The Campaign Continues!

09-23-2018From Fr. Antony's DeskFr. John J. Barbella

I want to begin by thanking all the 8th graders (and their parents) who attended one of the Confirmation meetings last week. It looks like we will have a wonderful group of young men and women preparing to be strengthened by the Holy Spirit in that sacrament this year. Please keep them in your daily prayers!

If you are an 8th grader (Public or Catholic School or Home School) and did not attend one of the meetings, please call me or Mrs. DePillo (our Confirmation Coordinator) as soon as possible so we can help you get started! High school students who – for whatever reason – have not yet been Confirmed should also call. We will be happy to help you take this important step in your relationship with Jesus!

With everyone back to school and our parish programs in full swing, I thought this would be a good time to give you an update on our Parish Capital Campaign. You can see the figures elsewhere in the bulletin – which are updated every month. What follows is an update on the projects that are being paid for by the campaign.

The Church's outside lighting has been upgraded – as anyone who is here at night can tell. New, bright lights have replaced the old and worn ones on the back of the Church and rectory, casting a nice even light on the alley behind the Church. This is especially important for those coming out of the Adoration Chapel at night!

The outside lights in front of the Church – and the ones by the Church's side doors have been either replaced or upgraded. The pedestal lights in front have been put on photocells so that they are only on when it is dark. The same has been done for the old fixtures on the side door by the rectory's back porch.

On the Stockton Street side, a new fixture (that looks old) has replaced a burned out modern one. This fixture not only casts better light, but is consistent with the age and architecture of our Church. Special thanks are due to a parishioner who happened to be in the parish office when it was ordered – and donated the cost as a special gift! The overall cost of the outside electrical and lighting is about $18,225.

The next lighting projects will focus on the lights around the Altar and Side Altar areas. We hope to have this part of the project completed by Christmas – but it may stretch a bit beyond that. Either way, you should begin to notice a big improvement very soon. The overall cost of the sanctuary electrical and lighting improvements will come to about $21,000. All the new lights – outside and in – will have modern LED bulbs which burn cooler and last a lot longer than the old bulbs.

We made the first payment (of $75,000) on the organ restoration. This was due when we signed the contract with Peragallo Pipe Organ Company, which we did in August. Additional payments will be made as the work progresses. The organ will be removed after Pentecost (June) 2019 and returned that Autumn. Peragallo will provide us with a temporary instrument during the work.

As I reported in earlier columns, we have already done upgraded electrical work in the rectory (one of the smallest parts of the project), done a lot of HVAC upgrades in the school, and replaced the Gym Roof (a big project). The total spent so far on all these things is about $282,275 – all of which is possible only because of your generosity! I cannot thank each of you who supported this campaign – and who support our parish regularly with their offerings and prayers – enough!

Please say a Hail Mary for me today and every day. I always pray for you.

Have a great week!
Fr. John

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