Patriotic parishioners
The Knights of Columbus of St. Isidore Parish
carry a large flag during the July 4 parade in Danville. They are,
left from front, Jack Martin, Cedric Macadaeg, Terry Gotowka; right
from front, Hank Schutzel, Clark Valceschini, Jim Candy. Elmer Spartz
and Francisco Cabrita also participated as flag carriers. The parish’s
Cub Scouts followed behind the flag to complete the patriotic statement.
DOUG DURAN PHOTO |
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Benefit concert
Omar Abdul-Rahim, an incoming seventh grader
at Corpus Christi School in Piedmont, will perform a piano concert,
Aug. 28, to benefit Empower the Children, an organization aiding needy
children in Calcutta, India. A student of piano for the past five
years, Abdul-Rahim, 12, will play a selection of classical pieces
at 7:30 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes in Oakland. He initiated the
performance after hearing a missionary speak about poor and disabled
children in Calcutta. A $10 donation is requested. Empower the Children
was founded by a New Jersey woman who answered a call for help from
Mother Teresa. |
Fr. Jayson Landeza Day
The Oakland City Council declared July 21 as Father
Jayson Landeza Day in honor of the priest’s 10 years of “dedicated
and distinguished service” as chaplain to the Oakland police and
fire departments as well as pastor of St. Columba Parish. The Council
also cited Father Landeza’s participation in the Crisis Response
and Support Network of Catholic Charities of the East Bay and his service
on Mayor Ron Dellum’s Committee of Interfaith Advisors.
This month Father Landeza begins a year-long sabbatical that includes
study at the Washington Theological Union in Washington, D.C., the North
American College in Rome, and the Institute for Language and Culture in
Cuernavaca, Mexico. Father Aidan McAleenan is the new parochial administrator
at St. Columba.
Chamber honors SVDP
The Oakland Chamber of Commerce 2009 Award for excellence
in community service was recently presented to the Society of St. Vincent
de Paul of Alameda County. SVDP helps people through some of the toughest
times in their lives, said Philip Arca, SVDP executive director.
Last year the nonprofit organization aided more than 140,000 needy people
throughout Alameda County with social services and job training. More
than 800 volunteers work with the organization.
What’s in your attic?
The Hearst Art Gallery of St. Mary’s College
in Moraga will host a Bonhams and Butterfields appraisal clinic on
Aug. 12, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Specialists will be on hand to appraise
historical and modern California and American paintings, furniture, decorative
arts, Asian art, and jewelry. Suggest donation is $10 per item, with all
proceeds benefitting Hearst Art Gallery exhibitions and educational programs.
Gallery admission will be free on Aug. 12 with an appraisal donation.
Classic Catholic novels
Pauline Books and Media in Redwood City is inviting
Bay Area Catholics to explore some of the great classic Catholic novels
as it re-launches its Catholic Fiction Book Club next month.
The book club will meet the second Wednesday of the month, from 7 –
8:30 p.m. at Pauline Books and Media, 2640 Broadway in Redwood City. Upcoming
novels include “Exiles” by Ron Hansen (Sept. 9); “A
Thread of Grace” by Mary Doria Russell (Oct. 14); and “Helena”
by Evelyn Waugh (Nov. 11). For more information, call (650) 369-4230.
Sharing the harvest
Wondering what to do with all the extra fruit and vegetables
from your backyard garden? The Walnut Creek Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice
Center is collecting those overflowing harvests for the Monument
Crisis Center in Concord, which is helping many families struggling
during the recession. Drop-offs may be made at the Mt. Diablo Peace and
Justice Center, 55 Eckley Lane in Walnut Creek, on Mondays between 10
a.m. and 2 p.m. or at the Monument Crisis Center, 2350 Monument Blvd.
in Concord, Mondays through Thursdays, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Tuesdays,
9 a.m. to 6 p.m. More information: www.mtdpc.org
or call (925) 933-7850.
Around
the Parishes
All Saints Parish in Hayward will celebrate the
100th birthday of its landmark church with a fiesta, Sept. 11 –
13, that includes game booths, food, and stage entertainment. Fiesta hours
are: Sept. 11, 6 – 10 p.m.; Sept. 12, 1 – 10 p.m.; and Sept.
13, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Additional information: www.allsaintsfiesta.org.
Thirty-one Bay Area youngsters took part in the two-week Joy of Singing
Choral Camp at St. Bonaventure Church in Concord. Led by Barbara
Wolpman and Jenny Matteucci, the camp concluded this past weekend
(Aug. 8 and 9) with a musical production of “Malice in the Palace
– The Story of Esther.”
