Parish Update from Fr. Sebastian

Dear Parish Family,

This weekend we gather to celebrate the Baptism of the Lord and conclude the Christmas season. For our parish, this Christmas was one of great joy and happiness since we were able to join together in our newly restored Main Church. It was great to welcome so many of you this Christmas in the Church and to share with you the great work we have accomplished!

Update on Fr. Dan Cody

It is with great joy that I share with you the news that Fr. Dan Cody returned home from Kindred Critical Care Hospital in Green Cove Springs just before Christmas. He is recovering slowly and is very appreciative of all the prayers offered for him.   He is not accepting calls or visitors at this time and we will keep you posted as we know more. Please continue to pray for him.

Highlights of Church Renovation

In this coming weekend’s bulletin, you will find a wonderful walk through of the newly renovated Church as explained by Fr. John. This reflection by him includes the deep theological significance of the beautiful changes that have been made.

During the time of renovation which began at the end of July we addressed the black spot on the ceiling close to the choir area. It was determined that the area in question was a dormant mold and all the proper remediation steps were taken. Prior to this first step all the pews were removed and taken to North Carolina for refurbishing. The carpet was then removed and repainting soon began. In addition, the Risen Christ was removed and the space for our new Crucifix was created. This renovation of the sanctuary area took great planning and engineering. The glass walls and large metal gates were removed to provide for a greater sense of transcendence and to allow for a beautiful place of prominence for our tabernacle. The Risen Christ has be relocated to the back wall of the Church, fixed upon a lovely metal frame.   The dome has received an amazing paint job of blue with the large band in a darker blue with a scriptural verse in gold.   The baptismal font, the Marian Center and Stations of the Cross have also been refurnished.   The Little Angels Room has had its floor lifted to allow visibility of the Mass.

All these changes can be seen at the before and after video at this link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFJxvk09h8k&feature=youtu.be

A Special Gratitude

St. Joseph is a truly remarkable parish thanks to the hard work of Fr. Dan Cody and Fr. Bernie Ahern. They worked to create a campus in which the many spiritual and temporal works of the Christian life can be carried out. They laid the foundation and built the necessary structures, and it has been left to us to ensure that this magnificent parish will continue to thrive for many years to come.

The Church renovation came about through the incredible work of many people here at the parish and I want to thank Fr. John and his interior renovation team for their role they played in bringing this vision for our Church into reality. Fr. John was assisted by Trisch Broach, Becky Colangelo, Stephen Coots, Micheline Diegan, Frank DeProspo, Karen Rasmussen and Ann Stoner. I also want to thank the members of our Building Committee, who worked closely with the team from Danis Construction to oversee the construction process. Our Building Committee consists of John Alexander, Larry Gaskins and Robert Fernandez.   A special thanks to our Parish Administrator, Patrick Kinnare who managed the project on a daily basis assisted by Gerry Serfilippi.   A final word of thanks to Ricardo Quinones, who served as our architect. Ricardo and his team from PQH Design Group did an amazing job to bring this vision to life. The new statues were hand carved in Italy and secured for us by King Richard’s Liturgical Arts of Atlanta.

Capital Campaign Phase II, The Legacy of Fr. Bernie

Beginning this week will begin a second phase of our Capital Campaign that seeks to raise an additional $1.75 million dollars to ensure the many needs of our campus are meet. I want to thank our Capital Campaign Co-Charis, Dick and Diane Erickson and Rick and Patricia Jones, for their leadership in this endeavor. They have been quietly working behind the scenes securing additional campaign pledges and we look forward to revealing that number to you soon. The generosity of our parish is truly unbelievable. We are currently working on a new campaign pamphlet that outlines what we have done and where we are headed. You will be receiving this information in the mail soon. I ask you to spend some time reviewing it and to prayerfully discern what you can do to help us reach our goal. This second phase is vital to the success of the overall campaign and we have chosen to dedicate this phase to Fr. Bernie in honor of all that he has done for our parish.

May God bless us all and enable us to fulfill our plans and dreams.   May He give us God health and peace of mind in this New Year.

Sincerely Yours in Christ,

Fr. Sebastian