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In Year 1998 - 1999 St. Julie Billiart Parish celebrated 
Twenty Five Years 
(and beyond)
of service to the community. 

This page is dedicated to that celebration 
and to the people who made this parish what it is.

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11/21/99

Giving Thanks for Twenty-five Years

In the Parish Hall, hanging on our memorabilia exhibit, there is a letter dated November 25, 1974, written twenty-five years ago this coming Thursday, Thanksgiving Day. That letter contains these words from Cardinal John Cody to Fr. William Devine, the founding pastor of St. Julie Parish:

Today we are issuing a Decree of Canonical Establishment of the newly-formed parish of St. Julie Billiart in Tinley Park, Illinois.

In accordance with Canon 455, of the Code of Cannon Law, we are pleased to appoint you herewith as Pastor of St. Julie Billiart Parish, Tinley Park, Illinois, and we heartily commend you to the good people there.

So our parish began, and this weekend Cardinal George joins us for a Eucharist of Thanksgiving to bring our Twenty-fifth Anniversary Jubilee Year to a close. I'm sure that those of you who were here with Fr. Devine from the beginning find it hard to believe that a quarter of a century as a parish community has gone by. Personally, it's kind of hard for me to fathom that I've been with you as pastor for half that time. This week has always loomed in my mind as one of the milestones of my time here, both for its importance, and also because I've often wondered in past years whether I'd be here as pastor for the Twenty-fifth Anniversary, or would be coming back to the parish to celebrate with you, since my twelve-year appointment as pastor ended last May. So this week I'm doubly thankful! I thank God for the gift of the last twelve and a half years with you, and I'm also thankful for the extension to my assignment, so I can celebrate our Twenty-fifth Anniversary as pastor of St. Julie's.

As we give thanks to God this week for all His gifts to St. Julie Parish over the last twenty five years, I'd like to offer a special word of thanks to an important group of people. A couple years ago I put out a call for a committee of people who would plan, coordinate, and oversee a whole year of anniversary activities. To my great surprise, about twenty-five people volunteered to be on the Anniversary Committee, and under the leadership of Marifran Drymiller and Joanne Tuzik, the committee put together a great Jubilee Year. We had the special events such as this weekend's Mass with Cardinal George and last month's memorable dinner dance at the Odyssey, activities run by various people of the parish's ministries, like "Denim `N Dogs", Women's Day of Reflection, Valentine's Super Bingo, Feast of Corpus Christi, Sharing Mass and Pot Luck Dinner, Women's Club Reunion Brunch, Adult Ed. Speaker Series, Sock Hop and other ways to focus on our Twenty-fifth Anniversary, like the fantastic quilt in the narthex, the banners on the light posts, the memorabilia exhibit, the ad book, and the commemorative book. Our whole parish owes a big thank you to the Anniversary Committee, and to everyone who helped out in any way to make the past year a terrific celebration.

But the final and greatest thanks must be to God for the gift of His Holy Spirit to our parish community over the last quarter-century, and to St. Julie Billiart, for her guidance and intercession. And with the continued gift of that Holy Spirit, and with St. Julie's continued prayer for us, we look forward to the new millennium and to the next twenty-five years of life as St. Julie Billiart Parish.

God Bless,

25th Anniversary Committee

Fr. Rich Homa 
Marifran Drymiller, Co-chairperson 
Joanne Tuzik, Co-chairperson 
Jim Ahern 
Nestor & Edith Ardiente 
Rita Beaupre, Secretary 
Andi Borucke 
Pat Bouchard 
Cindy Conachen 
Angie Fagarason 
Pat Kmak 
Brian Kroll 
Lisa Messaglia 
Rose Roe 
Cheryl Scallon 
Judy Simoni 
Deanne Tumpich 
Ann Viidinich

and the late Joe Callahan and Pat Radecky who were with us during the beginning planning stages of the Jubilee Year back in March of 1998.

Snapshots of the Past
Fr. Rich Homa

As we begin our Jubilee Year celebrating the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of St. Julie Parish, I guess it's kind of natural for me to look back in time to the spring of 1987 when I was assigned here as the parish's second pastor. It remains hard for me to believe that I've been at St. Julie for eleven and a half years, and as time goes on, memories of that first year begin to fade away, and those that remain are kind of like snapshots in an old photo album.

