2385 Commerce Blvd. Mound, MN ourladyofthelake.com

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1 Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church Fr. Tony O Neill, Pastor 2385 Commerce Blvd. Mound, MN ourladyofthelake.com 4 th Sunday of Advent December 18 th, 2016 When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. - Matthew 1:24 Christmas Mass Schedule Christmas Eve Saturday, Dec. 24 th 4:00pm Mass and 9:00pm Mass Monthly Mail-Out Bulletin Sisters and Brothers, This week we see our readings emphasize Mary. We say Merry Christmas to each other - maybe we should say MARY Christmas, that would be very correct Scripturally and liturgically. Doesn t it make sense that the final days before Christmas are Mary s days? Who better than Mary can help us focus during these last few days? Mary teaches us to prepare for Jesus through silence, prayer and resignation to God s will. During this last week, pray slowly the Hail Mary and let it touch your heart. Peace and peace-making can be the focus of today s prayer, especially as outside pressures rob us of our few peaceful moments. During these last days, try to do something special. Do this as we can personally be closer to Mary and Jesus. Then remember our needy people - think of who is lonely. Saint Teresa said in regard to loneliness that It could well be the most hurting problem. Write a few extra cards, make some phone calls, and seek peace and forgiveness. Christmas is a gift from God that people cannot keep until we give it to someone else. Christmas is a feast of love. And the love must begin at home. No place is more important than between spouses and between children. So, Merry Christmas and remember Jesus loves you. Have a Blessed Christmas, God Bless, Deacon Del Volume CII Christmas Day Sunday, Dec. 25 th 8:30am Mass and 10:30am Mass INSIDE THIS ISSUE Upcoming Events 2 Christmas Morning Communion Ministry 2 Pastoral Ministry 3 Grace Family Center 3 Ask Fr. Tony 3 Youth & Family Faith Formation 4 Formed 4 OLL School News 4 Blood Drive 4 JuanAna Coffee Stewardship Pledge Forms 5

2 Monthly Mail-Out Bulletin Our Lady of the Lake Bulletin Published Monthly by Our Lady of the Lake Church 2385 Commerce Boulevard Mound, MN The Church Office will be closed on Friday, December 23 rd and Monday, December 26 th, for the Christmas Holiday, and Monday, January 2 nd, for the New Year s Holiday. Rosary Intention: Give Birth to Jesus in Our Own Time Mass Intentions beginning Monday, Dec. 19 th Monday 8:00am Communion Service Tuesday 6:30pm Frank Drey Wednesday 9:00am Marlene Lenz Thursday 8:00am Fr. Marin R. O Connell 10:00am LMS Residents Friday 8:00am Mary Lou Weidman Saturday 4:00pm Fred Hanley 9:00pm Joanne Piché Sunday 8:30am Bill & Bernice Volkenant 10:30am Parish Calendar for the Week of Dec. 18 th, 2016 Sunday - Dec. 18 th 8:00am KC Pancake Breakfast - Presentation Room 10:30am Children s Liturgy of the Word - Church 6:30pm Confirmation Class Monday - Dec. 19 th 12:00pm Community Blood Drive - Gym 7:00pm Boy Scouts Meeting - School Cafeteria Tuesday - Dec. 20 th 8:30am Eucharistic Adoration - John Paul II Chapel 1:30pm Bible Study - Church Library 5:15pm Maintenance Committee Meeting - Fireside Rm. 7:00pm KC General Membership Meeting - Fireside Rm. Wednesday - Dec. 21 st 7:00am Finance Committee Meeting - Fireside Room 5:00pm Handbell Choir Rehearsal - Church 6:00pm Children s Choir Rehearsal - Church 6:30pm Adult Choir Rehearsal - Church Thursday - Dec. 22 nd 10:00am Mass at Lake Minnetonka Shores - Peace Saturday - Dec. 24 th 4:00pm Christmas Eve Mass - Church 9:00pm Christmas Eve Mass - Church Sunday - Dec. 25 th 8:30am Christmas Day Mass - Church 10:30am Christmas Day Mass - Church Giving to Someone in Need on Christmas Morning Are you a Communion Minister or a volunteer at Lake Minnetonka Shores? As in the past few years, Flossie Finnicum is organizing a group to take Holy Communion to residents in the Care Center at Lake Minnetonka Shores at 7:30am on Christmas morning. The sharing of our Lord s presence and the sacrament of Holy Communion is a special way of expressing our gratitude to the founders who helped build the Church and School at OLL. Leave your name and number with Dana at x162 if you can help. Thanks! Cell Phones In order to enter more deeply into our prayer with a minimum of distractions, we ask that you please turn off your cell phones when you come to liturgy. Thank you. Knights of Columbus Pancake Breakfast Sunday, Dec. 18 th PACE Center After Sunday Masses Good food, great fellowship, reasonable prices! Bring the entire family! 2

