Cleaning Up

Cleaning up some items on my desk and on my Virtual Desk - so to speak - before heading out on Holidays tomorrow.
Earlier in August - we celbrated the 100th Birthday of one of our Parishioners - Clara.
While she lives in Davis Nursing Home - she is a the Church each Sunday with her daughter, her grand daughter and her great grand daughters!  Neat to see 4 generations of women from the same family in a pair of Pews near the front on the left hand side (as you look at the Altar).  To the left is a picture of Clara, and the Papal Blessing that the family arranged.

Town of Caledon - Golf Tournament: Sept 12, 2012

The money raised at this 9th Annual Caledon Council Community Golf Tournament will support Caledon Community Services, for the development of the emerging CCS Food Bank Program. Caledon Community Services is preparing to launch a new type of food support program - stay tuned as more info comes out about this...
Virtual Golfer:  If you are like me and will not be able to Golf on Sept 12 (I will just be preparing to return from holidays) you can be a virtual golfer.  When I asked about this - This is what Richard Paterak said to me in an email: 

"Virtual Golfers pay $150 for one golfer or $600 for a foursome and receive a charitable receipt from CCS for the full amount.  Cheques should be made out to CCS.  The Golf Committee collects the cheques and presents them to CCS.  We list Virtual Golfers on our program along with all other sponsors."

 Info is here. 

30th Anniversary Celebrations:

You may not be aware that this fall we celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the building of Holy Family Church.
Holy Family was created as a Canonical Parish on 23 August 1978 – Fr. Leslie Tamas was the Founding Pastor. The present Church was one of 3 that the Archdiocese built in 1981-82 all of a similar design (St. John of the Cross, and Sts. Peter and Paul – both in Mississauga) The First Mass was celebrated in Holy Family Church Building on Sunday July 25, 1982 - By Bishop Leonard Wall. The Church was Consecrated (blessed) by Gerald Emmitt Cardinal Carter on Sunday Sept 12, 1982

We will be remembering this event as we are celebrating the 5pm Mass on Saturday – September 15th - and Fr. Tamas will be hear and will preach!  We will follow mass with a deluxe reception of hot and cold hors d'oeuvres as well as wine and coffee.  
Plan to come and stay afterwards for the reception!
I may post while on Holidays ... not sure Bye for now
Peace.

Edge Camp 2012

This afternoon I returned from our Edge Adventure Camp in Haliburton.  We have 62 Campers in the age range of entering grade 6 this September to leaving grade 8 last June... and we have campers in Every age group!  Friday afternoon saw the arrival of about 10 priests - in addition to myself and the 5 priests that are there for the entire camp: Fr. Damian, Fr. Peter Choi, Fr. Alan Glass, Fr. Hansoo Park (Vocations office) and Fr. Frank Bortelli (Youth Office).  All those priests were there to celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation.  With over 300 campers in total - and 50-60 CORE Team, there were a lot of people seeking reconciliation...

The time of confession was preceded by a catechetical talk - according to parish groups - and Erin (our Holydays Co-Ordinator) did an awesome job speaking about the sacrament to the Holy Family group of campers.  I also got to hear a teen from Orangeville talk about his fears of going to the sacrament - and how those fears were cleared away by the priest who celebrated with him a couple of years ago...

Last night they played "Rescue the Priest" - where the campers had to sneak around the camp looking for the priests who had been "kidnapped and hidden" in different locations!  It was great fun.  Fr. Damian and I were rescued by Daniel - one of the campers from our own parish!!! That was great.


This morning I joined the group of Campers with Erin - because they were doing Mountain Biking.  Well this priest is sure out of shape! Huffing and puffing - I know I need to get on a real exercise plan... Hoping the walking on Holidays - which begins on Tuesday afternoon will kick start that habit...

Pray for our campers - and the leaders - they all return home on Tuesday.  Peace.

Frisbee, Staff and Edge Camp

Despite being a warm week in August - its a busy week here at the Parish:

• Sunday afternoon our Teens won the LifeTeen Ontario Ultimate Frisbee Tournament! It was the first time we beat the dominant team from Holy Martyrs of Japan Parish from Bradford! It was after I left Bradford that they became such a powerhouse of a team - winning the past 3 years! Now Holy Family is on the Trophy!  We had 2 teams entered in the Tournament - and we made them equal teams - neither one "stacked" with all our best players.  Both of our teams won their "Pool" so it was Holy Family vs. Holy Family in the finals.  We never even played the "final" - so St. Timothy's from Orangeville, and Holy Martyrs from Bradford could play for second and third. 
• One of my priest friend's asked if this was an Olympic sport - I said not yet - but here will be the Olympic Symbol when it is declared an official sport!

I can add "Flat Panel TV Installer" to my resume after helping my friend Maureen - the Mother of Geoffrey - the hockey player - install the new TV set they had.  Their old set conked out about 10 days after the extended warrantee expired!!! 

We had our Staff meeting for August - and there were many planning Items on the agenda, including Sacramental Preparation, and plans for the Year of Faith - starting October 2012.