St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Berkeley will host “Community
Action Sunday” on Aug. 30 at 1:30 p.m. The event, sponsored by the
Berkeley Organizing Congregations for Action (BOCA), will address
such issues as family reunification, just immigration reform and affordable
health care reform and will feature interfaith prayer, a citizenship drive,
and free consultations by immigration attorneys. BOCA is a non-profit,
faith-based community organization comprised of 18 member congregations,
including three Catholic parishes.
Oakland’s St. Patrick Parish will host the 30-voice Brighter
Day Children’s Choir from Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Los
Angeles, Aug. 16. The children will sing the parts of the Mass and
lead the congregation in song during the 10 a.m. Gospel Mass. Several
young people will accompany the choir on musical instruments. The choir
is directed by Sheree Brown-Johnson, wife of Deacon Douglas
Johnson.
This fall St. Raymond Parish in Dublin will again offer the Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola. An introductory session will be held,
Sept. 5, from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. in the parish’s Kids Club.
The entire program will start in September and end in May with sessions
on Tuesdays from 7 – 9 p.m. The cost for books and materials is
$25. For more information, contact Bill Dennis, (925) 216-6508; Miriam
Pasquel, (925) 828-9746; or the parish office, (925) 828-2460.
The Divine Mercy Devotion is being sung at St. Barnabas Church,
1427 Sixth St. in Alameda, every Tuesday after the 5:30 p.m. Mass. The
Divine Mercy Devotion is based on the 1930s-era writings of St. Faustina
Kowalska, a member of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, who was canonized
in 2000. The focus of the devotion is seeking and trusting God’s
mercy and showing mercy to others.
Members of St. Anne Parish in Walnut Creek prayed a Novena to St.
Anne, June 18 to 26. Unique to the novena was a presentation of a relic
of St. Anne to the parish by the Carmelite Sisters of Berkeley.
Father Jayson Landeza, who just completed 10 years as pastor at
St. Columba Parish in Oakland, and Father Robert Rien, pastor
at St. Ignatius Parish in Antioch, attended the International Police
Chaplains Conference in Knoxville, Tenn. July 11 – 17.
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Around
the Schools
More than 300 junior and high school students from over
40 schools in the Oakland Diocese gathered at Holy Spirit School in Fremont
for the 29th diocesan Student Leadership Conference. The students
met in discussion groups under the guidance of teachers and school administrators
to learn how to be better leaders in their school communities.
De La Salle High in Concord hosted 175 youngsters, grades 4 through
9, at its inaugural summer sports camps, providing coaching in five sports.
The camps also raised funds for the Bishop John S. Cummins Scholarship
Program that provides tuition assistance to DLS students with a family
income at or below the federal poverty level. Plans are underway for 2010
summer camps; registration info will be available in the fall.
Aaron Richardson, a 7th grade student at Our Lady of Grace School
in Castro Valley, served as a summer intern at the western region
offices of the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers in San Lorenzo. Richardson
helped organize the mission library and write a review of a video that
was included in the mission’s July e-letter.
Speaking of the Our Lady of Grace School, last month it was recognized
as a “Green Ribbon Certified School” by the Castro Valley
Sanitary District for the second year in a row. It met or exceeded program
requirements for sustainable implementation of waste reduction and recycling.
The school has reduced its trash by 50 percent, continues its successful
“Used Uniform” sale and “freecycling” of unwanted
soaker hoses, developed a recycling program benefiting Children’s
Hospital, composted and mulched on Earth Day, and took part in its first
“No Waste Lunch” program.
The fourth graders of St. Joseph School in Fremont donated over
$3700 to the George Mark House, a haven in San Leandro for seriously and
terminally ill children that is at risk of closure because of the financial
downturn. The students, who raised the funds during the 10th annual Mission
Walk, were inspired to make the donation by Michael Vaccaro, a former
student and volunteer at the George Mark House. The Mission Walk began
when funds were needed for an earthquake retrofit of Mission San Jose.
The event has since supported many other charitable organizations as well.
Four elementary school principals from the Oakland Diocese attended the
Catholic School Principals’ Institute last month at Santa Clara
University. They are: Gloria Galarsa, Our Lady of the Rosary in Union
City; Arlene Marseille, St. Joseph in Pinole; Kathy Gannon-Briggs, Christ
the King in Pleasant Hill, and Sister James Marien Dyer, St. Francis
of Assisi in Concord.
“Principles and Practice: The Dilemma of Faith Versus Politics,”
an essay written by Andrew David King, an incoming senior at Moreau
Catholic High School in Hayward, won first place in DeSales University’s
National Catholic Essay competition.
Mericien Venzon, newly graduated from Moreau High, took
first place in the National Figure Skating competition in the Philippines.