3 Pastoral Ministry West Suburban Grief Coalition meets at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church, 630 East Wayzata Blvd, Wayzata The group meets Thursdays from 4:30-6:00pm. Dec. 22 nd : Journey Following Husband s Death Dec. 29 th : The Journey of Grief Jan. 5 th : Hope After Loss Jan. 12 th : Journey Following Daughter s Death Jan. 19 th : Post Traumatic Connection to Grief Lectors are reminded to pick up your workbooks in the Sacristy. The Sign-Up Plan for Christmas Liturgies will be done through Flock Note. Please respond by letting us know which Christmas Mass you plan to attend. This way of signing up is new, but we re hoping for the best and good response. Thanks! Grace Family Center Check out the article in the Dec. 8 th issue of The Catholic Spirit for a full history of the Grace Family Center. The article is also available online at TheCatholicSpirit.com. Catholic calendars for 2017 are available by the Church Entrances. Please feel free to take one home with you! Special thanks to Huber Funeral Homes for their kind sponsorship of the calendar. LIGHT FOR THE WEEK: Focusing on the Christmas-time Gospels cannot help but cause us to wonder. Mary and Joseph typify how we ourselves give birth to Jesus in our own time. By opening ourselves to the Holy Spirit and cooperating with God s plan for our life, we can surely say, God is with us. And so it is a Merry Christmas. We pray for those in need. May the Lord comfort them in their time of sickness and bless those who care for them. Please keep the following individuals in your prayers: Chris A., Bob Blake, Tim Daly, Dan Entinger, Kathy Gnitka, Dolores Kelly, Marilyn Nelson, Andra Olson, Lee Olson, Maddie Poranski, Bobby Reil, and Adam Richardt We pray for those in the Military: Travis B., Nicholas J., and Darrell V. ASK FR. TONY Do you have a question that you ve been wanting to ask Fr. Tony, but never found the proper time to ask? Curious about something in our faith? Maybe a concern about something specific to Our Lady of the Lake Church? Or perhaps a question about the Catholic Church at large? Maybe you d simply love to get an explanation for a part of Scripture that you ve been struggling to comprehend? HERE S YOUR CHANCE! We are collecting these types of questions until January 13 th and then we ll give them to Fr. Tony. After he has had some time to review and answer them, we will share those questions and answers through a video interview with Fr. Tony, as well as a printed transcript of the Q&A. Both of these will be available on our webpage through Flocknote, and through personal response where appropriate or requested. We will also include these Q&A transcriptions in the Church bulletins. We anticipate having the Q&A results available by early February! We hope you enjoy this opportunity to ask our wonderful Pastor the questions you ve been looking for answers to! To submit your questions, choose one of the options below. Please include your name unless you wish to remain anonymous: 1.) communications@ourladyofthelake.com 2.) Mail to Director of Communications, OLL Church, 2385 Commerce Blvd., Mound, MN ) Online on our webpage at ourladyofthelake.com/ask-father-tony Remember, the deadline to submit a question is January 13 th! 3

