mile north of LAKETON facing north; M mile north of BEATTIE RD facing east; HACKLEY facing north; and I-96.6 mile east of FRUITPORT EXIT facing east. The Story Behind our Billboard WANTED. CHOSEN. LOVED. ADOPTED. Countless women in the U.S. choose abortion over adoption for their unborn babies every year. Counseling sessions at Pregnancy Care Centers have shown that women are often very closed to the idea of adoption. They either want to keep their baby themselves or get rid of the baby now. Many women view the pain of placing a baby for adoption as more excruciating than having an abortion. Our billboard is the result of a local story with a very happy ending. A single Mom with a difficult life and a lot of struggles found out she was pregnant. She had 3 little ones, one still in diapers. She faced fear due to the unexpected pregnancy, not knowing how she could care for one more child. She made an appointment for an abortion. The night before, she couldn't sleep a wink. She stayed up all night sick to her stomach. In the morning, bawling her eyes out, she realized she couldn t go through with the abortion. She knew she couldn t raise him, but she also knew she couldn t kill him. She never thought she would ever consider abortion. But the way her life was at the time, she knew she couldn t raise him, so that s when she called Catholic Charities West Michigan for help. The birthmother said, It brought me so much comfort through the adoption plan. It felt like I had a purpose and a responsibility that I ve never felt before. That is why I know God had a hand in all of this. After meeting the couple who would become her baby s parents, she said, I knew they were his parents. God had brought us together and I knew he was meant to be theirs. It gave me peace to know he would be safe and loved. There hasn t been one moment that I ve second guessed my decision. He was meant to be their child. I ve always felt that, especially when I was pregnant. It makes me so happy that he has such a stable and structured life. The kind of life I have always wanted to give all of my children. Adoption is the bravest thing I ve ever done. And it was all for him. Thank you, Sacred Heart parishioners for your generous support of our 2019 Billboard Campaign. We received $464 in donations from our generous parishioners! ~ Pat Vendal 4

5 From the Prayer Ministry By David A. Gosma God wants us well. Jesus always healed the sick. He never made anyone sick or sent anyone away that was not healed or in the process of being healed. He commanded His disciples to heal the sick and sent another 72 to proclaim the gospel and to heal the sick. God is still in the healing business today. The Pilgrim Virgin statue came to Sacred Heart church on May 25, 2005 and was a great event. The Knights of Columbus asked the Prayer Ministry to assist them during the viewing. We lead a rosary or two and prayed with anyone that wanted to be prayed with for any spiritual and physical need. The Prayer Ministry prayed with 100 to 150 people. This was a baptism of prayer for the Prayer Ministry, our first time for our ministry praying for people in church. People came up asking God for many things; from world peace to healing pain in their wrist. They asked for prayer for loved ones to come back to the church, for sons and daughters fighting in Iraq, for loved ones on drugs. They asked for prayer to heal relationships in their families and prayers for employment. Some asked just for God to bless them. The statue of Mary did not cry tears, but a lot of people did. I do not know how many spiritual and physical healings took place. I do know that God answers prayer and many prayers were answered. I personally witnessed the Holy Spirit heal several people that asked for prayer for back pain. One woman not only had back pain but had double vision and the Holy Spirit healed both conditions. One of our team members prayed with a young woman who was wearing a neck brace and had been suffering much back pain for the last five years. The Holy Spirit healed her. She was in church that following Sunday, no brace, no pain and telling us all about it. On Pentecost Sunday the Prayer Ministry began proclaiming the good news after every Saturday and Sunday Mass. Members are available in the Chapel area for anyone that wants prayer. Are you sick or have pain? Do you want prayers for yourself or family? Come up front for prayer after Mass. God bless 5

6 From the Desk of the Facility Maintenance Manager Dear Parishioners, As of this letter I am hoping the worst of winter is over. The harsh cold spell and sub zero weather took a bit of a toll on both man and machine. The tractor had a couple of minor break downs during all the snow removal, but fortunately I keep a few parts on hand for just such emergencies. All is repaired and these are things that occur from normal wear and tear. I just wish that it did not happen on the coldest days of the year. After several years of plowing, I had a small issue with the plow and as of the writing of this letter, it is being repaired. One of the mounting pins and part of the mounting bracket needed to be slightly adjusted. Fortunately we have had a break in the weather. Along with the thaw came the inevitable amount of water on the school roof, which can be a bit of a problem. I am glad to say that we only had one small leak near one of the expansion joints in the hallway. I was able to get up on the roof and repair the cracked seam so all should be well. So, if you notice a missing ceiling tile in the hall, I am already aware of it. This kind of weather makes it very difficult to keep up with all of my regular duties here at the Parish, so if you notice a few minor things not being as clean as they usually are, I apologize. All of you should be breathing a little easier in church because I just changed out all of the air handler filters. Changing the filters takes a little time because unlike your home furnace, there are sixteen filters that need to be removed and replaced and they are a bit larger. This is just part of the regular maintenance of the system but I thought I would mention it. We also recently had a circulating pump for the offices and rectory need a little repair work. I replaced the parts and it is up and running again. Some of you may have noticed the wire hanging off the roof by the north entrance of the church. Don t be concerned. It s one of the heat tapes and when the ice lets go on the roof, they tend to go with it. So they are perfectly safe and not a danger and will be back up soon. I am sure there are a few things that I have forgotten to mention, but this letter is getting a little long. In closing I will end as always, I am grateful for the opportunity to serve this wonderful Parish. May God bless and keep all of you safe. Your Brother in Christ, Garret A. Kelenske Facility Maintenance Manager 6

