TUPELO – St. James Parish hosted a festival Sunday, Sept. 14, to commemorate the independence of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico and Chile. Dances included the Mexican dance “The old people dance,” performed by children. Adults and youth presented dances from other Latin American countries.
SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
PARISH AND FAMILY EVENTS
IN MEMORIAM
CHATAWA – A Mass of Christian Burial for Sister Therese Fletchinger was celebrated Tuesday, Sept. 2. She died Aug. 29 at St. Mary of the Pines.
Her first teaching experience was at St. Barbara School in St. Louis, Mo. In 1943, Sister Fletchinger returned to Louisiana where she taught for the next 53 years, 33 of those she taught children who were deaf at Chinchuba Institute. She was a member of the Conference of Executives of American Schools for the Deaf.
In 1996 she retired at St. Mary of the Pines. She is survived by several generations of nieces and nephews.
Her burial took place at the Chatawa Cemetery.
SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
PARISH AND FAMILY EVENTS
IN MEMORIAM
MILWAUKEE, Wis. – School Sister of St. Francis, Mary Louise Reinke (Augusta) died Aug. 19, at Our Lady of the Angels Convent. She was 87 years old.
Beginning in 1948, Sister Reinke ministered in Mississippi, Illinois, and Wisconsin for more than six decades. In the Diocese of Jackson she served as principal at St. Francis School in Yazoo City (1965-1966); as a reading consultant at Christ the King School in Jackson (1966-1969) and for the Diocese of Jackson (1969-1970 and 1971-1973); taught at St. Joseph High School in Jackson (1970-1971); served as director of St. Francis Head Start in Yazoo City (1973-1975); and as Head Start program director for Yazoo Community Action in Yazoo City (1975-1998).
A Mass of Christian burial was celebrated Aug. 27 at St. Joseph Convent in Milwaukee. Interment was at Mount Olivet Cemetery. Sister Mary Louise is survived by her nieces and nephews; cousins and friends.
GREENVILLE – St. Joseph Parish is planning a multi-day celebration to commemorate the 100th anniversary of its parish fair. The event is set for Sunday-Tuesday, Sept. 14-16.
One of the main events will be a celebrity chef shrimp cook-off on Sunday, Sept. 14, at 6 p.m,. at Greenville’s E.E. Bass Auditorium with a happy hour and appetizers before the chefs take the stage.
The culinary competition will feature St. Joseph High School alumnus Frank Signa, owner and chef at Signa’s Grille in Ridgeland, competing against Stevens Flagg, executive chef at Giardina’s in Greenwood, and Jay Brennan, executive chef at the Cleveland Country Club.
Tickets are $25 each.
The St. Joseph Celebratory Dinner and Auction begins at 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 15, at the Greenville Country Club.
The event will include a silent and live auction. Celebratory dinner and auction tickets are $50 per person.
The fun continues Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 16, with the parish fair featuring food and several new attractions including a baked goods bingo game. Spaghetti supper tickets are available now for $10 per person. All of the scheduled events are open to the public.
The parish is also holding a candy recipe contest and a 100th parish fair T-shirt design contest. Details: visit www.facebook.com/StJoeParishFair.
Tickets to all events are available at the church office, St. Joseph and Our Lady of Lourdes schools offices. For information call the parish, 662-335-5251, or Doreen Muzzi, 662-402-8137.
BATESVILLE – Rainbow Studios in Memphis, Tenn., began installing new windows in St. Mary’s Parish Monday, Aug. 25. Different families paid for each of the nine church windows, purchasing them in memory of family members, while a dozen or so families pooled contributions for a larger, four-panel window in the back of the church over the entrance.
Father Sam Messina, pastor, said the windows depict different events in the life of Christ such as his birth and baptism, the miracle of the loaves and fishes, the last supper, crucifixion and resurrection. The new windows also depict Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. John. The parish came up with the subjects for the windows and artist Susan Hendrix designed them. Part of the manufacturing was done in China.
The parish has plans to bless the windows and share a brunch on Sunday, Sept. 21, after the 10:30 a.m. Mass.
PHILADELPHIA – On Saturday, Oct. 4, at 5 p.m., Bishop Joseph Kopacz will celebrate a Mass of thanksgiving celebrating both the 130th anniversary of the founding of Holy Rosary Indian Mission and the 70th anniversary of the work of the Missionary Servants of the Holy Trinity in that community. The Mass will be followed by a potluck supper and a special game of bingo.
“We call it ‘religious bingo,’” explained Father Bob Goodyear, ST, pastor. “All the prizes are religious articles that are not easily found in this area – rosaries, crucifixes, bibles, children’s Bibles, a statue of Our Lady of Grace, a framed picture of Kateri Tekakwitha, a nativity scene, etc.,” he added.
Chief Phyliss Anderson and members of the Choctaw Tribal Council representing Tucker are planning to attend the festivities. Chief Anderson, the first female chief of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, will present two tribal council resolutions, one in honor of the mission and one in honor of the Missionary Servants. The resolutions recognize the work of both the Diocese of Jackson and the Missionary Servants in improving the quality of life for the Choctaw and other community members.
