THE TORCH St. John the Baptist Parish

St. John the Baptist Parish
Spring/Lent 2013
THE TORCH
Volume 40, Issue 1
From the Pastor’s Desk
When will my life begin...
By Fr. Tim Kallaher, Pastor
You are in the midst of a job
search. You are fighting the
insurance company to cover a
loss or medical care. You are
working through therapy to
overcome an illness or
disability. You are juggling
several courses to finish your
degree. You are buried in a
critical project at work.
Fr. Tim Kallaher
Things you want to do,
dreams you want to realize, are put on hold. You find
yourself saying, I can’t wait for my life to begin…
And you imagine: My life will begin when…
My life will begin when I get a new job.
My life will begin when I can rebuild.
My life will begin when I know my daughter will be
fine.
My life will begin when I can fend for myself again.
My life will begin when the tuitions are covered
and our retirement is funded.
My life will begin when…
Naomi Levy, in her book Hope Will Find You,
writes that, while caring for her critically ill daughter,
she often wondered when her life would “begin,”
when she could realize the dreams and goals she had
for herself.
“I could see the ways I’d been promising myself
there was a heaven waiting for me. And just then
something snapped inside of my soul: This IS my
heaven. I’d been walking around thinking, ‘This isn’t
my life, my life is coming, it’s just around the bend.’ I
started thinking of all the people I knew who were
chanting that very same line.
“I could always see there was a whole tribe of
people just like me and we were all caught in the same
lie. We were fooling ourselves into thinking our lives
hadn’t begun. But none of us were fetuses in the
womb, and we weren’t ghosts either, we were people
who had to learn to LIVE inside the imperfect lives we
had.”
On Wednesday, February 13 we begin the season
of Lent. Lent is the time of intense preparations for the
catechumens who will be initiated into the Church at
the Easter Vigil. It is also a time of “retreat” for the
baptized. We remember that “our life began” at
baptism and that the joy of God’s presence is already
here in our “imperfect lives.” During Lent we enter
into the Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and
almsgiving, which seem so joyless. However, these
practices free us to be filled with joy, knowing that the
Lord is already with us and that we are his.
Save the Dates for this Summer
Parish Picnic at Stricker’s Grove
Thursday, June 13 starting at 5pm till 10pm
Summer Religious Education Program (Gr. 1 - 8)
June 17 - 28, Monday - Friday, 8:30 - 12:30
St. John’s Day
Sunday, June 23 after 11:00 am Mass
Vacation Bible School
July 15 - 19, Monday - Friday, 9:00 am - Noon for Ages 4
through grade 4
Parish Festival
Starting Friday, August 16 thru Sunday, August 18
Serving God, Cafeteria-Style
St. John the Baptist & the OTR Drop Inn Center
By: Steven Newton, Communication Commission Volunteer Writer
C
hrist commands His church to feed
the hungry and shelter the
homeless. The Drop Inn Center in
Over the Rhine takes this task
seriously, trying to meet the basic needs of
the least among our brothers and sisters. But
by the fall of 2009, due to lack of funding
and donations, the shelter feared that “basic”
might soon become unattainable. Meals for
the two hundred residents often consisted of
thin soup and saltines, washed down by a
small cup of water. When the areas largest
homeless shelter asked for help from the
churches of Cincinnati, St. John the Baptist
responded.
St. John’s parishioners serving food at the Over-the-Rhine Drop Inn Center
St. John’s Parish Steps Up
Pat Crowder convened the project’s first meeting with
Diann Fischesser, Mary Lou Bierman, Tim Lees and
Georgia Crowell in attendance. Diann volunteered to
lead the preparation of the food while Jim Bob
Schuler, his family and the Lees family managed the
transportation of the food downtown and served the
meal at the shelter. Thus, in November 2009, our
parish took responsibility for providing dinner on the
first Thursday each month.
The parishioners at St. John’s responded immediately.
Dozens of families support the project with monthly
donations of non-perishable food. Fifteen women
volunteer to brown ground beef every month. Hunters
bring venison during season. The Festival Committee
donates left over chicken each year and the Fish Fry
chips in after they wrap up operations during Lent.
One family offered to provide dessert and they deliver
forty-two dozen chocolate chip cookies for each meal
St. John’s serves.
Every First Thursday of the Month
Diann and the cooking crew kick off their part of the
operation on Thursday afternoon in the school
cafeteria. Her philosophy from the start has been to
provide nutritious, filling home-cooked food for the
residents of the Drop Inn Center. These men and
women obviously lack the physical essentials of life,
but Diann notes how we often overlook their need for
caring and love as well.
Diane Cecardo writes a short prayer asking the Lord to
bless the food, the eaters and the cooks. After the
prayer has been recited, Tom and Dorothy Stenger
take charge of the stove. Mary Eckhoff and Kathy
Doherty prepare the salad and fruit. Cathy Young and
Diane Cecardo spread margarine on the bread—a
surprising luxury for the residents—as very rarely do
they get anything more than plain bread. Many
students pitch in, scurrying around the church and
school gathering the donated supplies and bringing
them to the kitchen.
Time to Serve
They finish around five o’clock when Jim Bob arrives
with the serving team, who loads up two cars. His
children, Allison and Jason, go down and serve the
meals almost every month. Others that have stepped
up and helped have been Kyle Brockerman, Michael
Langenbrunner, Tim and Josh Lees, Samantha Brock
and her family, Steve and Kelsey Aerni, Chris Dole
and Andrew Silver.
