As each year draws to a close it is customary to look back and count our blessings as well as take stock of the trials and tribulations, considering how we might have handled them differently—and hopefully better.

2018 was a blessed year here at Saint Catherine of Siena Parish! We are blessed in that we have a parish that works very well together. We benefit from the blessings of a committed and dedicated staff who consistently seek the “big picture,” meaning the greater good of the parish.

We are blessed with a music ministry that develops inspiring music to enlist the voices of many to sing the praises of God—from choir members to parishioners in the pew; with Lessons & Carols, concerts, and guest musicians to inspire our voices to proclaim the Good News.

We are blessed with a faith formation program—from religious education and Confirmation to Bible Studies and more—which teaching and passing on our faith T(t)raditions of knowledge and wisdom. It is a faith formation program that not only provides the Truths of Christ to all but holds everyone to standards that have endured the millennium and brought souls to Christ; it is a program that draws people who are truly interested in listening to Christ.

We are blessed with a Youth Ministry program that engages and inspires our youngest members of this parish to listen to the word of God and find new ways to make our faith applicable in our modern culture-right here in the Farmington Valley. Creative and energetic, this program not only attracts the minds of our youth, but inspires their parents to see that their children do have a leadership role in our faith—and it is never too early to begin loving God. 

We are blessed with an office and facilities staff that seeks the needs of parishioners first, providing assistance in all areas and putting our best face forward—for regular attendees and visitors alike. In all this we are a welcoming parish.

We are also blessed in our parishioners. They are the heart of our welcoming spirit: your response keeps our parish alive through numerous ministries that nourish the hungry, heal the sick, and provide shelter to those in need—whether they are hurting from a bit of bad luck or have long-term needs in shelters.

We are blessed by faithful people who live their faith out both in spiritual works of mercy—prayer and worship—and also in the many corporal works of mercy. In all this, we are blessed by a parish that says “yes” to so much and in so many ways: from the works of our parish ministries to the ministries of the Archdiocese of Hartford that you support—the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal, the Knights of Malta Mobile House of Care, and Saint Elizabeth’s House and more. We are blessed!

I wish to thank everyone involved, from staff members and ministry leaders to parishioners in the
pews—without all of you our parish would not be both the very welcoming parish it is or the parish that carries on the very ministry and mission of our founder, Jesus Christ.

Thank you to all and for all of your blessings!