We take great pride in referring to ourselves as Holy Family Catholic Community. The word Community is both used and is manifest in many different ways. Unity is a big part of the word, so the term implies bringing people together. I have urged us all to reflect on being in THIS together and the fact that THIS can vary from the celebration of the Eucharist to each of the ministries that are carried out in the name of Holy Family Catholic Community as well as any activity, event or service that we provide.
I often challenge and invite people to recognize the impact that Holy Family has far beyond the walls of our 155,000 square foot, 19 acre campus.
Our teens and youth regularly reach out to countless people in need. Our Adult Faith Ministering Community has connected with other communities of faith, some of them not Christian. There are many other examples, and that doesn’t include the ministering community that focuses on outreach which is our Human Concerns Ministering Community. This community opens our doors to the homeless, feeds those who have no other means to be fed, supports those who need it the most. We build homes in neighboring communities, assist the needy, not only physically but spiritually and emotionally. Human Concerns has led the Lenten Social Justice initiatives that have even assisted people in other countries. Once again, this is not an exhaustive list but I hope that it reminds you how far beyond our address that Holy Family extends the essence of Community that is anchored by the service that we do for others.
With all of this in mind, I would like invite you to look at another form of community that we share. We have recently hosted two events, Family Fest and Hops on the Vine that brought many fellow community members here. This model of collaboration is one that we did so successfully at St. Matthias, my previous parish.
I believe that asking neighboring businesses, restaurants and vendors to share their goods, services, food and more develops a stronger bond of community. Please patronize them. Thank them for their support of Holy Family as you do. Those gestures will strengthen the fact that we are in THIS together and THIS is Inverness and surrounding communities.
These are the Restaurants/Drink Vendors who participated in our Fall Festivals:
Emmett’s Brewing Company
Gianni’s Cafe
Kinfork BBQ & Tap
Harper College Culinary Arts
Portofino’s Woodfire Pizza & Pasta
Agio Italian Bistro
Peggy Kinnane’s Irish Restaurant & Pub
Alta Villa Banquets
Jameson’s Original Charhouse
Turano Baking Company
Richie’s Restaurant
Garfield’s Beverage Warehouse
Brandt’s of Palatine
These are the fine sponsors who generously supported our events:
Ahlgrim & Sons
Chris & Kathy Abbinante
Cornerstone
Curry & Cartwright
Edwards Engineering
Knights of Columbus
Lakeshore Beverage
Linda Longmeyer
Lowery Asset Consulting
Smith-Corcoran
There are countless people to thank for making these events so successful, but in particular please join me in thanking Bernie Schaeffer our Director of Operations, Lan Danh our Program Manager, Ray Lacek our head of maintenance and the entire Maintenance Staff and Deano Dalaly. In addition, Julie Sitka, Craig Williams, Linda Longmeyer, Jan Vincent, Kathy French, Marta Robak, Karen Flis and Joe Held were major contributors. And to all the countless volunteers, thanks so much!!
Our fifth grade students at the Academy are beginning an exciting inquiry into how the world works. This is a year-long study on a topic of a student’s choice related to challenges in the world and how humans interact with the world. Fifth grade teachers are looking for adult mentors to work with these exciting groups. As a mentor, you would be assigned to a group. The group will be studying a specific problem and designing a solution. You would help guide them in directions, ask them questions that could lead to new discoveries, and encourage them in their learning. You would meet with your group about once a month until the Exhibition in the spring. If you are interested in being a fifth grade mentor, please contact the IB Coordinator, Colleen Biere, at cbiere@holyfamilyparish.org. Thank you!