Story continued on next page...
Serving God, Cafeteria-Style Continued…
“…God is blessing them through our work and they certainly hope God blesses our parish.”
At the Drop Inn Center, they serve the meal cafeteriastyle. Residents collect an entree, salad, bread and fruit
before completing the meal with cookies and
lemonade. Linda Lee has donated the lemonade mix
almost every month for the past three years.
Jim Bob regrets that the food preparation staff cannot
come down and share what he considers the best part
of the project. He remembers how much the heartfelt
thanks and spontaneous applause have meant to him.
“These people are truly grateful,” he said. “They really
think God is blessing them through our work and they
certainly hope God blesses our parish.”
How You Can Get Involved
While St. John’s is making a difference, there is much
work left to do. Jim Bob estimates that churches
provide less than half of the evening meals at the Drop
•
Not only could we follow the teachings of Christ and
the Church more closely, but when was the last time a
roomful of people gave your casserole a standing
ovation?
Parish News & Notes
Welcome New Parishioners
The following families joined the parish between December
AND January 2012. If any of them live in your
neighborhood, stop by and welcome them to St. John’s!
Gregory & Jenna Templin Michael & Amy Dabbelt
9175 Tripoli Drive
9518 Brehm Road
Cincinnati, OH 45231
Cincinnati, OH 45252
Robert & Trisha Maddux
3300 California Road
Okeana, OH 45053
Inn Center. That means the residents often face a
dinner of canned beans, water and fruit cocktail, if
they are lucky.
If the parishioners at St. John’s could adopt a second
day each month, we could have a profound impact on
the lives of the people Jesus specifically ordered us to
serve. Also, donations of food and money from our
generous parishioners provide the backbone of our
present operation. Both Diann and Jim Bob could not
express their gratitude for these gifts strongly enough.
Still, the price of a few fast food burgers could
dispatch another meal to the homeless each month.
Ed & Erin Cordie
4907 Blue Meadow Lane
Cincinnati, OH 45251
Fridays During Lent
4:30 - 7:30 p.m. in the
Church Undercroft
Dine-in or drive-thru carryout is available.
For carryout, call 923-2900 during the Fish Fry hours.
The Fish Fry menu is available at www.stjohns-dr.org.
Proceeds from the Fish Fry benefit the
Help-A-Student (HAS) Education Fund.
For information, call the Parish Office at 385-8010.
•
Baptisms in our Parish
Jaxson Crosby
Son of Robert & Jamie
Robert Roetting, IV
Son of Robert & Amy
Charlotte Paul
Daughter of Craig &
Christina
Crew Weiler
Son of Kyle & Kelly
† In Memory Of… †
We extend our sincerest sympathy to the
families and friends of:
Raymond Wuest
May they find comfort and peace knowing that their
loved ones are now sharing in God’s eternal glory.
375 people “Like” our parish’s
Facebook Fan Page.
Check it out at:
www.facebook.com/StJohnDryRidge
The 11th Annual Breakfast in Bethlehem
O
Q&A with Parishioner & Chairperson Janet Lees
n December 8, more than 140 people
enjoyed St. John’s 11th annual Breakfast in
Bethlehem. Mass was followed by
breakfast, crafts, stories and more fun. The
event takes families back to the time when baby Jesus
was born by transforming the cafeteria into a charming
stable complete with farm animals.
Parishioner Janet Lees heads Breakfast in
Bethlehem along with the help of many other
individuals and groups, including the Youth Ministry
and The Josephs Group. Since joining the parish 15
years ago, she has been involved in many events and
organizations at St. John’s. Janet took the time to
share more about Breakfast in Bethlehem and her
other involvement with us.
Q. How did Breakfast in Bethlehem come about?
A. I had attended a Breakfast in Bethlehem event at a
local Protestant church and really longed to have this
at our parish. When PTO announced that they needed
a new chairperson for “Breakfast with Santa” I
stepped forward and offered to chair, but asked if we
could change it to “Breakfast in Bethlehem.” PTO
agreed, and Pat Crowder helped me a great deal with
developing the Advent “follow the star” theme.
Q. What's your favorite thing about organizing this
event?
A. My greatest joy and motivation is having Jesus
be the focus of Christmas. But, also, working with
others together as a parish is always such a joy. Over
the years, there have been so many people who have
helped. It’s fun to look back at photos and see the
many people of our parish who have given their time
and talent—especially the children who have literally
grown up helping with Breakfast in Bethlehem. All
the people and ministry groups who help with the
cooking, crafts, painting the murals, sponsoring all our
costs, set-up, clean-up… the list goes on and on, and I
know I would kick myself if I missed naming any
names!
Q. Why is involvement at St. John's special to you?
Pictured Above: Students involved with our parish’s
Youth Ministry program pictured at the Breakfast in
Bethlehem event that took place this past December.
The Youth Ministry students helped with this year’s event.
A. St John’s is an amazing place. We have a true
Christian community here and truly care about one
another. Getting involved allows us to grow together
spiritually and in a spirit of fun and community. Fr.
Tim and the parish staff allow us to share ideas and
suggestions and to follow through on initiatives we
may feel called by God to do. I think that also leads to
individual growth, because people are empowered to
use their leadership abilities in the right environment.
Please take the time to thank Janet Lees along with
her crew for their involvement and continued support.