I remember that the parish grounds and the surrounding neighborhood looked quite different. The parish still had the feel of being out in the country, with open fields where the Cub Foods shopping center and the Home Depot buildings now stand, with prairie south of the parish all the way to 167th street, and with Harlem and 159th street being four lanes wide instead of six. Also, the parish property was much more wide open, with a grassy field where the front parking lot is, and with parking spaces where the new church now stands.

Although the outside of the rectory looked pretty much the same, the inside was quite different. The lowest level of the rectory, where we now have the Amann Room, the Youth Office, and the board room, was a single large paneled room with a closet sticking out from the center of one side. The ground-floor room, where we now have the reception area, offices, and the copy machine, was a large open room with a couple of desks for Religious Education staff, and a grouping of chairs and couches for meetings, and a corner with chairs and a TV set where the priests could gather to relax. The entryway and the outside doors were not there.

Since there were no offices in these lower areas, the reception office, the pastor's office, the associate's office and the closet containing all of the duplicating equipment were all jammed together on the same level as the kitchen, dining room, and a small room (now the priests' common room) which Fr. Duffy had to use as his bedroom. Because there was no reception area, people had to wait for evening appointments by sitting around the dining room table right across from Fr. Duffy's bedroom door. Also all the reception, secretarial, and financial work had to be done in one office which was only 12 feet long by 12 feet wide. It was a most cramped situation for a rapidly growing parish.

Behind the rectory there was just a grassy field, no fence, no deck, no trees or flowers. If you walked all the way around the garage to get there, (there was no door leading to the back yard), all you'd find was Fr. Len Huske's sail boat.

Besides the physical differences, some things were quite a bit different behind the scenes too. There were two Masses on Saturday afternoons, five Masses in the old church on Sunday mornings, and one Mass on Sunday morning in the Activity Center. When I first moved in, priests of the religious order of St. Francis Xavier (The Xaverian Fathers) were helping Fr. Len Huske, Fr. Duffy and I with all these weekend Masses.

While going through old bulletins, I noticed that the weekly collection at the end of May in 1987 was about $6,700.00. That's a long way from our current average of a little over $18,000.00 per week, and we could never run the parish today on what we took in back then. Thanks again for your continued generosity, which makes St. Julie the great parish that it is.

In calling to mind some of these "snapshots" of the last eleven and a half years, a word that comes to mind is growth. Before the five and a half years of the process leading to our new church, the late 1980's and early 1990's were a time of interior growth - the development of the Pastoral Staff, The Pastoral Council, The Finance Committee, and the Ministry Boards.

As we celebrate the last twenty-five years and begin the next quarter-century, my prayer is that all the physical and internal growth of the past results in a great spiritual growth in the future; that we are more constantly aware of God's presence and love, and that we are more deeply moved by the Holy Spirit to follow the call of Jesus.

Remember When......
by Deacon Joe Callahan

25 years - not such a long time when you compare it with centuries or even the upcoming millennium.
But a great deal has happened here at St. Julie during the last quarter century.
Some examples of how it was then are taken from our file of Sunday bulletins.

Sept. 9, 1973
Liturgical Community of Tinley-Orland
or Catholic Church in Brementowne
(Vol. 1 No. 1)

GREETINGS! A great welcome was extended to me, Fr. William Devine, as I came to this area to see about establishing a new Catholic community. Your petition to have another Parish formed in this area was finally listened to and implemented. Today is the day of fulfillment. "Let us rejoice and be glad! Alleluia!"

BOUNDARIES - The proposed set of boundaries are: 151st Street (North), 167th Street (South), 80th Avenue (West), Oak Park Avenue (East). These boundaries will be interpreted loosely. However, those who have children in St. George or St. Michael Schools will continue to be members of those respective parishes and give their financial support there.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT - Please continue to use the envelopes you received from St. Michael and St. George Churches. We will have our own by the first of the year.

CHURCH BUILDING - A multi-purpose building will be built in due time at about 7400 West & 16000 South. The rest of the property at 159th and Harlem will be sold after it is determined how much we will need.

C.C.D. CLASSES - This year our children will continue to be instructed at St. George and St. Michael Schools. Next year we will have our own program using public facilities.

HELP! - We are in need of Ushers, Readers, Servers, Musicians, etc., for the various Masses. Please give your name, telephone number to me or any usher.

HOUSE WARMING - Some very enterprising women got together last Thursday and gave me an "Open House." It overwhelmed me. The truly warm reception was gift enough. But they also showered me with many household necessities.