We are also all getting ready for the Edge Adventure Camp - none more so than Stephanie.  While Fr. Peter Choi is technically in charge, a lot of the organizational matters fall on Stephanie.  We have 62 campers and 12 CORE Team - including Fr. Damian and Stephanie!  This year's theme is: Veni Sancte Spiritus - Come Holy Spirit - and I will be going up to the camp on Friday after the Morning Mass in Bolton. We have over 15 priests coming up to help with the Sacrament of Confession - because there are almost 300 campers in total...

Peace

LIFETEEN FRISBEE

Each year the LifeTeen parishes in the Greater Toronto Area have had an Ultimate Frisbee tournament in August.  This is a fun way for teens to have times of Catholic Fellowship and enjoy this cross between football and Frisbee!   Two groups of our Holy Family Teens will be playing in Orangeville this coming Sunday morning and afternoon.  We will all be known as the "Holy Family Carpenters" with the tag line: It runs in the family!  Pretty in Pink - that will be us!  I will be praying for good weather all day - and for safe play - so there are no trips to the hospital! and I plan to be there - but not playing - on Sunday afternoon after the Masses in Bolton.
Peace

Preparing for School

Once we pass the feast of the Assumption of Mary (August 15) many families begin to seriously think about "Back to School" preparations.  In Bolton and surrounding area we may not be aware that there are almost 100 families who need help with the simple things - like back to school supplies.  Over the next 3 weekends we will be receiving supplies - and gift cards - that we will pass on to Caledon Community Services for families in need.  Drop the items in the hall before any Mass on Sunday!
I also want to pass on this prayer - which appeared on the Archdiocese of Toronto blog (archdioceseoftoronto.blogspot.ca):

A Student's Prayer at the Beginning of School Year

We give you praise, O God, 
for everything that is new and beautiful, 
for everything which holds promise and brings us joy. 

Bless us as we start this new year 
with our friends and teachers 
Help us to make the most of every chance we have to start afresh. 
May we show love to one another and to all. 
May the new beginning of this school year 
remind us that you give us chances to start over again and again.

Help us to forgive others 
as we receive your forgiveness. 
Help us to learn and to work together. 
Help us to listen when we should 
and to know the best words when we speak 
and when it is better not to speak. 
We thank you for our friends 
Help us to be good friends this year. 
Help us to be patient 
with ourselves and with others. 

Bless our school and keep us safe. 
Be with us as we travel each day. 
Help us to be aware of your love 
shown to us in the people around us. 
Bless all those who care for us 
In school and at home. 
Help us show our care for them 
and to say sorry when we need to. 

May the Blessed Mother Mary protect us 
And help us to live as well as we can 
Giving thanks and glory to God as she did.  Amen.

Peace

Ribs and a Lake tour!

My Brother has a Cottage, a Garage, a Bunkhouse, and his own home on one large property on the Sharbot Lake mainland. Tuesday afternoon we took the family that is renting my brother's cottage on a tour of the Lake. Chris and Dad do something thing like this on Canada day each year, as sort of a public service for the township celebrations. So they have a bit of a narration down pat. I learned that a body of land surrounded by water and with 2 or more trees is  an island. If there is only one tree - it is called an islet. Sharbot lake has 99 islands and one islet!  My Dad's cottage is on an island - Leger Island! Named so around 2001 when the 911 system required islands to be properly named (it used to be called Island B).

Tuesday night we had Ribs and corn on the cob! A great cottage meal. You can see my Dad's Buttertarts in there too! Wednesday I head back to Bolton - but not until I play a round of golf with dad at his club - men's day!

Here are some of the cottages we stayed in over the years before we purchased our own cottage.


Allen's Cottage on Craig's Island 



Cooke's Cottage



Romaniuk's Cottage - we leased this for 6 years while they went to Western Canada

 Peace

Delights and dangers at the cottage

Just sitting down to a nice lunch of freshly caught bass. 3 1/2 year old Michael has been quite the fisherman!
There are 4 S's at the lake:

1. Swimming - always a great thing. To take a run off the dock and dive into the lake is refreshing and feels so much more natural than the chlorine stuffed feel of the pool at a hotel!
2. Star gazing - It is never so dark, and hence never so bright, on the boat in the middle of the lake on an August night at 11:30 pm.  With so little "light pollution" you can see the ocean of stars in the sky, and clearly see the milky way! It brings to mind the promise of God to Abraham in Genesis 15:5 - to make his descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky!
3. Sleeping in - this is a habit from my youth that I like to indulge in!  The slower pace - the simplicity and solitude mean that sleeping in is easy and a delight.
   It was made easier after getting back to my Dad's cottage from my brother's place around midnight after watching the movie "The Way". Each time I watch the movie - I see new things!
4. And now for the danger - the Satellite. My dad has Bell's Expressview satellite at the cottage - and after sleeping in - I could watch the TODAY Show (something I rarely get to do) 3 hours later on "time shift" on the Seattle NBC station. The danger is that you get their weather forecast - and could think that after the fog burns off, it will be sunny and 80 degrees by noon! 

Peace.

Chris and Michael - The real Fishermen!

