July/August 2016

2

It Begins with YOU!

3

Linking Two Worlds

7

STARLIGHTS

6

Barnyard Roundup 2016

D ear friends,

Summer is in our midst

and I am praying that

each and everyone of us

has countless moments of

enjoyment during these precious

months. As an early riser, I enjoy

listening to the birds sing outside the

windows of the parish house and chapel

windows before daily morning mass.

There is nothing more special than

seeing the sun rise above the beautiful

landscape across from the parish.

Equally true, is watching the gorgeous

sky with the sun setting to the west of

our parish properties on special

evenings.

Our properties look fabulous with the

TLC of many stewards, who are not only

busy and attentive with their own

gardens and properties, but who

delightfully and generously serve our

parish. It is a welcoming and sacred

space for yourselves and all our visitors.

They remind me of what a dear friend

told me years ago in a hurried moment,

"find a busy person and they will find

time to help you no matter what." I

have found that true throughout the

years. A truly "busy" person knows how

to manage time and serve others with a

full heart! God bless these "busy" souls

who serve Saint Catherine's Parish!

I hope you will worship with us regularly

if you are home during the summer. We

are open every week of the year.

Your presence hopefully feels blessed by

the Pastoral Staff who is here to pray

alongside you. If you are fortunate to

spend any time away I also hope you'll

worship where you find yourselves. Keep

us in prayer and support as we/I do all of

you.

Time away, respite, vacation is a gift and

so good for all who can take a moment

to breathe away from the ordinary. I

believe it does make us appreciate how

blessed we are. Not everyone can step

away like so many of us do in these

summer months. May that thought, in

this ongoing "Year of Mercy", keep us

focused on who we are called to be as

faithful stewards, being attentive to the

Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy.

God Bless, Fr. Rob

Corporal Works of Mercy

Kind acts by which we

help our neighbors with

their material and

physical needs.

feed the hungry

give drink to the thirsty

clothe the naked

shelter the homeless

visit the sick

visit the imprisoned

bury the dead

Spiritual Works of Mercy

Acts by which we help

our neighbors with their

emotional and spiritual

needs.

counsel the doubtful

instruct the ignorant

admonish sinners

comfort the afflicted

forgive offenses

bear wrongs patiently

pray for the living and

the dead

Page 2 Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church

I have been a Catechist for the

last four years and have enjoyed

every minute of it. I decided to

volunteer to give back to my

parish and get to know the

children and their families.

I love seeing the children out in

the community and having them

take the time to run up to say,

“Hi”. It gives you a wonderful

feeling to have that connection.

I am also always amazed at how much they remember

from what they have learned throughout the years

and what I have learned from them is priceless.

It validates that you really are making a difference. It

has been a very fun, loving and rewarding experience

that I will always remember and cherish.

Alisa Lanzalaco

Although my two daughters have

graduated from the

St. Catherine’s Youth Program, I

have remained as a Catechist

wherever needed, as I truly enjoy

sharing my faith and spirit with

the young members of our parish.

They are the future of the Church.

I grow in my faith with every

lesson that is taught, and my goal

is for them to grow as well. Our

meetings do not have to be stuffy, and the materials

prepared by Leslie enable the Catechists to drive home

a lesson, without the youth realizing that they are

learning (if that makes sense)! Plus, the newest

member of our family, two year old Noah, enjoys

coming along to some of the meetings where we are

baking pies for the poor, collecting food for the

hungry, or visiting the elderly in assisted living!

This is true, I teach

because of Karen. She

got up one Sunday and

asked for volunteers to

help her with faith

formation. I believe God

spoke to me and said I

should go volunteer. He

would give me what I

need to do a good job for

Him! And I love teaching the kids.

There is ALWAYS a place for you to share your

Time and Talents with the

children and youth of our Parish.

Contact Leslie Barkin or Karen Luke to find out

how they can best utilize your

Amazing Gifts God has given YOU!

Lynne Monaco

Rick Meisenzahl

Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church Page 3

It was 3:00 AM when the first pop

woke us up! We opened our sleepy

eyes to another pop and still another.