PAINTERS NEEDED - A few strong supporters have cleaned, and cleaned, and cleaned to put the rectory in shape. What we need now are a few painters. The house will be a great meeting place, chapel for daily Mass, and picnic grounds as well. What more could we ask?

ROYAL ACRES RETIREMENT VILLAGE - From my first contact with the personnel of this beautiful establishment, I have had nothing but a very warm welcome. Mr. McCormick, Mr. Geffrey and Mr. Barr have bent over backwards to accommodate us. The only way I can think of to repay them for their generosity is to take good care of the place and recommend this wonderful facility to retiree's of your acquaintance.

BABY-SITTING FOR MASS - We will use the game-rooms (at Royal Acres) as a baby-sitting spot for pre-schoolers. However, we need responsible young girls to help us. Parents who avail themselves of this service should be willing to take their turn supervising this operation. A box for your donated toys will be put out next Sunday.

GENERAL INFORMATION: Times of Masses: Saturday - 4:00 pm & 7:30 pm, Sunday 9:15, 10:15, 11:30 am. Location of Masses - Royal Acres (163rd St., East of Harlem Ave.)

Rectory Information: Location - 167th St. & 94th Ave. (Northeast Corner)
Telephone: 349-0773
Pastor: Rev. William Devine

October 14, 1973

Financial barometer - Last Sunday's collection came to $558.75. This was the largest amount in our short existence. All masses will be at Royal Acres on 163rd St. east of Harlem.

November 24, 1974

CARDINAL CODY SIGNS DECREE MAKING ST. JULIE
LITURGICAL COMMUNITY
A PARISH

As the Chancellor Rev. Msgr. Richard Rosemeyer looked on, His Eminence John Cardinal Cody signed the paper formally establishing our new community as a parish. This was accomplished Thursday, Nov. 14th at the Chancery Office. The decree is effective as of Thursday November 28 Thanksgiving Day.

January 22, 1975

The Community of St. Julie is now the official name instead of our interim name of the Catholic Church in Brementowne. His Eminence gave his approval last Monday.

Where did the name come from? At the first meeting last July 16 in St. George Hall with about eighty people in attendance, I offered four names to these charter members. The names were St. Rose of Viterbo, St. Elizabeth of Portugal, St. Clare of Assisi, and St. Julie Billiart. After a double elimination vote the name of St. Julie came out as the most popular.

I submitted only these four names for various reasons. First, female because of the strong feminist movement and because six local churches all have male names. Secondly, after very carefully perusing the Catholic Directory for female saint names not duplicated in the Chicago diocese I came up with only six or seven and source of these not really legitimate.

Fr. Devine

Walter Cronkite might say, "And you were there." Maybe - maybe not.
But ours is a great story. It is one which has grown from a few hundred people to 3500 registered families.

We have almost forty active ministries reaching out to serve our community in the areas of Liturgy, Education, Human Concerns and Parish Life. Our Parish Pastoral Council is an active and vibrant group eager to meet new goals and growth.

A humble beginning? Yes.

Twenty-five Years +
At St. Julie Billiart

Remembered and Celebrated

Pat Kmak

From its establishment in 1974, St. Julie Parish has always been a very diverse community of people both economically and ethnically. Our parishioners include skilled tradesmen, teachers, office managers, truck drivers, nurses, doctors, lawyers, computer specialists and bank presidents. For the most part, their ancestral roots are in Ireland, Poland, Italy, Germany, the Philippines, and even India. The WORD is spoken in a variety of ways here.

I've had the unique privilege of being the Catechetical Leader at St. Julie since its inception in 1974 and would have no problem passing the St. Julie Trivia Quiz. Incidentally, the parish patroness, St. Julie Billiart, dedicated her life to teaching young people about God and the Catholic Faith.

Preparing this article prompted me to take a nostalgic but reflective look at my twenty-five years of ministry here. Needless to say, the early years were quite challenging. In fact, for the first nine years, before the Devine Center was completed in 1984, our Religious Education sessions were held in family homes and, at what was then called the Kruse Education Center, an open-classroom public school which we rented through the courtesy of School District 146.

Every Saturday morning, I loaded our family station wagon with movie and filmstrip projectors, portable movie screens, cassette recorders, extra textbooks, duplicated materials, etc. and carted them over to Kruse School and then hauled them back to the rectory. Before our church was completed, the sacraments of First Eucharist and Confirmation were celebrated at our neighboring parishes, St. Michael and St. George.

