Newsletter #33 - Mar 2022

March 20, 2022

J.M.+ J.T.

Dear Auxiliary family,

Happy Lent, happy St. Patrick’s day, happy St. Joseph’s day!  

I wanted to squeeze some words of appreciation into this newsletter.  You have no idea what a difference you have made in all of our lives.  As we closed the books on the year of 2021, it was clear that you Auxiliary had made a huge difference in our balance sheet and our hearts.  Your fervent generosity in support of the benefit luncheon on February 12th has been a real “Valentine” to our community.  We feel like the proverbial cat which, when dropped out of a window, always lands on its feet; well, you Auxiliary are the good angels that keep us “always landing on our feet,” believe me!  We’ve had the good fortune to be meeting several young women who are inquiring about our community, so with God’s help there may be more of us by the next benefit luncheon - more of us to pray for all of you!

Thank you for your support.  We truly appreciate all of you.  May God bless you, each and every one!

Mother Mary Bethany and all the Sisters

Auxiliary News

Special Requests

Sister Agnes and Mother Mary Bethany have a request! The Sisters love to listen to Books on Tape. They have several books and they would love to have someone volunteer to read the books aloud and record them. It could be done digitally or with a tape recorder - your choice. If anyone would like to do this recording, please contact me and I can get the books to you. This would cost you nothing and be a labor of love for the Nuns.

Also, Sr. Teresa has a request: she needs help doing some manual labor jobs. Here is her list:

1) Clearing of debris from storm in front of monastery and back area (enclosure)

2) Clearing of orchard floor

3) Completing the spreading of new bark in the enclosure area

4) Washing monastery windows (outside only)

5) Cleaning lawn chairs (once at least).

God bless you, all you do is so much appreciated,

Sister Teresa, OCD

If you can help in any of these requests, please let me know through our email.

Luncheon Success and Cookbooks

Thank you to everyone in the Auxiliary who helped to make this year’s Luncheon a success. It was very well attended (we sold out all available seats)! The atmosphere of the Hall at St. Mel’s could not have been jollier! I think everyone was eager and ready for a party.

Thanks especially to Christine Amurao, whose birthday coincided with the Luncheon; she brought all her friends to the table! In the end we sent $14,876.76 to the Sisters.

The Auction had some great gifts, and so did the raffle. I am always so amazed by the creativity and generosity of our donors. Thank you to everyone who contributed.

The food was once again delicious, and I thank Michael Ochoa, Father Aldrin, and the Knights at St. Mel’s for hosting us.

While I am in a Thankful mood, I would like to thank the following Parishes for allowing us to come to them, have a table outside the Church on a Sunday, sell cookbooks, and advertise for the luncheon:

St. Rose, Roseville (twice!); Our Lady of the Presentation, Carmichael; Good Shepherd, Elk Grove; St. John Evangelist Craft Fair, Carmichael; St. Clare, Roseville.

In addition, I send my thanks to folks in the following parishes for helping us to promote awareness of the Sisters: St.Maria Goretti, Elk Grove; Our Lady of the Assumption, Carmichael.

Of course the Cookbooks have been a tremendous fundraiser for the Sisters as well! They have printed about 500 cookbooks, and have sold over 400 to date. So while they have lost a few significant donors in the past two years, the cookbooks and the renewed Luncheon have really helped them.

If I had more people who could be a presence at other parishes, we could actually make these lists longer and do even better; I can’t be two places at once! If you would like to be an ambassador for your parish, please let me know by reaching out to us through our email address on our website.

We are scheduled to have our luncheon again at St. Mel’s next year on February 11, 2023, so mark your calendars now. This removes us from the problems we always encounter of having the luncheon in October: conflicting with Octoberfests, competing with the Life Center Dinner, School Fundraisers, and combatting the fatigue associated with Autumn. 

The plus side of having the luncheon close to Valentine’s Day is that we were able to make valentines for the Sisters at our dinner tables this year. Joanne Banducci and her granddaughter prepared large (plate-sized) very cute valentines for each table, and everyone signed the Valentines to the Sisters, which we delivered on St. Valentine’s Day. The Sisters really appreciated the Hearts and Messages! 

Rosary Walk

Again this year I have put forward the idea of constructing a Rosary Walk at the Monastery, but we need a Project Manager first and foremost. If you are at all interested in taking this on, please let me know by contacting me through the website. 

Changes in the Board of Directors

Retiring from the Board this year is Connie Torres; Connie and her daughter Bella have been a huge help in the past three years with the Auction and all our planning. I sincerely thank Connie for her service on the Board, all her help and enthusiasm!

We have added Joanne Banducci (quilt making), Alma Cortez (Auction) and Marykate Kauffman (Website) to the Board, and are very happy to have them now. I am also grateful to Toni Collins, who even after moving to San Diego two years ago has managed to still be active, helping with the paperwork for the Auction, and contributing to our Board meetings. She wrote the descriptions for the Auction items this year while she had Covid! Heroic!

Eileen Fox, our treasurer, reports that we have a balance of $2,790.91 in our account, and plans to send all but $1,000.00 to the Sisters at out next Board meeting. We keep that smaller balance for operating costs, including mailing the Newsletter to those who do not have email, mailing cookbooks, mailing Holy Face Kits, resupplying the materials for the Holy Face Kits, and for purchasing the supplies we need for the next luncheon. Otherwise, every penny you donate to us goes to the Sisters. 

I hope all this information is helpful for you, and inspiring. Many people work hard on making this Auxiliary a success, and of course, many hands make light work. We know that this work is inspired by Our Lady and the Holy Spirit because it is always a joyful work! If you would like to get more involved in the Auxiliary, just let me know!

In Christ,

Patty MacEgan