Happy Thanksgiving!
"I am thankful for the 509 children who grace our hall every Wednesday in the RE program. I am also grateful for their parents and guardians who have given us the privilege to share our faith with them. However, none of that would be possible without the almost 80 volunteer staff of catechists, aides, office helpers, hall monitors, etc., etc. Thank you to all of these amazing women and men and young people who give so generously of their time. Mary Queen is blessed to have you among us."
Mary Ann Woods
Director of Religious Education
I am thankful for the joy of helping our dear senior members in many ways!
Sister Honorata
Ministry of Care
I give thanks for the many blessings I have received this year from my family, my Religious Community and my extended family here at Mary Queen. I am grateful for the continued love and friendship I have received. It is a joy to be serving the people of Mary Queen both as Administrative Assistant and facilitator of the Protecting God's Children and Talking About Touching Programs. Thank you.
Sister Marlene
Administrative Assistant
As we begin our Advent season I hope and pray that all of us look at the many blessings we have been given. There truly is so much to be thankful for...I am blessed with my loving family, friends, & church family. I also want to remember all of our soldiers and their families this holiday season. For all those families that will be without their loved ones or their homes due to natural disasters that have occurred. I know how precious our time is here on earth and give thanks to God for all of the many people that have blessed my life. May God continue to guide us, and keep us ever mindful of all there is to be thankful for. God bless us all this holiday season.
Kathleen Gusloff
Youth Ministry Leader
This Thanksgiving I am happy to be living in a nursing facility, St. Patrick's, where I can serve as a minister of encouragement to several hundred infirmed and aged residents, cheering them up and raising their spirits in countless ways. I am singularly blessed with the knowledge that my wife Nancy and my daughter Maureen are enjoying the beatific vision of the Holy Trinity in Paradise for all eternity.
Deacon John Maloney
I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, praying always
with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your
partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. I am
confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will
continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right
that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you
in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace...And this is
my prayer, that your love may increase ever more and more in
knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of
value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.
Philippians 1: 3-10
I give thanks for you, the people of Mary Queen of Heaven. All of you - as the words to the song says - the young and the old, the frightened, the bold, the greatest and the least. All of us who come together at the feast of our Thanksgiving tables and at the feast of our Eucharistic table are on a journey together. We accompany one another and help one another become who God is calling us to be in Christ. I do give thanks to God for all of you, staff and parishioners. Happy and blessed Thanksgiving to you!
Mary Foley
Pastoral Life Coordinator
It is our honor to be able to sing and pray with you each week, and we are all truly thankful for that! I think I speak for all of the singers and instrumentalists when I say that there is nothing sweeter than to be able to sing and play in your own church. We look out from the risers and see our children, our spouses, our friends. We watch them as they serve at the altar, serve as Eucharistic Ministers, usher, work up in the loft on the sound system, or pray and sing joyfully from the pews. Everyone is working, praying, worshiping, singing, and praising all together. What a gift! On this Thanksgiving Day and weekend, we give thanks for the support and love of our wonderful and dear church home...Mary Queen of Heaven.
