Dear Parishioners and Friends,
The feasts of Saint Patrick and Saint Joseph will be celebrated this coming week. I had the honor of celebrating a Mass on Friday, March 6th, the eve of the annual St. Patrick’s Parade. As one of our parish’s patron saints, may Patrick intercede for us to keep us a strong and faith-filled community. May St. Joseph, whose feast falls on March 19th, patron of the Archdiocese of Hartford, intercede for both the local and universal church.
So far, our parish has pledged $17,052.50 to the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal from 66 donors – thank you! If you haven’t yet given or pledged a gift, please don’t forget to do so. Our parish’s goal is $115,000. In 2025 we reached $101,413, the highest total in many years; so let’s try to do as well this year!
I hope you will be able to join us next weekend for a series of presentations to be given by Dr. Amy-Jill Levine, a member of the faculty of Hartford International University. The presentations will be given on Saturday, March 21st, from 5 to 7 PM, and Sunday, March 22nd, from the 9 to 9:45 AM and 11:15 AM to 1:00 PM. You will find more information in the bulletin, as well as a link to register.
Also, don’t forget the Ladies Guild Spring Basket Bazaar taking place again this weekend in the Franciscan Center after all Masses. Your support helps the Guild to provide scholarships for deserving young parishioners in area Catholic schools.
Let us continue to pray for an end to the military conflict in the Middle East between the United States, Israel and Iran, which is beginning to have an impact on other countries as well. The Middle East has suffered so much over the course of time because of war and hatred, and the current conflict has added one more round of bloodshed and destruction which is only making matters worse.
May peace and stability come to lands that have known so much violence in recent years.
Blessings on your week ahead!
Fr. Tim Shreenan, O.F.M.
Pastor
The 2026 Archbishop’s Annual Appeal has begun in our parish. If you haven’t already, you will soon receive a letter from Archbishop Coyne seeking your support. As Catholics in the Archdiocese of Hartford, we can have a profound impact on our local communities not only spiritually, but intimately con-nected to it, the realm of social services and many charities and outreach services performed by, or with help from, our Church.
Please take a moment to watch the launch video here:
We hope you can help us meet our parish goal of $115,000. If you would like to make a gift, please mail in your pledge card. You may also visit the Archdiocesan website at www.archdioceseof-hartford.org or call the Appeal Office at (800) 781-2550. Keep in mind that an early pledge will allow you to best use the monthly payment plan.
All funds contributed to the Archbishop’s Annual Ap-peal are used exclusively for the purposes outlined in the Appeal literature, which can be found at https:// archdioceseofhartford.org/appeal/. No Appeal funds are ever used for legal fees or settlements.