F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H

Collections for February 11-12, 2017 Monday, February 20 No Tuesday, February 21 for Anna Mae Wack + Wednesday, February 22 for Bud & Kate White + for Don Donohoe + Thursday, February 23 for Ralph Schneider + Friday, February 24 for Ruth Higdon + Saturday, February 25 (Church Support / Church in Eastern Europe ) for Lucille Anderson + Sunday, February 26 (Church Support / Church in Eastern Europe ) for the People of the Parish for Corrine Kautzman + Gospel readings for the week of Feb 20-24 February 20 Mark 9:14-29 February 21 Mark 9:30-37 February 22 Matthew 16:13-19 February 23 Mark 9:41-50 February 24 Mark 10:1-12 Ash Wednesday is March 1 st. es will be held in the church at 7:00 a.m., 12:10 p.m., and 5:30 p.m. A Communion service with distribution of ashes will be held at St. Francis Manor at 10:00 a.m. Collection Budgeted Income Actually Collected Sunday Envelopes : $3,633.99 $3,070.00 WeShare contributions: $830.83 Total Sunday Giving: $3,900.83 Offertory: $142.61 $81.01 Deacons Fund: $5.00 Repairs & Improvements: $25.00 Energy Needs: $792.00 Coffee & Rolls: $72.00 Capital Campaign: $1, 205.00 Wednesday Night Meal: $127.00 Cathedral Collection: $763.00 Deacon s Fund Income and Disbursements July 1, 2016 through January 31, 2017 Through your continued generosity, the Deacon s Fund has allowed people in our parish and community to stay in their homes, keep their lights on and have food on their table. Please know that your support of this fund, no matter the amount, is greatly appreciated by many who come seeking assistance. Deacons Fund Income: $12,744.38 July 2016 - January 2017 Shelter: $8,123.11 Food: $866.64 Transportation: $994.12 Utilities: $3,271.85 Prescriptions/ Medical: $400.00 Total Expense: $13,675.72 F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H 2 0 1 7 19 SUN 8:30 AM 9:00 AM (Coffee & Rolls) Confirmation preparation (REC) 10 AM -12:30 PM 11:00 AM 20 MON 21 TUE Building Project Mtg (Rectory) 5:15 PM RCIA (Church Basement) 6:30 PM 22 WED 10:00 AM (St. Francis) Adoration Faith Formation Parish Life Meal: Hosted by Nancy Romero Menu: TBD Serving at 6:10-7:10 K - 6th Grade 7:20 8:30 7-12 Grade JH Rally Forms due 23 THUR 24 FRI 25 SAT Saturdays Discussion Group at 10:00 AM at Frontier Confession 4:30 PM 26 SUN 8:30 AM 9:00 AM (Coffee & Rolls) 11:00 AM 27 MON 28 TUE RCIA (Church Basement) 6:30 PM 1 WED ASH WEDNESDAY 7:00 AM Communion Service 10:00 AM (St. Francis) 12:10 PM Adoration No Faith Formation 2 THUR 3 FRI Church Women United World Day of Prayer 12:00 PM Fish Fry (REC) 5-7 PM Stations of the Cross (church) 4 SAT Saturdays Discussion Group at 10:00 AM at Frontier Confession 4:30 PM