Molly Lindberg
Director of Music
Catholic Charities Serves Needy Families Catholic Charities, Diocese of Joliet, hopes to make Christmas a little brighter for low income families in DuPage County. This year, through the agency's Holiday Outreach Program, over 3000 individuals have already been "adopted" by donor families and local area businesses and school. During the fall, client families completed a "wish list" at the Lombard office. Catholic Charities staff then coordinated with area churches, businesses and individuals to provide toys and needed clothing for the children. Donors also provided food certificates for each needy family so that they might enjoy a traditional Christmas dinner. Although most families were assigned to donors during October and November, Catholic Charities is still in great need of donations to purchase food and gift certificates for families who will ask for our help in December. Your donation to purchase food and gift certificates for these families and their children may be mailed to Catholic Charities, 26 W. St. Charles Road, Lombard, IL 60148. The agency relies on the continued generosity of the community to help them serve every needy family. Without your support, some families may not have much to celebrate this Christmas. Market Day Orders for December are due Monday, Dec. 5, at noon. Pickup on Saturday, Dec. 10, from 9:30 - 10:30 a.m. in the Social Hall. If you have questions or would like to place an order, please call Maria at 279-2238 or Karen at 279-4108. Health Committee Thanks to those who joined us for the last meeting and helped brainstorm for ideas for the coming year! Please join us at our next meeting December 3rd at 9:15 a.m. in the parish office/rectory building. Please call me with any questions. Corinna Wojcik 782-2152. St. Vincent DePaul Christmas Giving Tree The "Giving Tree" is up and loaded with ornaments. We are taking care of 25 families this year and will be providing gifts for the Elmhurst Extended Care Nursing Home. Please remember that after you purchase and wrap your gift, the tag must be taped to the package with the written side of the ornament facing up, so that we will know to which family the gift belongs. Every ornament is coded and this coding needs to be visible. All gifts must be returned by December 11th so that they can be sorted and placed in boxes for the respective families. If you have any questions, please call Sheila Reiter at 833-6657. "Creative Memories" Evening The Council of Catholic Women cordially invite all ladies of the parish to a "Creative Memories" evening on Tuesday, November 29, at 7:30 p.m. in Barrett Hall. We will learn how to organize and preserve our memories. This event is "hands on!" Please bring 3 photos of a special person or event in your life. You will get a taste of album making using the "Creative Memories" Short Story Kit and you will leave with a hand made gift that you can display in your home or office or in an album. There is no cost for this demonstration and everyone can participate. Feel free to bring a friend or friends. We're looking forward to seeing you there and having a fun filled evening. Refreshments will be served. For further information or questions, please call Mary Connelly at 630-782-7626. Religious Education News Reminder to Parents: Wednesday, Nov. 30 -Class resumes at normal times Advent Toy Collection This year as in the past, we will be collecting new, unwrapped toys for Marillac House. Toys may be left in the box in the School on Wednesday, December 7 and 14. As you are aware, Marillac is located on the West Side of Chicago just a short distance from Mary Queen. Marillac helps many families in that community. Please be generous. Heifer International Project In addition to our toy collection for a local organization, we have a global dimension to our Advent giving. Once again this year our children will be able to go to the polls to vote for their favorite farm animal for us to send to a third world country. The voting will take place the first two Wednesdays of December during class time. We are asking each child to bring a small monetary donation, if they are able, when they cast their ballot. We encourage all the children to "vote early and often". This project is not only fun for the children, but it is truly a gift of hope for impoverished communities across the world. Mark your calendars: Saturday, December 10, at 10:30 a.m. in Church our second graders will celebrate their First Reconciliation. All parents of 2nd graders are expected to be in attendance as well. Please let us know if you cannot attend. Confirmation Prayer Partners Needed We are asking parishioners to pray for our Confirmation candidates. Please take a card with a candidate's name from our basket in the vestibule. Pray for that particular person until Confirmation day on April 22nd. It is our hope that each one of our candidates will have someone praying especially for them. For more info on any of the above, please call Mary Ann Woods at the REO, 832-8962. New Internet Resource for Our Parish The e-Series from Celebration: Parish Life The GATHERING, a small faith community here at Mary Queen of Heaven is offering you, as a fellow parishioner, a valuable resource for spiritual growth and parish community development. We have purchased a license for an Internet publication from Celebration-the e-Series. It is called Parish Life. We have a subscription for one year from 11/05. Our license allows all parishioners to receive this monthly Internet publication with a one-time registration using our parish code. Go to www.celebrationeseries.org and click the Parishioner- Participant E-mail Registration