The three of us jumped out of bed and

looked out our window; none of us

able to comprehend what could be

happening at this early hour! Were

they gunshots? We hadn’t heard any

on other nights, in fact, we had felt

very safe over the last week.

Nevertheless, the pops continued for a

few minutes and then all went quiet.

By this time, Randy, Hannah and I

were all awake and a little shaken by

the noisy “alarm clock” that had

gotten us out of bed. No sooner did it

begin to quiet down, and another

cacophony of noise filled the air! I use

that word not to show my way with

vocabulary, but because there is no

better substitute to explain what it is

like to hear a brass and drum parade

headed down your darkened street in

the middle of the night!! We erupted

into laughter and disbelief; what on

earth was happening and WHO has a

parade in the middle of the night???

We only later learned that it had been

the beginning to El Sauce’s celebration

of Divine Mercy Sunday. Welcome to

Nicaragua and their wonderfully

unique participation in our Catholic

faith!

This is my favorite memory of our time

in Nicaragua with Linking Hands for

Learning and the Enlace Project; not

just because it’s funny but because

the entirety of our family mission trip

to El Sauce was about immersion into

a culture and a wonderful experience

of learning the ways and the needs of

another group of people who before

March had been very foreign to all

three of us!

One evening during our stay, we

visited an English class run by the

Enlace Project. Our friend Patrick, the

instructor, invited us in front of the

class to answer questions about the

United States. One of the first

questions was “what were your

impressions of Nicaragua before you

came here?” Honestly, I had no

impressions of this developing Central

American country before I arrived. I

had no idea what to expect or what

our daughter had signed us on for in

committing to building a school for 2

weeks during the school spring break.

Soon after touching down in Managua,

my impressions began to form. There

was definitely a great deal of security

at the airport, there was a mix of

brand new buildings, and falling down

older structures, there was a presence

of the desperately poor as well as

travelers and Nicaraguans who were

just like us. I was overwhelmed by the

language barrier at first, but quickly

began to remember some of my high

school Spanish though I would have

been lost without the help of Enrique,

Patrick and Conrad from the Enlace

Project who traveled with our group

of 22 during the duration of our stay.

continued on page 4-5

Linking Two Worlds: Our Family Mission Trip with Linking Hands for Learning

by: Leslie Barkin

Work on the school, done thoroughly with hand tools and human power.

Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church Page 4 Page 4 Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church

They were so helpful in not only assisting us with the

language but in helping us to navigate a completely

different culture with many different daily customs and

approaches to life.

After a brief stay and tour in Managua, we set out for our

destination of El Sauce. I will be the first to admit that

when our van stopped at the first home on a dirt road

and the leaders called our name to get out and meet our

host family, I was more than uncertain. I inhaled deeply

and quietly reminded myself to dive into the experience.

Sandra, Juan and their granddaughter Cristiana were

welcoming and warm and showed us to our room that

the three of us would share. Their house was simple but

comfortable and they were eager to make us feel at

home despite the fact that neither family could

understand the other very well.

We settled in and then headed to an informational

meeting about our time in the town. We learned that

according to custom it would be extremely rude to leave

anything on your plate as it was a hardship to provide

food and that water in our homes would only be available

for a few hours in the morning and a few in the evening.

There would be a barrel of water available at other times

that we would need to use for washing up. Our homes

would provide bottled water and take all precautions for

food safety. Electricity would be spotty at times, wireless

internet would be available at the Enlace office and we

would need to unplug everything when we left and not

leave anything on if we weren’t using it (such as our fans).

We learned to address everyone by saying “Adios!”

unless we were stopping to converse and that it would be

important for us to show friendship toward the citizens of

El Sauce as they would be suspicious of Americans given

our political history with their country. There was a lot to

absorb, but we were ready to embrace this new culture

and their societal rules and habits. We began our walk

back to our host home and came upon a solemn parade

of believers carrying candles and holding up a statue of

Jesus in chains. It was Holy Thursday and I couldn’t help

but feel that we were walking along with Jesus as he had

been taken from the garden of Gethsemane by the

soldiers. It was beautiful and haunting tribute to begin

the Triduum and no one spoke over the beating drum.