Leaven or No Leaven? "Watch out, guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod." (Jesus Christ, Gospel of Mark) "Do not engage the devil" "Satan is sly and cleaver" (Pope Francis) Many messages bombard us daily claiming to be from reputable, authentic sources but they aren't. They are false messages that are covered over with sweetness. They seem like they are reasonable but they aren't. They are twisted words and phrases that are joined to validate one point of view. If it's too good to be true, it probably is. Consider the source. We have to start thinking for ourselves again and choose where we get our information - from God = good; from a TV news magazine show = probably not; from the Church - good; from the morning coffee klatch = better check it out yourself. Is the President's possible executive order on religious freedom good? I'm not sure. I've been reading about it. I'm not going to take some aide's word for it. Beware. The Worship & Spirituality Commission is looking for keyboard players that would be willing to play at an occasional 11 a.m. Sunday. If you would be interested in doing this or would like more information, please contact Sharon Mealey at 641-236-5717 or smealey@iowatelecom.net. Just to let everyone know that after Lucille Anderson passing, I have volunteered to take over the role of Prayer Chain chairperson. To those on the prayer chain, I will be contacting you as I am contacted with prayer requests. If anyone wants to be on the prayer chain, give me, Tomma Lou Jay, a call or if you want to put a person on the prayer chain. My number is 236-5179 (home) or 641-691-0733 (cell). Thank you. ~ Tomma Lou Jay FAITH FORMATION Contact Crystal DeNeve 236-8838 grinnellstmarydre@diodav.org Feb 19 Confirmation preparation 10-12:30 REC Feb 22 K-12 Classes (JH Rally Forms Due) March 1 Ash Wednesday NO classes March 8 K-12 Classes March 11 First Eucharist Retreat March 12 1st grade hosts coffee and rolls March 12 Confirmation 2017 Preparation Junior High Diocesan Rally ithirst to be held March 19th. Flyers were handed out and e-mails to families were sent this past week. Registrations are Due February 22nd. You can also find more information AND registration forms on our website. For Adults: RCIA All adults are invited to attend RCIA sessions. They are held on Tuesdays from 6:30-8 PM in the church basement unless otherwise noted. February Adult learning/ RCIA will focus on the first four sessions of the program called Oremus (prayer) the last four sessions of this series will be held in April/May, you need not attend all the sessions. March sessions will focus on the Catechism. 33 days to Morning Glory a do-it-yourself retreat that can also be done as a group as we are, starting April 10th. Contact me (Crystal) for more information. Additional Adult Formation Opportunities offered around the area can be found on St. Mary s website. The NEW catering company for the Iowa Speedway has contacted us please put June 23/24, July 8/9 & 28/29 on your calendars. The Speedway work we do helps fund MANY youth activities AND our Capital Campaign. Keep watching for more information as we get it. We had a wonderful experience last year with 24 hour Adoration and will be offering it again this Lent. The Catechism teaches that Adoration is "the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator". It is "the first act in the virtue of religion." Adoration draws us together as children of God. St Benedict, in his rule for the order, says "Let nothing, therefore, be put before prayer". Our unity is needed in order to be a light on the hill, inviting everyone in our increasingly fragmented and death-dealing world to join. You can find the Sign Up Genius link on St. Mary s webpage. You may also contact Jay or Crystal and we can help you get signed up. Church Women United will be hosting their annual World Day of Prayer at St. Mary s on March 3 beginning at Noon. The presentation this year is entitled A Glimpse of the Philippine Situation. All are invited to attend.

St Mary s Catholic Church Dream Vacation Raffle The clock is ticking!! Time will soon be running out For your chance to win a fabulous dream vacation! This vacation opportunity includes two airline tickets OR cash for ground travel and lodging for up to 8 people for up to 7 days at dozens of fantastic locations!! Buy a raffle ticket for $100 for an opportunity to win an incredible dream vacation valued up to $10,000! Also when you buy a ticket you are automatically entered into the remaining TWO CASH DRAWINGS!! Congratulations to our first $500 cash winner, Kevin McLaughlin of Des Moines! Congratulations to our second $500 cash winners, Paul & Rita Goedken! Don t miss out on the $1,000 and $500 cash drawings when the Grand prize is drawn!! See website for official rules and exceptions. (stmarygrinnell.com) Vacation Travel dates from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018. Vacation destination choices are from Vidanta Resorts and Destinations, RCI and Hilton International. Please make all checks to St. Mary s Church. St. Mary s reserves the right to alter the prizes or drawing dates based upon ticket sales and reserves the right to extend sales for up to 30 days. All proceeds benefit St. Mary s Capital Campaign. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact the parish office, at (641) 236-7486.