button to register with our code to receive the monthly publication. Once you have registered, you will be notified by e-mail each month when the publication is available. No passwords are necessary. (Please refrain from distributing the code to persons who are not members of this parish.) If you have questions about or problems with registration, the Web site www.celebrationeseries.org will direct you. Prayer Requests To pray for our sick is an important privilege of our parish family. We hope that you will pray for these persons every day, alone or as a family. Thank you. Pam Bondfide Heather Brennan Kathleen Bryers Pat Caffarelli Rose Caffarelli Kathy Calzante Family of Cynthia Catalano Cosmore Ciancio Paul Cirone Margaret Conroy Rhonda Colletti Trudi Dolato Gerald Foley Dino Fuggitti Anna Heffel Jen Huwalt Tom Huwalt Pat Holmes Michelle Humann Maureen James Tom Janicke Irene Kmieciak Bernadette Kohn John Lane Baby Emma Lynde Robert Manion Bobbi Nannini Geri Pstrzoch Vincent Scilluffo Eleanor Sikorski Jeff Smith Karen Sutkus Cathy Ward If you or a family member would like to be included in our prayers, please call the rectory at 279-5700. Also, please let us know when a name should be removed. The Play: Sister's Christmas Catechism Will be performed at At St. Richard Parish, 50th & Kostner Ave Saturday, December 3 Dinner: 5:30-7:00 p.m. Show: 7:30 p.m. $35 per person includes admission and Buffet Dinner Tickets will sell out fast: Order yours today! For information, please call 773-585-1221. "A Polish Christmas at Orchestra Hall Carols, Chopin and More" Celebrate the 40th anniversary of The Lira Ensemble Beautiful Polish carols & folk songs by Lira Singers Spirited Polish folk dances Sunday, November 27, at 3:00 p.m. Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan in Downtown Chicago Tickets: $25 to $50, half price for youth to age 18 For more information, call 773-508-7040. Volunteer Tutors Needed Join the Sisters of St. Joseph of LaGrange in their literacy/ESL program, School on Wheels. Volunteer tutors are needed to teach adults one hour/week at Berwyn, Hodgkins, Summit, Villa Park, Westmont, or Woodridge. Training will be provided on Saturdays, December 3 and December 10, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m., at the Motherhouse/Ministry Center in LaGrange Park. You must attend both training sessions. No prior second language skills are needed. For more information, call (708) 354-9200 ext. 5060, 5085, or 5037 . Senior Citizen Christmas Party The MQH Council of Catholic Women invites all seniors to the Senior Citizen Christmas Party, Sat., Dec. 3, in Barrett Hall, following the 5:00 p.m. Mass. Reservation forms were in last week's bulletin, and extra copies are available today in church. So that we will know how many people to prepare for, please fill in the form and return it to the rectory or in the basket in the back of church. Rides will be provided for those who do not have transportation. Please call either Karen Vicary (279-4108), Mary Connelly (782-7626), or Mary White (833-9809) if you need a ride. 50th Anniversary Committee The next meeting of the 50th Anniversary Committee will be Tuesday, Dec. 6, in Barrett Hall at approximately 8:00 p.m. (following the Reconciliation Service). Plans for this year-long celebration are well underway but much help is needed to work on various events. Please come with your ideas! The following are some of the areas where we need information and help. 1. Memorabilia from the past (pictures, booklets, newspaper articles, etc.), please bring them to the meeting. 2. Names and addresses of previous parishioners or alumni of our school, to invite them to our celebration. Info or questions: contact Sheila Reiter 833-6657 or Ellen Walker 279- 4021. 3. A 50th Anniversary Cookbook is planned with best recipes from MQH Parishioners. Recipes to should be printed or typed, and double checked for accuracy. Recipe forms are available in the vestibule of church and can be sent to the attention of Mary Nanak or Ellen Walker. Parish Advent Reconciliation Service We will have our Advent Parish Reconciliation Service on Tuesday, December 6, at 7:00 .p.m. All families of the parish, adults and children in grades 7 and 8 are invited to this celebration. For our Religious Education program, this will be the seasonal celebration of Reconciliation. We will have a communal prayer service and there will be multiple priests here from different parishes to hear individual confessions. Please join your parish family to prepare for the coming of Christ more fully into our hearts this Advent Season. Christmas Food Collection Our Annual Christmas Food Collection will take place the weekend of December 10/11. Food items can be brought to church in advance (boxes will be provided). Mayslake Ministries "A Circle of Stones: Women at Prayer," presented at Mayslake Ministries in Westmont on the 2nd Thursday of each month from 7:30 - 9 p.m. Facilitated by Mary Jo Valenziano: cost of $15, all Christian women are welcome. Call for info & to register at 630-323-1620. Frank-Incense-ly Speaking About Joseph and Mary Fr. Cargo will discuss the relationship between Mary and Joseph and the difficulties they endured. St. Joseph Parish is inviting all young adults to partcipate in our next gathering. We will provide refreshments along with a babysitter for children of all ages. This event will take place at St. Joseph Parish, 330 E. Fullerton Avenue, Addison on Sunday, December 11 at 6:30 p.m. For more information please contact Claudia at (630) 832-6894. A Vocation View It's Advent; almost Christmas! A Season of Dreams Come True. Be on Guard. The Lord may call you to follow Him.