Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament – TONIGHT (7-8 P.M.)
Confessions are Saturday 4-5:00 P.M. in the Garden of the School of Religious Education.
Weekend Mass times: SA 5:30, SU 8:00 A.M. and SU 10:00 A.M. (NO 11:30 Mass)
Greetings my good friends.
Hope you are all coping ok. Both Fr. Bill and I pray for you all often and miss you so much. Parish life is so quiet, but we hope for the day when life will be at full swing again.
Please pray for Angel, a parishioner who is a nurse on the frontlines, who contracted Covid-19 and is now a patient in the hospital. His wife texted me early Wednesday morning to pray for his healing. Let us continue to pray for healing for all those with COVID, especially all health care workers on the frontlines.
On Wednesday I invited Joan Feser and her three special kids to the beach. For the last few years we have gathered together for a beach day, a joy to experience. Last Sunday in my homily I shared about visiting this special family on my day off and the welcome I received. They all enjoyed a great day.
I had a meeting yesterday with Shirl Giacomi, our Director of Religious Education, planning First Eucharist and Confirmation ceremonies in the next few weeks. It all sounds so strange when normally all these would have been celebrated in May. Reality in this pandemic is we all strive forward with hope for a better day, not to lose heart but to put our total trust in our Good Lord.
Our Principal Mr. Green and the faculty are presently preparing for digital learning until a decision is made by the state for re-opening schools in person. Please pray for our wonderful teachers in this totally new phase of teaching online. Every school, both private and public, needs lots of prayers, for students, parents, teachers, and administrators in these uncertain times. Of course, safety is of utmost importance to all concerned.
Recently I discovered that our rectory offices and the priests’ kitchen were last painted in 1990. Both the offices and kitchen are very dreary and definitely need a face lift, so we are planning on painting the rectory offices and the kitchen area in 2-weeks’ time. If you would like to help financially with this project, I would be most grateful.
The cleanup of the rectory will not be totally finished with this project. The following are future projects: (1) We need to upgrade the windows; some have dry rot and are in a deplorable condition. (2) Last winter we had no heating system in the priests’ section on the ground floor of the rectory (dining room, kitchen, utility room, and guest suite). At present, the ac/heater unit is not working on the ground floor. I was informed by a technician (since the system is over 20 years old), repairs would cost over $6,000, so I decided it might be better to invest in a new unit. A new unit will cost approximately $12,000. I hope and pray we will have heating this winter, especially for Fr. Bill. Please pray for success in this project.
Thank you all for supporting your parish community, praying for one another, and sharing good news. Be happy, be kind, be loving, be joyful, be prayerful, be compassionate, be welcoming, be Christ.
Love,
Fr. Gerard
I would like to share this email from Angie Lizana. Her note is beautiful, highlighting her strong Catholic faith and her connection with OLR through our Sunday Mass on the website.
Hello Fr. Gerard,
I’m in the Navy Reserve and I’m in S. Korea for 4 weeks. Everyone who enters Korea must undergo a 14-day quarantine. We were tested the day we entered and are being held in quarantine at a US Army base. We’re tested again and if negative then can move on to our place of work. I’ll be working at a clinic on a US Navy base. This is probably my 8th trip to Korea. Usually I work on a Korean base with joint forces or on a US Navy ship.
I can see the base chapel from my quarantine dorm room but, as I can’t leave the room, I can’t go to Mass. It’s great to be able to celebrate with my OLR community. Usually when I’m here, I’ll find a local Korean Catholic Church and attend Mass. It’s great when this African American shows up for Mass in Korean. The congregants are very friendly. I always take a missal with me so I can follow the readings. Their collection process for the Offering is quite different from ours; I’ll be glad to tell you someday. Instead of the hand bells, they have a Korean gong. Other than that, the Mass celebration is the same. I don’t know any of the songs -- they’re, of course, all in Korean!
I hope you are well and I can’t wait to get back home next month.
Sincerely,
Angie Moultrie-Lizana
Confessions in the SRE Garden have a new look. Thank you to Diane Adair for her creativity in designing a screened confessional for us.
Volunteers: Did you know that before every Mass, a team of volunteers cleans and sanitizes every chair? If you would like to help, show up 45 minutes before Mass to get cleaning supplies and gloves.
OLR Church Office (562) 498-6641 CLOSED phone and email checked regularly
5195 Stearns Street, Long Beach, CA 90815-2901
OLR website -- https://www.ourladyofrefuge.org
Betty Guevara, Parish Secretary -- [email protected]
Shirl Giacomi, Director of Religious Education -- [email protected]
(562) 597-3102 CLOSED phone and email checked regularly
Donnie Green, OLRS Interim Principal – [email protected]
OLR Catholic School -- (562) 597-0819
5210 E. Los Coyotes Diagonal, Long Beach, CA 90815
Team Refuge -- Tony McKeon, Coordinator (949) 874-6097