What a year it has been so far!

What a year it has been so far!  First the GIANTS win the Super Bowl and then Matthew Kelly from Dynamic Catholic hits a homerun in his morning workshop here last Saturday!  First of all, my condolences to all you New England Patriot fans out there.  Despite a superior team they have fielded these past years, it just seems the G-Men have their number and thus have bragging rights for the next year!  Of course I am not one who likes to "rub it in" but I can hear that song playing in my mind right now "WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS" and for that I'm grateful.  

Last Saturday Matthew Kelly was outstanding in his presentation on Catholicism and how we can be "better versions of ourselves" as over 800 people gathered together to hear him speak.  It was a wonderful shot in the arm for all of us as he reminded all those attending that we are a phenomenal presence in our country and in the world and we need to remember how our Church had been the innovators of medical care, schools, and universities in our history.  We have simply blended into our secular society and forgotten our past and have given over our power for change in the future by not being the best version of ourselves.  There was so much more but I have limited space here to write about our experience.  You can find much of it in his book "Rediscover Catholicism" that is available in our gift shop.  I'm already seeing great things happening in our parish since this workshop and it makes me excited to see how much more God has in store for us!

Lastly,  as you read this, we are already engaged in our yearly golf tournament at Hunters Green C.C.  This year over 135 golfers will be vying to become the "St. Mark golfers of the Year" award which is a wonderful grace in itself.  This year we also have a food tent on the 7th hole where not only can they eat some great Italian "sausigge" and peppers but also get a chance to win a trip to Hawaii with a hole-in-one!  In addition they will have the opportunity to "Beat the Priest" and win a tee shirt, free confessions for a year, and a sleeve of balls that float on water when you hit it in the lake.  It looks like it's going to be a great day!  All proceeds go to the construction of our new Church.  

Well, that is all for now.  Let's keep each other in prayer and continue to be grateful for the blessings that God has given us in this life!

Peace,

Fr. David

It Has Been Awhile

Greetings to all of you!  Well it has been awhile since I have written an article to you and     finally the powers that be have given me permission to dust off my typing skills and venture back into the realm of amateur “columnist.”  I thank all those who have been sitting in for me these past months writing about their desire for a new Church and I have been very impressed by their heartfelt writings and impressions.  Speaking of which,
I have received very good news on the progress for constructing our new church. We will be able to commence construction when we have cash of five million dollars in our account. To date, 401 families have pledged $3,613, 861 of which we have $1,290, 486 in our account.   Therefore, we have need for an additional $3,709,514 in cash so we can   commence construction.  I am so appreciative of the very good work accomplished by our campaign chairman Monty Weigel and his committee thus far.  So folks, if we want to build our Church in the near future, we need to start making pledges!  I find it amazing that 401 families thus far have made pledges which amount to over a third of the grand total of $10 million.  It is also amazing to me that 2500 families in our parish have YET to make a pledge!   I do realize that economic times are tough, but this is also an opportunity to strengthen our faith in a God who has been so generous to us and who will never be outdone in generosity!  Take a step IN FAITH and make a pledge!  Then sit back and watch how God will work in your life.  We may even start building our Church as early as next year! 

We also have some great plans ahead of us in securing additional funds to bring about much needed cash to our Campaign.  They include fund raising events such as our annual golf tournament, Parish socials, etc, in addition to our continuing second collections, and new parishioner pledges. 

As I have stated before, our current facility is not really an adequate church building [in the traditional sense]. Frequently it is difficult to provide needed space for many of the parish functions we have here. With the new church, the present worship area will become an “all purpose” facility providing needed space for activities, meetings, youth functions, religious education and social hall for the parish and New Tampa community.

So PLEASE make a pledge and help us to make this a real Spiritual Center for New Tampa!  Just think how many others will be touched by your sacrifice as we try to bring more and more people to God!

Peace,
Fr. David

PS: learn more about our new church at: www.stmarktampa.org/NewChurch