7 February 2019 It is still a little strange writing We get so used to things over time. But it is 19 if you can believe it, nearly 20 years since the millennium, that supposed to be catastrophic year which never was a problem. So how do you feel about ground hog s day? Do you like to put your weather forecast for the next six weeks into the paws of a giant rat? After all, that is what a ground hog really is. They dig holes that could break a leg, they destroy crops and other things, they are in reality a giant pain. Quite honestly, I feel a little sorry for poor Punxsutawney Phil. Would I want someone to wake me from a good slumber? I think not. The whole tradition, or should we say superstition, derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerging from its burrow on this day sees a shadow due to clear weather, it will retreat to its den and winter will persist for six more weeks, and if it does not see its shadow because of cloudiness, spring will arrive early. While the tradition remains popular in modern times, studies have found no consistent correlation between a groundhog seeing its shadow or not and the subsequent arrival time of spring-like weather. More often than not, we see the beginning of Lent during the month of February, but not this year! Lent does not begin until March 6. Lent and Easter are all governed by the moon, the full moon no less. Easter is always the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring or vernal equinox. Does that sound complicated? Nothing superstitious there. Just time, in all its complexity. So what will the time of February bring to us this year? There is the traditional time for love and flowers and chocolate on February 14. There is the annual Valentine s Dance, this year on February 16, and no need to worry about Lenten fasts this year. Connected with Valentine s Day somewhat loosely is World Marriage Day, the second Sunday of February, this year, the 10 th of February. World Marriage Day is an observance sponsored by the American organization, Worldwide Marriage Encounter, associated with the Catholic Marriage Encounter movement and observed on the second Sunday of February each year. Its purpose is declared to be: "World Marriage Day honors husband and wife as the foundation of the family, the basic unit of society. It salutes the beauty of their faithfulness, sacrifice and joy in daily married life. Let us Pray: Father, your greatest command was to love You and love each other. You ve given marriage as a holy relationship that reflects our relationship with You. Show us how to follow your example and set aside our selfishness and pride and humbly serve each other. Help us to be of one spirit and of one mind and value each other above ourselves, looking out for each other s interests. In the midst of our busy lives, help us take time to love each other deeply from the heart, as you have loved us. May the love we have for each other be an example to the world of how You love them and gave Your life for them. ~ Deacon Dave 7

8 Centennial News Like us on Facebook!! Sacred Heart Church-Muskegon Heights, MI. Invite your friends! The Centennial Committee meets the last Monday of the month at 6:00 p.m. in the school Gathering Room. We need your help. Everyone is welcome! The next meeting is February 25 th. Believe in our Future, Build on our Past In keeping with our theme of 100 as we plan our Centennial celebration, we asked for 100 people to contribute toward supporting our celebration. As of February 5, 94 people have responded! If you would like to be one of a hundred and join the Century Club by being a financial supporter of our celebration, please prayerfully consider making a donation and return a form (available at church entrances or website) to Sacred Heart s office. Please make checks payable to Sacred Heart. Thank you! Only 6 more to go! Bon Appétit! The Centennial Committee will be doing a cookbook and are looking for your favorite recipes. If you have any favorite forgotten recipes, please submit to either Kay Johnson at katiemae4766@gmail.com or Marie Gould at bcgmto@aol.com. When submitting, please include the name of whom the recipe belongs to and your name. For each entry submitted, your name will be put in our drawing for a nice gift. If you have any pictures from Sacred Heart s past or any memorabilia, please bring to the office. We hope to make a display of items for our Memorabilia Room. All items can be returned. Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend Give the gift of yourselves to each other on a Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekend. The next weekend will be held March at St. Francis Retreat Center in DeWitt. Apply online at wwme.org or contact Chris & Darla Vinton at