4 FORMED: Online Catholic Resource Parish Code: P Y W Y W J For the month of December, please explore the following resources: Our Lady of Guadalupe (Dec. 12 th ) Movie: Guadalupe: The Miracle and the Message St. John of the Cross (Dec. 14 th ) E-book: Deep Conversation, Deep Prayer 4 th Sunday of Advent (Dec. 18 th ) Program: Advent, Session 4: The Gift Christmas (Dec. 25 th ) Movie: The Story of the Nativity Audio: The True Meaning of Christmas St. John the Apostle (Dec. 27 th ) Program: Catholicism, Session 2: Happy Are We Feast of the Holy Innocents (Dec. 28 th ) Program: Catholicism, Session 6: A Body Both Suffering and Glorious Feast of the Holy Family (Dec. 31 st ) Movie: Joseph of Nazareth E-book: Be a Man! FORMED also now has Children s Content! Check out the Program: Kristoph and the First Christmas Tree or download the Movie: Skiff & AJ s Fantastic Voyage or read the Book: Saint Thomas Aquinas. Faith Formation Children s Liturgy of the Word (CLOW) meets Sunday, December 18 th, at the 10:30 Mass. We will not have CLOW on Christmas Day and New Year s Day. Join us on Sunday, January 8 th, for our next Children s Liturgy of the Word. Prayer and Playtime is a program for all families of preschool children and meets on Monday mornings from 10:00-11:00. Our next event will be on Monday, January 9 th. Faith Formation Classes will resume on Wednesday, January 4 th, from 6:30-7:45pm. Mark your calendars for future opportunities to serve at Loaves and Fishes! We will be volunteering at St. Gabriel s Church in Hopkins from 5:00-7:30pm on January 17 th and February 21 st. For more information or to sign-up, contact Kathy at khejna@ourladyofthelake.com or x147. Our Lady of the Lake School Upcoming Events OLL Alumni Spotlight We are looking to showcase our amazing OLL alumni and where they are now! Please contact Kassie Ricke at kricke@schoololl.com for details. Save the Dates! Kindergarten Roundup Jan. 16 th 6:00-7:15pm Join us and learn how OLL educates the whole child: body, mind and spirit. Meet our staff and parents of children in our School. Dinner provided. Keg & Cork March 4 th Starlight Gala April 22 nd Blood Drive Monday, Dec. 19 th 12:00-6:30pm OLL Gym Sign-up online at mbcherohub.club (sponsor code 0209) or call the Blood Center at If you have any questions, contact Evert Lehtola ( or elehtola@aol.com). 4 Looking for hostess gift ideas for the holidays? JuanAna Coffee makes an easy & delicious option! This fair trade coffee comes in a variety of roasts (dark and regular) whole bean or ground. To purchase coffee contact Stephanie Greene (swgreene1@gmail.com/ ) or Dana in the Church Office.

5 Discipleship Faith In Action Stewardship Thought When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. - Matthew 1:24 Putting our complete trust in the Lord without expecting anything in return. Striving to put God first in all things and follow Him wherever He may lead us. As we prepare for the birth of our Lord, pray for the strength and courage to be a model of discipleship, just as Joseph was. Financial Stewardship Collection totals for Dec. 10 th & 11 th, 2016: Weekly Actual: $33,126 Weekly Requirement for December: $23,750 Fiscal YTD Actuals: $349,286 Fiscal YTD Requirement: $379,570 Thank you for your generosity to Our Lady of the Lake! In this season of gift-giving to family, friends, and those less fortunate, we hope you will also consider your gift to Our Lady of the Lake Church. It is through the donations of every individual and family in the parish that we are able to carry on our work. Your contributions are needed for everything from special programs to basic operating expenses. Our Lady of the Lake deeply appreciates the efforts of parishioners to make consistent donations throughout the year. To assist you, we provide an electronic-giving option for both regular offerings and one-time gifts. For details, please contact Rhonda Eurich, Parish Administrator, in the Church Office at x161 or reurich@ourladyofthelake.com. Thank you. Gift Deadline for 2016 Tax Credit In order to receive tax-deduction credit for your 2016 taxes, mailed checks must be postmarked by Saturday, December 31 st. Thank you for your generosity! Retirement Fund for Religious Thank you for supporting senior religious. A sister from Indiana writes, Because of your kindness, our elderly sisters will have the comfort, security, and joy of living out their remaining years here in their home. You truly honor them and their many years of service by your generosity. Religious across the United States offer sincere thanks for your generosity to last week s collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious. World Mission Sunday Thank you for your gift of $2, to The Society for the Propagation of the Faith for World Mission Sunday! 2017 Stewardship Pledge Forms If you have not yet done so, please return your 2017 Stewardship Pledge Form. You may drop it in the collection basket during Mass, stop by, or mail it to the Church Office. If you need a Stewardship Pledge Form, they are available on the tables by the Church exits. Thank you for making stewardship a way of life! 5