Grinnell Knights of Columbus Annual Lenten Fish Fry Every Friday during Lent BEGINNING March 3, 2017 Serving from 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. in the REC Baked & Fried Fish, Baked Potato, Fries, Macaroni & Cheese, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Coleslaw & Beverages A d u l t s : $ 8 A g e s 5-1 4 : $ 4, 4 & U n d e r : F r e e, F a m i l y : $20 A l l Y o u C a n E a t! The children's youth envelope request forms are due on February 19th. If you haven't returned yours yet, there is a basket in the back of the church with request forms in it and you can fill out a new request form and just place it back in the basket or you may turn it in to the parish office on Monday, February 20th. Thanks for participating!! Banking, Gifts of Stocks and other Financial Instruments If you are planning on gifting the parish with stocks or other financial instruments we ask that you work with Tom Cirks in order to get them properly transferred and credited. Tom will be able to help you make sure that the stocks go where you would like them to go and to make sure that you get credit for the gift. We have closed our accounts with Edward Jones and are now banking almost entirely with Lincoln Savings Bank. Update on Parish Mission: Due to a scheduling mix-up our Parish Mission originally scheduled to begin Mar. 12 th has been changed to Mar. 9 th & 10 th. Please re-mark your calendars for the new dates for this event. Jon Leonetti, a nationally known Catholic speaker, will give our Mission talks. Those that attended last year s Christ Our Life Conference will remember him as the MC. Read more about him at www.jonleonetti.com. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we have opening in our Wednesday Night Meal schedule where we desperately need help preparing and serving the meal. We have THREE spots to fill for Wednesday Night Meal which are March 22 & 29 and April 19. If you can help or wish to learn more about the Wednesday Night Meal, please contact the parish office at 236-7486. Thank you! For those of you who have not yet made your pledge to this year's Annual Diocesan Appeal, please consider a pledge by picking up an envelope in your pew. You may return the completed form to the parish office via the collection basket or mail it directly to the Diocese of Davenport. Liturgical Roles for February 25 & 26, 2017 5:30 pm 9:00 am 11:00 am SACRISTAN MaryEllen White Dennis Crawford Patti Guillaume GREETER Cathy Wise John/Connis Dayton Sharon Mealey USHERS Brian Cranston Duane Bissen Adam Gruman Mike Hotchkin Steve Bernemann Ryan Gruman Mike Kriegel Jim Martes Lee McFee Larry VanErsvelde Mark Romano David Smith READER Pat Gosselink Deb Molitor James Miller GIFT BEARER Larry/Gini VanErsvelde Pat Wauters Rick Jacoby Family EUCH MINISTERS Roger Flander Steve Kenkel Elizabeth Dobbs Barb Flander Beth Kenkel Rita Goedken Susie Kinney Patti Guillaume Marsha Maschmann Rick Jacoby Deb Molitor Chris Molitor SERVERS Nina Walton Matthew Cunningham Parker Volkman Libby Walton Josh Osborne Sloan Volkman Taylor Smith Alex Barr

Poweshiek Animal League Shelter (PALS) is desperately looking for volunteers! If you enjoy the company of cats or dogs (or both!), this is the volunteer job for you. Come out and socialize, feed, and clean for cats and dogs. Shifts are offered both weekdays and weekends. For more information, call 236-4288, or email us at palssheltermanager@gmail.com. OLD TOWELS NEEDED: If you have old bath towels that you were going to throw away, consider donating them to St. Mary s as we use old towels to help us polish the brass handrail, the Tabernacle and our sacred vessels. You are welcome to drop off your old towels to our parish office during normal working hours or leave them beneath the back table at church. Thank you! CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH To view the Catholic Catechism this week go to: www.usccb.org/catechism/text/ Book Study 33 Days to Morning Glory DATE CHANGE: The study will now begin April 10th The 98 year old Mother Superior from Ireland was dying. The nuns gathered around her bed trying to make her last journey comfortable. They gave her some warm milk to drink but she refused. Then one of the nuns took the glass back to the kitchen. Remembering a bottle of Irish whiskey received as a gift the previous Christmas, she opened and poured a generous amount into the warm milk. Back at Mother Superior's bed, she held the glass to her lips. Mother drank a little, then a little more and before they knew it, she had drunk the whole glass down to the last drop. "Mother," the nuns asked with earnest, "please give us some wisdom before you die." She raised herself up in bed and with a pious look on her face said, "Don't sell that cow. Have you been wanting to help the Church but would rather not be out in front of people teaching or leading a committee? We have a team of dedicated people who care for our Church linens. Did you know that the linens we use at must be cared for in a special way? Washed in a special way? Folded and ironed in a special way? It's true! The group is looking for several people to welcome into their ranks. Currently, the duty rotates and each person takes care of the linens for 2 months, once in the first part of the year and once in the second part of the year. If you are interested please contact the parish office. To report child abuse contact: Iowa Department of Human Services Child Abuse Hotline: 800-362-2178 and if it involves clergy or church personnel also notify Alicia Owens, the Victim Assistance Coordinator,563-349-5002; vac@diodav.org or PO Box 232, Bettendorf, IA 52722. Join us for Oremus: A Guide to Catholic Prayer teaches you the essentials of an effective and fruitful prayer life. Over the course of eight weeks you will discover how to place yourself in the presence of God. Following the wisdom of the saints and the Tradition of the Church, you will learn how to express yourself to God in prayer, and how to make prayer an integral part of your daily life. Oremus includes eight video presentations by Fr. Mark Toups, lively small-group discussions, and inspiring readings and reflections for each day. The first four of eight sessions will meet on Tuesday s in February from 6:30-8 PM in the Church Basement. We will be continuing with the last four sessions after Easter. You need not attend all the sessions.

St. Mary s Catholic Church in Grinnell (1002 Broad Street, Grinnell, IA) Who is God and Why Does That Matter? Thursday March 9th beginning at 6:30 PM God s Dream For Your Life! Friday, March 10th beginning at 6:30 PM Refreshments will follow each presentation