One of them states“ … the Tribal Council does hereby express its thanks to the many individuals who have worked at Holy Rosary Indian Mission through the past hundred years, including priests, sisters, brothers, volunteers and officials of the Jackson Diocese, including Bishops, who have made outstanding individual contributions to the Mission which have positively influenced generations of Tribal members and which have resulted in establishing enduring religious institutions which are vital to the Choctaw community,”
The second part of the celebration is set for December when Bishop Kopacz will preach an Advent mission Dec. 8-10 at Holy Rosary. This celebration will incorporate cultural aspects of Choctaw life, including social dancing.
Holy Rosary was dedicated Sept. 10, 1884, to serve the Native Americans still living in Mississippi. As the population shifted the diocese opened Conehatta St. Catherine and Pearl River St. Therese missions as well. Choctaw culture is still important in the community. Father Goodyear translated the Mass into Choctaw and got permission in 1983 to celebrate the first Choctaw Mass at St. Catherine’s.
The parish is selling T-shirts to commemorate the anniversary. Contact Father Goodyear for order forms and information at BGST1@aol.com
GLUCKSTADT – GermanFest has been a tradition of St. Joseph Parish for the last 28 years. This year the festival is set for Sunday, Sept. 28, from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. on the church grounds. As always, admission and parking are free.
The Gluckstadt community was founded in 1905 by families of German descent. Many of their descendants still live in the area and play an active role in putting on this festival.
The family-oriented event is best known for its German food and folk music provided by the bands, Die Mitternaechters and MS Schwingen.
Sizzling shish kabobs, bratwurst slathered in sauerkraut, and authentic German desserts, pies and other home-made favorites will be served. The menu also includes giant fresh oven-baked pretzels, hot dogs, and rippchenkraut (pork chops smothered in homemade sauerkraut). Dark and light beer will be on tap, along with sodas and bottled water. Again this year there will be a German wine tasting booth.
Meal tickets are $5 in advance and $6 on the day of the festival. Advance meal tickets are available from parishioners or by calling the parish office, 601-856-2054.
Kids activities include the ever-so-popular hamster pool ball, as well as the rock-wall, and an assortment of children’s games.
Commemorative German items, T-shirts, homemade breads, authentic German desserts, homemade jellies, spreads, canned goods as well as sauerkraut lovingly made by teams of parishioners will also be available for purchase.
Festival goers may wish to bring a lawn chair, but coolers, solicitors and pets are not allowed on the grounds.
For more information, call Pam Minninger, 601-856-2054, or visit www.stjosephgluckstadt.com.
By Mary Woodward
COLUMBUS – Annunciation Parish realized a long-awaited dream on the Solemnity of the Assumption as they gathered for Mass with Bishop Joseph Kopacz on the Holy Day in the new church and then after the Mass made their way over to the original church to bless the historic restorations completed this summer. Father Robert Dore, pastor, was extremely pleased with the large turnout of parishioners and friends for the celebration.
The cornerstone for the original church was set in 1863 but construction was delayed another decade due to the Civil War and Reconstruction. Father Jean Baptiste Mouton, a French priest who was trained in architecture, designed the original church in Gothic style.
Father Mouton served the church in many places in the early days of the diocese. At one time he covered most of East Central and Northeast Mississippi serving developing Catholic communities from Meridian to Corinth. A chaplain during the war, he ultimately died of Yellow Fever during the 1878 epidemic.
The parish has been researching and planning the historic restorations for almost 10 years. The desire to capture much of its original decorative scheme and preserve its Jacoby stained glass windows fueled efforts to have the church declared a historic building on the National Register.
Parishioners poured over old documents and photographs of the interior of the church in order to preserve the design as closely as possible to the early decorative scheme. Conrad Schmitt Studios in New Berlin, Wisc., implemented the design under lead artist Will Kolstad, who has worked on other projects in the diocese at Jackson St. Peter Cathedral in and Natchez St. Mary Basilica in Natchez.
For the blessing, a standing room only congregation rejoiced in the culmination of years of hard work including no small amount of blood, sweat and tears and plenty of sacrifice.
One special moment for long-time parishioner Frank Troskey was to see the altar cloth his mother, Elizabeth, had made in 1942, adorn the original altar of the church. He said his mother would work on the cloth after dinner each night for several hours until it was completed.
The newly restored church will now be used as a daily Mass chapel, weddings and other special celebrations. A lift has been incorporated into the side of the building near the front steps for those who have trouble with stairs to enter the church.
Anyone wishing to help support the restoration of this historic Catholic house of worship may send a donation to: Annunciation Catholic Church, 823 College Street, Columbus, MS 39701
SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
FUND RAISERS AND EVENTS
VICKSBURG – Janice Waring, Geraldine Rossi and Barbara Hill look at wedding pictures couples brought to the inaugural St. Paul Date Night, a new program to honor married life. Organizers recognized the longest married couple, Bill and Beverly Pinner, celebrating 63 years, and the most recently married, Mike and Sarah McMillin, celebrating two years. Attendees filled out questionnaires before they left with suggestions for future date night gatherings. Organizers say Father Thomas Lalor, pastor, came up with the idea for the program (Photos by Connie Hosemann)