Oakland’s Holy Names High School hosted two camps this summer
— Galileo Summer Quest, for 5th to 8th graders, and Cal Shakes Summer
Theater Program, which offered professional training for young thespians.
The Catholic Daughters of Court St. Raymond recently announced
the winners of their scholarship and education contests. Abby Maguire,
who graduated from St. Raymond School in June, received the 8th
Grade Scholarship Award. Several 5th graders at St. Raymond’s also
took home local honors: Katelyn Matheny, first place for poetry;
Lena Costello, second place, and Jack Romero, third place.
In the essay contest, Jeanina Ng won first place and Michael
McKinney, second place. In the computer art category, Brian Wibert
and Albina McIntosh, took first and second place honors, respectively
in the computer art category. Jeanina Ng, the local essay winner,
took third place in the state division.
What’s on EWTN? Special programs featured on the Eternal
Word Television Network this month include “Pilgrim Churches
of Rome,” a tour of seven historic churches frequented by pilgrims
for centuries, which airs Aug. 23 at 7 p.m. and Aug. 25 at 11 a.m. The
five-part series, “Catholicism and the Media,” hosted
by media veteran Teresa Tomeo, Aug. 24 – 28 at 12 a.m. and 3:30
p.m.
EWTN is carried 24 hours a day on Comcast Ch. 229, AT and T Ch. 562, Astound
Ch. 116, DISH Satellite Ch. 261 and DirecTV Ch. 370; in Alameda on Ch.
30. More information: www.ewtn.com.
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Names, News, Notes
Several Catholic-affiliated charities serving in Richmond
are among 19 organizations receiving community grants from Chevron. Catholic
Charities of the East Bay received $117,054 for its English Action
Center, which teaches English to low-income English learners. The Greater
Richmond Interfaith Program (GRIP), of which several Catholic parishes
are members, received $50,000 for its Souper Center that provides daily
hot meals to the homeless and hungry and its Family Resource Center. Salesian
High School was granted $25,000 for a gang prevention program and
the Salesian Boys & Girls Club received $20,000 for its computer
center.
The staff of Catholic Charities of the East Bay gathered for a memorial
Mass, July 10 for their colleague, Matt Gibson, diocesan coordinator
for Catholic Campaign of Human Development and a development assistant
in CCEB’s development department, who died July 4.
Ray and Roberta Montes were recently selected to serve as Worldwide
Marriage Encounter area leaders. The couple, who have been married for
32 years, have been involved in Worldwide Marriage Encounter since 2003.
Congratulations to Barbara and Chuck DePaoli, members at St.
Michael Parish in Livermore, on the occasion of their 50th wedding
anniversary.
As a result of their joint efforts, the Y.L.I. Laurentian #70 and
Y.M.I. American Council #8 presented a check for $5,300 to the
St. Joseph Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing on July 23.
The 32nd Annual SPRED Labor Day Retreat will take place at San
Damiano Retreat Center in Danville the weekend of Sept. 4. Those interested
in becoming helper catechists are invited to sign up for the orientation
session scheduled for Aug. 27, from 7 – 9:30 p.m. at the SPRED Model
Training Center, 3705 Dorisa Ave., in Oakland. For more information, contact
SPRED at (510) 635-7252 or visit www.oakdiocese.org/spred.
Media Alliance, an Oakland-based organization that advocates for
media access and press freedom, continues to help those who have yet to
make the digital TV switchover. Drop-in services for converter box demonstrations
and hands-on installation assistance are offered on Thursdays from 3 –
7 p.m. at 1904 Franklin St. in downtown Oakland. Services are available
in English and Spanish with referrals for other language needs. Other
times are available by appointment. Call: (510) 832-9000.
New parking rates are now in effect at Oakland’s Cathedral of
Christ the Light. Weekday rates: each 15 minutes, $1.25; one hour,
$5; three-plus hours, $15. Saturday and Sunday: $5 flat fee. Those attending
Mass receive free parking as follows: weekdays, 90 minutes; weekends,
three hours. Those attending a night meeting at the Chancery or parish:
$2.
Individuals of Lithuanian descent who would like to learn more about the
customs, language or history of Lithuania are being invited to join the
Knights of Lithuania, a national Roman Catholic fraternal organization
with some 3,000 members across the United States. Membership requirements
include being a practicing Catholic of Lithuanian descent or being a person
married to a Catholic of Lithuanian descent. More information: www.knightsoflithuania.com.
A website sponsored by the California Catholic Conference offers
useful information for individuals, families and parish communities facing
end-of-life issues. “Embracing Our Dying” (www.embracingourdying.com)
provides an overview of Catholic moral theology on death and dying and
related information such as current medical and hospital practices, pertinent
Church documents, and information on hospice care, parish nurses and other
parish-based services.
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