Chris's Bunkhouse

Dad's Cottage - with a new hand rail for the oldest Son!

Time at Sharbot Lake

Monday Greetings!

I just arrived at Sharbot Lake - where my family has vacationed from my childhood, where our Family has owned a cottage since 1986, and where my brother Chris, his wife Maria (who thinks I should take HER to Vegas!) and my nephew Michael LIVE.
They often remark how I will travel half way round the world, but not make it up to Sharbot Lake in a summer.  So here I am - bringing Jasmine Rice from Toronto Supermarket (not often available in Sharbot Lake's FreashMart) and some fresh baked chocolate chip cookies, and some sweet corn from "Hunts" in Tweed.

Garden Foods Golf Tournament

Well Wednesday was a beautiful Sunny day - just the way Carmine Carbone ordered it - and asked me to pray for!  Carmine is the founder of Garden Foods, and the father of Piero Carbone - the current owner of Garden Foods.  Piero and Rose, long time parishioners here at Holy Family and members of our Marriage Preparation Team, organized their 10th Annual Golf Tournament - supporting Caledon Community Services, which was held Wednesday at Glen Eagle Golf Club.  What a terrific Tournament.  I used to organize the Priests' Golf Tournament every year - and I can tell you - the Garden Foods tournament is a top notch event!

The day starts with breakfast (back bacon on a bun) and the Shotgun start is at 8:30.  At least 1/2 of the holes have some sort of Event, Sample, Taste, Experience: from Beef Tenderloin on a Baguette, to Espresso and Sambucca; from Magnum Ice Cream bars, to stuffed rice balls!  Each year Rose and Piero have asked me to say Grace before the Lunch which is served after Golf - around 2:30pm - I realized this year that I should have started the day with a "Shotgun Grace" at 8:30 am since there was so many complimentary food samples on the course! 
I golfed with Nicholas, our Church Organist, and Pat, a member of the parish. She had some local knowledge - having played Glen Eagle the afternoon before at "Ladies Night".  We did not have a 4th.  My Dad and brother - Chris - played with Mike and Ugo also from the parish.  They golfed much better than we did, we won "Most Honest Golfers" and they gave each of us a croquet set. (Were they saying stay off the golf course?!?)

Like most golf tournaments - there were additional fundraising holes - like closest to the "Keg" - sponsored by Molson's, and there were 2 hole in one chances (for $10,000, or new sets of Golf Clubs).  They also sold tickets for a chance at a deluxe trip to Las Vegas, for $100 a chance.  (They actually use playing cards to choose the winner). When I was talking to Fionna Ott, the Director of Fundraising for CCS - she said she wanted me to cut the deck, for the prize winner.  I said no way - I was buying a ticket!  But my dad (The Father of the Father!) could do it!  Well I bought a "ticket" (the Queen of hearts) and never told Dad which card I had chosen. At the Lunch, I was sitting with Regional Councillor Patti Foley, who had also bought a "ticket" for the grand prize - the Queen of Diamonds. As they called Dad up to do the cut, Patti showed me her card, and then we heard:

• Red deck - we both had cards from the red deck
• Queen - we both had Queens!
• Red Queen - it was between the two of  us!
• Queen of Hearts!

I won the trip!  Before I got back to the table - my brother was trying to buy the trip off of me!

It was a wonderful day - not just because of the weather, the golf, the food samples along the way, the prizes, or the great lunch. It was a great day because the tournament raised $60,000 for Caledon Community Services! (over the 10 years over $360,000) has been raised for CCS) 
Monty Laskin - the CEO of CCS revealed that the new food exchange hub that CCS has been working on will have a food pantry called: The Carbone Family Pantry.  I could see how emotional Rose and Piero were when that announcement was made. Thanks to Rose and Piero for all the hard work that they have done this year - and for the last 10 years - supporting this great cause - and allowing over 215 golfers to have a great time while doing it.  My Dad told Rose he has not been to a better tournament!

Peace

Mid - Summer

It is a warm Friday evening, the first Friday of August.  Just about to spend some time in Adoration, and realized I have not posted in almost a week!  for the second week in a row.  

Our Holydays camp has concluded - and parents were saying how sad they were that we did not have more weeks... For us it was a matter of the School Board Permit - 5 weeks was the most we could have access to Holy Family School. Next year - who knows??? It was certainly a successful camp. One of the great things that Camp allows us to do is introduce the relational ministry model (which we use in Life-Teen and Edge) to the children in grades 1-6 in Holydays.  This means that the Counsellors get to know the campers, and they are able to better deal with issues that arise...
Great thanks go to Erin - our Camp Co-Ordinator, Stephanie - our Camp Director, and each of our 8 Full Time Counselors: Lucas B., Talia B., Nicloe B., Julia C., Christina D., Shelby D., Katie H.,  and Lucas S.  Each of them shone each week!
We had 22 Counselors in Training in Both High School and Grade! These volunteers were vital to the safe and enjoyable camping experience we offered each week. Thank you CIT's!!!


After the Long weekend - we will be having a wrap up day on Tuesday with the Staff and CIT's - then they will enjoy some Wings and things !!!


Peace