6 Parish & School Phone Extensions Pastor, Fr. Tony O Neill Deacon, Dcn. Del Wilkinson 162 Parish Administrator, Rhonda Eurich Pastoral Minister, Sr. Carrie Link Parish Nurses, Stacy Hoh Annette Parker Maintenance Director, Roger Koch 153 Church Secretary, Dana Barrett 162 Administrative Assistant, Char Nee 163 Communications Director, Pam Vogt 167 Youth & Family Faith Formation Coordinator, Kathy Hejna 147 Adult Faith Formation Coordinator, Carla LaBore 145 Youth Minister, Theresa Rider 144 Music Director, Courtney Young 181 School Principal, Becky Kennedy 151 School Secretary, Carol Franck 150 Fax The Church Staff s are first letter of first name, followed by last Example: reurich@ourladyofthelake.com The School Staff s are first letter of first name, followed by last Example: bkennedy@schoololl.com Church Office Hours Mon. - Thurs. 8:30am - 5:00pm (Closed Noon-1:00pm) Fri. 8:30am - Noon Sat. Closed Sun. 8:00am - Noon School Office Hours Mon. - Fri. 8:00am - 4:00pm Mass Schedule Weekends Saturday 5:00pm Sunday 8:30am & 10:30am Weekdays Mon. 8:00am Communion Service (Small Chapel) Tues. 6:30pm (Church) Wed. 9:00am (Church, with OLL School) Thurs. & Fri. 8:00am (Small Chapel) Confessions Tuesdays 6:00-6:30pm, Saturdays 4:00-4:30pm, & by appointment. Rosary Everyone is welcome to join us in the Church to pray the Rosary 25 minutes before the weekday and weekend Masses. Eucharistic Adoration is held in the John Paul II Chapel on Tuesdays from 8:30am-10:00pm & on First Fridays of the month after the morning Mass until midnight. Please join us for this rewarding experience! The printing of the bulletin is made possible by: MINNESOTA LAKES BANK BLACKOWIAK ROLL OFF SERVICE CONSTRUCTION AND HOUSEHOLD JUNK --Fast Radio Dispatched Service-- Roll Off Boxes Yard 6

7 2411 Commerce Blvd, Mound MN Praise God, Work Hard, Love One Another! December School Happenings Parish Newsletter Dear Parishioners, We at OLL Catholic School love our faith. We love our parish family at OLL and all that they do for our School! THANK YOU!!! Please see the items in this flyer to learn more about what is happening in our school and ways you can become involved if you are interested! We would LOVE your participation! Are you looking for an outstanding Kindergarten? Do you have a child entering Kindergarten or do you know somebody who does? Our wonderful school has a kindergarten round-up planned for January 16 th and you won t want to miss it! Check out our Facebook page for all the great things going on OLL is the best school you can choose for your Kindergartner to begin their journey! Spirit of the Ice Festival, winter family fun for everybody! Save the date for Saturday, January 28 th, from 11:00am-2:00pm. This fun event for all families is the kickoff celebration of Catholic Schools Week. More information will be coming. Watch the church bulletin for details. We re not only a great school, we re a safe school too! In an effort to ensure that our school is not only the best school out there, but the safest one too, we have engaged in the ALICE Program with local Law Enforcement. ALICE stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate. ALICE Training provides options that address the unique challenges specific to Police/Law Enforcement, K-12 Schools, Healthcare Facilities, Higher Education, Businesses, Government, and Houses of Worship. Upcoming Events December 22 nd -January 2 nd Christmas Break, School and School Office Closed January 9 Family Fun Night in the Gym and Presentation Room, All families welcome! January 16 Kindergarten Roundup January 28 Spirit of the Ice Festival January 29 th -February 4 th Catholic Schools Week School Board: Danny Patterson, Chair Mary Ament-Johnson, Vice Chair Rick Epple, Finance Matt Schrempp, Finance Laurie Herder, Secretary Kelly Monette, Marketing & Enrollment Aline Ostrowski, Marketing Gretchen Chilson, Education Moe Smith, Fundraising Nancy Erdman, Teacher Rep. Fr. Tony O Neill, Ex. Officio Rhonda Eurich, Ex. Officio Becky Kennedy, Ex. Officio Engineering for Kids at OLL Engineering for Kids will be starting back up in January. This was a big hit last year. The classes are offered for kids K-5. The first session is Jr. Civil Engineering: Fun Foundations for grades K-2, and Software Engineering: Scratch Video Sensing for grades 3-5. Registration forms went home with kids and can also be found on School Speak. Summer Day Camp We are considering offering an OLL+ Summer Day Camp and are currently attempting to measure interest. Our Lady of the Lake School's "OLL+ Summer" program is designed to meet the summer needs of parents by offering a safe, accessible, and affordable school-based program. OLL+ makes it easy to provide your child with opportunities for fun, socializing, and learning. Your child will have the opportunity to participate in group activities, and more. If you would be interested in this program, please contact the school at , ext. 150 by December 31st.