Our work days began the following morning. I was sad to

be leaving the center of town on Good Friday as they

were beginning to create their beautiful annual artwork

of the Stations of the Cross made with a type of colored

“mulch” along the entire road to the Catholic Church.

People had begun to build beautiful altars outside each

home. I knew that we would be missing something

special leaving town for the day, but I was able to see as

much as I could before we gathered in the back of pick-up

trucks (riding standing 8-10 per truck bed) and headed

out in the 104 degree day. As we began to ride through

town, there was so much to observe: few cars inhabited

the streets....instead they were filled with bikes (often

with an entire family on them), motorcycles, ox carts,

horses and rickshaws. A beautiful crucifix of Cristo Negro:

“Our Lord of Miracles” welcomes visitors to this

pilgrimage town that hosts the real version inside a

The method in which we traveled to our worksite each day

on a typical mountain road.

Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church Page 5

smaller chapel connected to the town’s Catholic Church.

It is visited by thousands each year, especially on its feast

day in January. I was immediately struck by how

different it is to see such an outward symbol of faith at

the prominent entrance to a town. Faith is expressed

both widely and freely in this mainly Catholic country.

As our days continued on, we collected our stories and

our memories. The work was difficult with the heat and

lack of power tools but it was so rewarding to know that

we would be providing the children of the small

mountain town of Mercedes with a new school. They

were learning outside, at desks alongside our work, as

we built the needed addition to the property and we

grew to know their little personalities and made

friendships. A side weekend trip to the mountain town

of Ocotal, a site of one of the first schools for Linking

Hands for Learning, was an amazing step back in time

where we visited area coffee farmers and their families

learning about their craft, making tortillas from scratch,

and riding horses along rocky and steep roads. These

homes were without electricity and indoor plumbing but

full of love and happiness and the simplicity of their lives

was a welcome escape from our over-stimulated lives.

Throughout our time our mission trip, we learned about

the struggles of the Nicaraguan people that reached

beyond the lack of 24/7 water and technology issues.

This is a country that faces political difficulties and an

imbalance in what is provided for its people and what is

actually needed. The people are frustrated over the

enormous fake and illuminated trees that line the streets

of Managua in contrast to the deforestation of their

woodlands and they struggle with the government’s

ability to help them face their long standing drought or

the plastic garbage that dots their beautiful countryside

because of a lack of recycling facilities amidst a plastic

loving world. It is a country that strives to exist in the

21st century with often only the ways and means of

centuries past, but it is full of people who desire better

for their families and work to improve their country.

It’s hard for me to place into words, and to condense the

experience of Nicaragua into these few pages. I share

deep gratitude on behalf of Randy, Hannah and myself

for helping us to realize this opportunity to serve; the

generosity of this parish in helping us to raise the

$16,000 needed to build the school is SO appreciated.

Our family was able to raise over $2000 toward our

group goal with your substantial donations. What a gift

it was to be able to engage in stewardship and works of

mercy in this way. We feel like we will be forever

changed by our time in El Sauce; not just by the work

that was accomplished but by learning so much about

the amazing people of the country. Their life is different

from ours in many ways but we found so much common

ground. What a blessing that is, in an often divided and

divisive world. Though we went with open minds, our

hearts opened to such a great extent that we have made

new family members and lifelong friends and have

developed a profound respect for the Nicaraguan people

who welcomed us into their homes, cared for us when

we were ill, offered a friendly smile on our travels and

desired to share with us their stories and their dreams.

What a gift it is to learn about others, to walk in the

shoes of another and to share what you can with

someone else in a different part of the world; we have

been blessed by the opportunity!

The street we lived on for our stay in Nicaragua.

Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church Page 6

We’re FIXIN to have a root tootin’ good time at VBS 2016

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

LESSON

of the Day

Jesus is the Good

Shepherd

Jesus feeds 5,000

people

Jesus tells about a

Sower

Jesus tells about a

Lost Son

Jesus appears to

Mary in the garden.

TAKE HOME

Theme

Jesus cares,

NOW & FOREVER

Jesus provides,

NOW & FOREVER

Jesus leads,

NOW & FOREVER

Jesus forgives,

NOW & FOREVER

Jesus is Savior,

NOW & FOREVER

AUGUST 8TH-12TH 9AM-NOON $60.00 per child All are welcomed who are entering Pre-School to 5th grade

REGISTER ONLINE TODAY AT vbsmate.com/StCathMendonNY

Please mail or drop off your payment to St. Catherine.

Registration will not be complete until payment is received

~Each day of the week is filled with fun lessons and activities~

† We will dig into the Bible, by learning memory verses while enjoying science experiments.

† Crafts will be made as keepsakes that help reinforce the message of God’s love for us.

† Snacks are eaten to keep everyone energized while teaching a “tasty” message.

† Songs are learned with action videos to help everyone step out in faith .

† Games are a part of our day to continue the fun while being disciples of Jesus.

† Each day will conclude with a skit by our very own Summer Intensive Students.

Leslie Hulbert

I would like to nominate Leslie Hulbert for a Star Light Award. She is the Chair of the 2015-2016 Parish Pastoral Council. She has done a remarkable job and is a true leader. Under her guidance an ad-hoc committee, made up of members of the council, have worked very hard on trying to make reaching our CMA goal a reality. They held many meetings and work sessions, implementing their ideas and plans that resulted in additional donations that have put us very close to our final goal. Leslie has spoken at weekend Masses during the past year, bringing us up to date on Council activities. She is the epitome of a true Steward of our Parish and we thank her for her dedication and service.

With Gratitude, Bob Goldbach

Kevin Curran

Kevin Curran is a wonderful young boy with a generous heart and understanding of stewardship. Kevin (age 8) was playing Michigan Poker with relatives the night before his First Communion. He won some money and decided to donate it to the CMA! Wow – Kevin you are a very special young guy and I thank you for your witness of blessing St. Catherine’s so generously. With Gratitude, Fr. Rob

Sue Favro

I would like to nominate Sue Favro! She was a great Model of Mercy on Sunday to a parishioner in need of comforting and prayers. Thank you so much for your selfless act of putting this family first! With Gratitude, Karen Luke

Sue Corwin & Elmer Beke

I am writing to nominate Sue Corwin and Elmer Beke for a Star Light Designation. After Ruth became ill and couldn’t continue with R.C.I.A. they decided to restart the program for Sarah Wood and the rest of us in attendance. This was so important for Sarah to be able to continue with her faith journey, about which she was so enthusiastic. I was also a recipient of their caring and help. Due to my own health issue they were there for me by offering to drive me to other religious events. Sue drove me to an important doctor’s appointment and waited the 2 hours it took. I appreciate their caring and kindness towards others and me. Sincerely and with gratitude, Glenda Nothnagle

"Stars of St. Catherine lighting our world"

Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church Page 7

If you know someone who is a STAR LIGHT, please tell us

about it. Nomination forms are available in the

Gathering Space or online at www.saintcath.org

Upcoming

Events

Non-Profit Org.

U.S. Postage Paid

Victor, NY 14564

Permit #17

SAINT CATHERINE

OF S IENA

26 Mendon-Ionia Rd.

Mendon, NY 14506

585.624.4990

Www.saintcath.org

M a s s S c h e d u l e

S a t u r d a y 5 : 0 0 p m † S u n d a y 8 : 1 5 a m & 1 0 : 3 0 a m † M o n d a y t h r u T h u r s d a y 9 : 0 0 a m

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Summer Open Meals

July 23rd at 3:30pm

in Community Center

August 21st at 3:30pm

in Community Center

Vacation Bible School & 6th/7th grade Summer Intensive

August 8th-12th Vacation Bible School

9am-Noon

Summer Intensive

9:00am-4:00am