Category Archives: Uncategorized

SAYING ‘YES’ TO GOD’S CALL

Ria Fruscello had her own idea about how she could help serve her parish, but a small voice kept contradicting her. Parishioners are glad she listened.

Her story begins in the ChristLife evangelization program at St. Gabriel of the Sorrowful Virgin Parish in Whitehall, funded locally through sacrificial gifts to Our Campaign for The Church Alive!  At the end of the three-part series participants were invited to think of something they could do for their parish or the universal Church, and to give a talk about it.

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FORMING SEMINARIANS WITH THE HEART OF CHRIST

Bishop David Zubik wants to fully prepare men for the priesthood of the future, and donors to Our Campaign for The Church Alive! are playing an important role in that effort.

With the graduate-level seminary program extended to five years, adding a “pastoral year” in parishes, the non-profit board of the campaign has approved a grant to provide for Days of Recollection for seminarians to reflect on their parish experiences.

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Father Frank Almade

EVERY GIFT MATTERS

When students at St. Vitus Parish School recently held a fundraiser for the diocesan mission supporting the poorest of the poor in Chimbote, Peru, they collected $800, which was soon anonymously matched by a parishioner.

“Only because 125 students made small contributions was this brother in Christ able to make a larger gift,” said Father Frank Almade, pastor of the Catholic Community in New Castle. “Our children teach us that every gift matters.”

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SEEING JESUS IN THE FACE OF THE POOR

After their landlord failed to pay overdue utility bills, two local families suddenly were without shelter. But Catholic Charities helped them find new homes and new hope for the future.

One family was an elderly woman in a wheelchair whose daughter was recovering from major surgery. The other family was a single mom with two teenage children who were doing well in school. It was critical that their education wasn’t interrupted.

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Missionary Emily Bonessi meets with Mayhew, one of the youths participating in the Dirty Vagabonds urban ministry outreach at St. Maria Goretti Parish.

A ‘MESSY MINISTRY’ THAT CONNECTS WITH KIDS

At first glance, Mayhew looks like any typical teenager. The 17 year old lives with his mother and sisters in Pittsburgh’s Garfield neighborhood and dreams of becoming a veterinarian.

He’s also left his high school because one of his sisters allegedly was assaulted there. Mayhew says a few friends also have been victims of violence. On Christmas Eve, a young man was gunned down on a Garfield street.

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