8 Announcing OLL Alumni Spotlight Each week, we will be highlighting the incredible students that walked through our halls, sang in our choirs, played in our gym, and learned how to become the individuals they are today. We are proud of our students, past and present. This is why we so strongly believe in a Catholic Foundation. We educate the whole child: body, mind, and spirit. From kindergarten through 8th grade, high school and beyond, we love to watch our students grow! Consider the Poem by Robert Fulghum, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. It is during these years that we often develop our sense of selves and our sense of morality. We learn what s right and wrong, we begin to discover who we are as individuals, and we develop, arguably, our single most important trait as human beings empathy. That is why I value the education I received at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic School. For those of you who don t know me, my name is Kate Johnson. I m the oldest daughter of Steve and Chris Johnson, and I m frequently referred to as Phoebe s sister. I attended Our Lady of the Lake Catholic School from 1994 to 2005, after which I attended high school at Holy Family Catholic. After high school, I pursued a major in philosophy and a minor in psychology at the College of St. Benedict, where I graduated with honors. I finally completed my post-secondary education, at least for the time being, at William Mitchell College of Law, where I graduated summa cum laude. Although I m just starting my career, I attribute any success that I may experience to the schools that I attended, the friends and family that supported me, and the mentors who guided me all of which started at OLL. Your empty pop cans help our PTO earn money for our School! and it is easy too! Do you have a lot of pop cans you currently recycle or throw away? The PTO collects them and turns them into cash for our school! They are still being recycled and put to good use, but we get money for them to help fund needs within our school. In fact, we just got a check for $225 from the not-quite-full load we dropped recently. How great is that?! If you d like to help us earn a little extra cash by supplying your empty cans, please drop them in the trailer/bin at the back of the church parking lot near the garbage and recycle dumpsters.thanks! Can you help on the playground? If you ve been through the Essential 3 Training and would like to help out, contact the school office at , ext. 150! Cost-free ways you can help our school financially! Wondering how you can help support the School? Here are some easy ways to help that require very little effort but help us tons! Amazon Smile Box Tops for Education Campbell s Soup Labels Pop Cans Please call the school office for more information on any of these! You can directly impact the students growth in their relationship with Christ! If you are interested in direct interaction with the students or volunteering with some of the parents, there are many ways to do so. Some require that you ve attended an Essential3 session, (see below) but that s EASY to do, read about that further down! Here s some other ways you can be involved more directly (watch this part of the newsletter for new things each month depending on upcoming events): Playground Helpers - Help ensure our children play in a way that Jesus would approve of! Reading buddies - Come to the Gathering Space and join in for Morning Meeting (prayer filled start to the day) with the school kids and staff, stay afterward for an opportunity to read to (or be read to by) a student! PTO Help Who says you have to be a parent to help out with PTO initiatives?! Library Help - Help is always needed! Please contact Andrea Lahrs if interested: x136 or alahrs@schoololl.com Share a special experience or skill or knowledge as a special presenter in the classrooms! Maybe you know how to knit and would love to teach the kids, do you have other hobbies and/or interests you can share? **For many of the events fun, learning, or spiritual that involve direct interaction with the students, you will need an Essential3 first! Please visit

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