HOLIDAY PREVIEW 2016

Once again this year, we will be coordinating St. Joseph’s SPONSOR A FAMILY programs for Thanksgiving and Christmas which provide holiday dinners for our neighbors in need at Our Lady of Loretto parish in Hempstead and the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary parish in Roosevelt. And at Christmas, we hope to provide gifts for fifty families at Loretto via our GIVING TREE project.

The needs of those who live in our neighboring parishes are great, and St. Joseph’s assists them monthly with our food drives – groceries are delivered on a rotating basis to both parishes and cash contributions allow us to purchase supermarket gift cards which we distribute to Hempstead residents who come to our Parish Social Ministry office. As you read in last weekend’s bulletin, in the first six months of 2016, our office served 528 clients. We were able to do this only because of your support.

But St. Joseph’s holiday programs are something special. When you provide the fixings for a festive holiday meal for Thanksgiving and Christmas for a family in need, you are providing more than groceries. You are assuring that a family of 4, 6, 8 or more members will enjoy a meal with their loved ones in the same way that all of us hope to do. And perhaps when a prayer of thanks is offered before the meal, those family members will give thanks for you and for your generosity. Similarly, for some families, the GIVING TREE packages which you provide may be the only gifts under their Christmas tree.

To those of you who have never participated in these programs in the past, we hope that you will do so this year. Perhaps you were a donor in years past but for whatever the reason, discontinued the practice. If so, please consider rejoining our parish effort to make this year’s holiday season a happier time for those in need.

Remember that we will be able to provide holiday meals only to those families for whom there is a donor family. The number of participating donor families will determine how many families will be recipients, and the need is great.

Details about our Thanksgiving Sponsor a Family program will appear in next weekend’s bulletin.
Thank you for all that you do to support St. Joseph’s efforts to assist those who seek our help. We are grateful for your continued concern and for your prayers.

Anna Sirianni, Parish Social Ministry Director ~ 747-7120