When the church was completed, the Junior High classes were held in every available space in the Church and in the Rectory (including the priest's dining room.) At that time, we were a community of 500 families with approximately 670 students enrolled in the Religious Education program. Since then, the parish registration has blossomed to 3,500 families with 1,350 students in Religious Education. In 1987, before the founding of St. Elizabeth Seton Parish, we reached our peak enrollment of over 2,000 students.

What is striking about St. Julie, however, is more than its large registration, its social justice concerns, its liturgical varieties, its decision-making boards and collaborative efforts. What has been most remarkable is the willingness of the people to offer their time and talents to foster the continued growth and vitality of the parish. Their spirit of openness and sense of ownership reveal them as a people truly sensitized to the reality of their baptismal commitment.

Summarily, there are some very special words that signify the circumstances and actions of the last twenty-five years: Good leadership, Faith, Conversion, Community, Holiness, Freedom, Service, Mission, Hope, and always LOVE. Each word communicates an attitude I experienced at St. Julie and each is interconnected to all the others to form a mosaic of genuine Christian life as I have experienced it here. One of St. Julie's most popular quotes is: "HOW GOOD IS THE GOOD GOD!" These words truly express my feelings about 25 years of ministry here.

But, healthy seeds were planted back then. They continue to grow and blossom.

How Good is the Good God!

Very good - very good indeed.

REMEMBER WHEN...

From the bulletin of October 31, 1976

WHAT NO SCHOOL?

Have you ever wondered how Christians learned about their religion in the early Church -before Catholic schools, sisters, or books or CCD? In the beginning of the Church times were hard. Christians had to learn Christianity by leaving home and family and moving in with a Christian sponsor assigned by the bishop. The period of preparation might take two or three years. The student Christian or catechumen would see how the gospel of Jesus applied at home, work, and in the world. Every adult Christian had an experience of the love of the Lord in real situations.

Today we are fast returning to that style of Christian education. The real Christian educators of children today are the parents. At Baptism the parents are commissioned by the Church to become the Christian sponsors and teachers of their children. It is the parents' job to make Christianity alive and obvious in the home.

CCD classes are an extension of this training to - --expose children to more and different Christian styles.

Thus the family and the parish Church are co-teachers sharing Christ's mission to teach and preach the Good News of the Lord. May God bless us in this important call.

'And 22 years later...

REMEMBER WHEN...

From the bulletin of October 30, 1977:

COMMUNION IN THE HAND,
NOW WHAT'S HAPPENING?

In 1969 the Holy See has permitted the restoration of the ancient practice of receiving communion in the hand upon the request of the national conference of bishops, and with the approval of the local diocese. At that time the Congregation for Divine Worship expressed it's opinion that communion in the hand might be one occasion for increasing among the people "the sense of their dignity as members of the mystical body of Christ, in which they are inserted by baptism and the grace of the Eucharist, and also should strengthen their faith in the grand reality of the body and blo9d of the Lord which they hold in their hands."

Some of the Reasons for Communion in the Hand.

• Communion in the hand is dignified and becoming; it is a recognition that the total person is holy, including one's hands.
• Extending the hands for communion can be a gesture symbolic of supplication, welcome, faith, gratitude.
• The practice expresses maturity, because the baptized Christian is no longer a spiritual or religious infant.
• Communion in the hand represents an active rather than a passive participation and involvement.
• Reaching out for the Eucharist in petition and acceptance is a fuller, more human gesture.
• The practice is more convenient and hygienic, less routine and hurried. It is simple and practical if people are prepared and instructed.

Some historical Background:
The practice of receiving communion in the hand is not an altogether novel idea in the church. In the writings of the early church fathers there was no exact account of the manner of receiving holy communion.

In the fourth century Cyril of Jerusalem addressed his catechumens:
"When you approach, do not go stretching out your hands of having fingers spread out, but make the left hand into a throne for the right which shall receive the King, and then with your open hand hollowed, receive the body of Christ and answer "Amen". Then consume it, taking care not to lose any of it."

Towards the end of the eighth century the practice of receiving communion in the hand appears to have been supplanted by the current practice of receiving communion on the tongue. The faithful approached the Eucharist with a sense of humility and reverence, as was proper, but these sentiments developed into an exaggerated feeling of unworthiness. Mortal, sinful man, it was felt, dare not touch with his hands the all-holy and powerful God unless he were ordained and his hands consecrated.

By the ninth century the reception of communion in the hand was no longer the universal custom of the church.

Description of the Practice
Now that the practice of communion in the hand has been authorized, the Individual who wishes to receive communion directly into his/her mouth- according to the customary practice - simply approaches the priest or other Eucharist minister In the ordinary manner.

Anyone, however, who wishes to receive communion in the hand - according to the older tradition - simply indicates this to the priest or other minister by holding out his/her hands, palm up, with one hand resting on the other. The priest or other eucharistic minister places the consecrated host in the extended hand after the usual formula: "The body of Christ - Amen." The communicant steps to one side, immediately places the consecrated host in his/her mouth, and only then returns to his/her place.

The practice of communion in the hand for the archdiocese of Chicago will begin the weekend of November 19 and 20. Please, remember, that the practice of receiving communion in the hand is an option. It is not required. And the faithful should feel free to receive the eucharistic Lord in the manner most comfortable to them.

We wish to express our thanks to Origins magazine for sections of the above article which appeared in Vol.7: No.4, June 16,1977. Reprinted with permission.

"Has it been 21 years since we started doing this? Wow, how time files!"

REMEMBER WHEN...

Our January 25, 1987 Bulletin Cover

FAREWELL

There were things I couldn't say last weekend when I talked at all the Masses. I would have broken up. Mike Ditka had difficulty talking over one lost friend. Here I'm losing hundreds. Many I have known for years beginning at Royal Acres and Amity Savings and at the old house. I know I've touched so many families especially thru Baptism were we've been doing them wholesale. The secretary told me I took care of 1,333 little tykes in that time. Certainly these are wondrous occasions. Weddings too even though the numbers weren't great still brought me close to you. Many a time in expressing thoughts to family members on the occasion of the death of a loved one I wonder whether I was helpful or not. But I tried anyway.

Certainly I've hurt some people unintentionally but it was done. At this time I beg their sincere pardon. I'll try to make amends thru prayer.

Most of all I must say thanks to so many that have been so important in making St. Julie into such a great parish community. I'll never touch all but I must mention some. Thanks to the Xaverian Fathers for their help these last seven years on Sundays, and to the Vincentians in the early days. The associates were excellent over the years, Wm. Eddy, Robert Flack, Michael Weston, Robert Duffy and Len Huske who has been here the longest - going on six years. Each has been helpful to me and to the St. Julie Community in many ways. Pat Kmak took on the job of D.R.E. little thinking it would grow to such proportions. Yet she never shirked the job and brought hundreds into the role of Catechist. Noreen McKenna has been her helper for some seven years. It is not only the largest but the finest run CCD operation in our diocese. Pat Radecky has run the office efficiently and pleasantly for close to ten years. She's most often people's first contact with the parish. Linda, Cindy, Helen and Harry have kept the place neat and orderly despite its size and many uses.

Two engineers died on the job, both fine men dedicated to their jobs - Robert Flowers and Joseph Moody. May they rest in peace.

Lest I forget I want to thank those who supported me and St. Julie through their weekly contributions. The bills always got paid and we built a great plant that we can be so proud of.

There are so many others that gave of their time and talents as ushers, readers, choir, St. Vincent Helpers, typists, catechists, housekeepers, servers. It's worth much more than money, it's your act of love.

Our February 8, 1987 Cover

FATHER DEVINE DAY

Well St. Julie's, you have really 'come through" for Father Devine. To our absolute amazement, the total for the new car fund has exceeded $14,500.00. What a wonderful gift this will buy him! We know that he will be so moved by your generosity and love. The committee is now shopping all over town for the very best deal.

Now for news concerning Father's Appreciation party, February 15, 1987. Things will get underway at 3:30. A white stretch limo has been donated to pick up Father and his family in style. He will arrive at about 4:15. We will then officially welcome him into the newly named William Devine Activity Center. The letters will hopefully be in place just that week. (Won't Father be surprised!)

Once inside we have planned a short program. The children's choir will delight him with a few of his favorite tunes. The mayors of our 3 local towns have each proclaimed that day to be Father Devine Day. And then, the keys to his brand new 1987 -_____________.

Many generous people have offered to Provide food for the party. We would be grateful to anyone else who would like to share a cold appetizer or dessert.

The Senior Citizens have offered to come at 12 noon for about 1 hour on Feb. 15 to help set up tablecloths, candies, etc.

We are also in need of high school students to help bus and serve tables. There are two shifts: 3:30 - 5:30; 5:30 - 7:30. If you would like to volunteer for one of these shifts please phone Bob at the rectory (429-6767).

Fr. Devine has requested that this be a family affair so do plan to bring the little ones. We have some special movies to add to their entertainment. And we look forward to a very full Open House. Thanks to all who are making this possible.

The Committee

Our February 15, 1987 Bulletin Cover

FROM THE "ACTING" PASTOR'S DESK!

With Fr. Devine coming back for his party today, and with Fr. O'Mara starting Masses for the new parish, I've been puzzling over how this change will affect us at St. Julie. No one ever said it would be easy to watch part of our parish family 'break off' and begin its own existence, even though we are genuinely happy with this 'new birth' (it is something similar to the problems of pregnancy and giving birth, or is it more like parents watching their grown child get married and move out?) I know personally all sorts of wonderful people who have contributed greatly to the spirit and life at St. Julie, and to see them leave to form a new parish makes me feel very unsure and worried (how will we ever make it without them?), even though my head tells me that all sorts of other good people will take up the work of forming St. Julie more in the spirit of Christ. And I have seen tears in the eyes of a number of these people as they came to the Mass at St. Julie last week, knowing that this week they would be at Andrew's helping the new parish begin.

I'm not sure just how to handle all this. If I try to keep them here at St. Julies, that's not fair to the new parish; if I just presume that they are part of the new parish because they live within its boundaries, some may feel hurt or unwanted here, others may even intend to remain here despite living within the boundaries of the new parish and would therefore be upset. And I would certainly want them to feel welcome here.

I guess I see this as a time of strong and mixed feelings, with the possibility of misunderstandings and hurts and being unsure. And I guess we all need to be very gentle with each other.

Fr. Len Huske

From the bulletin of October29, 1975

PARISH RAFFLE

We don't have Bingo! We don't have a carnival and we don't have Julie's Memories or its equivalent.
So as a special parish money raiser we're having a parish money raffle. No doubt you noticed the special box in the bulletin each week telling you your -envelope number might be lucky: Well that's it.

The raffle is restricted to 1500 tickets at $10.00 apiece. The first prize is $2,000.00, second and third prize will be $500.00, fourth and fifth will be $250.00.

Each has an opportunity to keep his or her envelope number. Extra tickets will be only the availability of tickets not accepted by non-participating families.

This is a painless way to raise some money to take care of the extended parking lot. Each will receive a letter this week explaining the raffle in more detail.

'And we still don't have Bingo, but we do still have our Christmas Raffle."

Mrs. Angie Fagarasan has worked full-time on the St. Julie parish staff for eleven years. In her capacity as Director of Liturgy, she has contributed mightily to worship in this parish. However, during the first week of December, Angie indicated to me that she wished to retire.

I have found her to be a competent, dedicated collaborator who has steadfastly coordinated the work of the liturgy office. She has prepared the weekend and holy day Masses and other liturgies, including funerals. She has chaired the monthly meetings of the liturgy board. She has attended the weekly staff meetings. She has provided training for new liturgical ministers and also offered opportunities for experienced ministers’ enrichment. She has also coordinated with the religious education program in mounting special sacramental liturgies. She has not only helped write the notes for the children’s Liturgy of the Word for every Sunday of the year, but has herself presided at those liturgies. She has made herself available to many parishioners who wished to talk to her.

In pursuing her work, Angie has always promoted a spirit of helpfulness, respect, and good will among staff and other personnel.

Angie is soft-spoken, with a slight southern drawl (she was born and raised in Alabama), but she is very strong in her sense of what constitutes good liturgy (based in the spirit and understanding of the Second Vatican Council).

Speaking on behalf of the staff, I know I can say that we will miss Angie’s trenchant comments and sage advice—firmly founded in her biblical spirituality sprinkled liberally with a Shakespearean quote.

I wish her and her husband, Ken, all the best. Of course, Angie herself has said that we will still see her at St. Julie. This is, after all, her parish. And she and Ken are founding members. The difference is she will no longer have to be working day in and day out to maintain the high quality of output from our worship office. (As I write this column, we are still talking about how best to celebrate Angie’s involvement—perhaps a gathering after Mass in the new year.)

I am grateful to Angie for her countless hours, days and years of commitment to the parish. Without her we would not be where we are today. She has been a tremendous worker on behalf of the parish. Even more importantly, she has been a good friend to this parish.

May this dedicated worker and good friend have lots and lots of time to engage in her well-deserved personal pursuits! Ad multos annos!

From Fr Steve Lanza's article for the weekend of 12/15/2002