Parish Pastoral and Finance Council Minutes
Tuesday, September 23, 2025
In Attendance:
Father Showreddy, Ja-Deen Johnson, Theresa Roberts, Maria Hartman, Mark Rund, Amberlie O’Toole, Ben Laker
The meeting was called to order.
Father opened the meeting with scripture and prayer
A motion was made to approve August Council minutes. Minutes were seconded and were approved.
Pastor’s Report:
Father shared that approximately 100 people attended the First Friday healing service after morning Mass. Our priests will continue to offer this monthly on the First Friday.
Father has not seen any issues with moving reconciliation from Fridays to Thursday mornings.
Father Eustace and Father Showreddy hope to each visit 2 additional sick people per week in addition to any sick calls they receive. They have already begun doing so and people have been appreciative.
Father Showreddy asked that the council add Father Eustace to communication about all future council meetings as Father Showreddy would like Father Eustace to attend when he is able.
Principal Report:
Not able to attend
Financial Report:
Ja-Deen shared that based on the end of July, the balance sheet continues to be strong.
Our parish operating cash is at $630,000 (this is without a large bequest we received) If we add that bequest back in, we are at $1.3 million. We are good financially, but want to earmark this bequest for things most in need around the parish.
In July, we were down $270,000, but we had significant expenses then and will recoup it in the coming months. ($100,000 of this was spent in July on textbooks).
Tithing was up in the month of July by $5000. Tithing was at $2.35 million FYTD vs budgeted for $2 million.
Choice Scholarships:
400 students are receiving Choice Scholarships this school year. The application window for this closed on September 1st.
We have 449 students total. Of the 49 that don’t receive it, 17 are Pre-K that don’t qualify and the remaining ones don’t qualify or didn’t apply.
This equates to $2.2 million for the school year from Choice Scholarship dollars. We will receive this in 4 increments (2 of them in the fall)
Universal choice will go into effect next school year.
Operations:
Ja-Deen shared that we are still interviewing for director of music as we haven’t received many applicants.
Ministry Updates:
26 teens are registered to attend NCYC (National Catholic Youth Conference) with our parish.
1st Confirmation meeting was this week. June 3rd will be the confirmation for current freshmen.
Bridgett Mason, Coordinator of Children’s Faith Formation, is working with the Office of Catechesis to begin Children’s Liturgy of the Word.
Faith Formation Update:
The Faith Formation Commission met on the 11th. There were 6 in attendance / 2 potential members.
They discussed the upcoming bible studies. OCIA had 7 in attendance at the beginning session.
The 60th anniversary Mass was a success; the commission created a special prayer in anticipation of the celebration. The parish picnic bake sale brought in $400 for NCYC.
The grandparent workshop had 50 in attendance.
At their meeting, they discussed children’s faith formation and reaching out to non-school families personally to invite them.
Little Helping Hands (service ministry for children) is going well - the commission brainstormed ideas for them.
Outreach:
Connie Merkel wasn’t able to attend but asked that the Respect Life Flyers for the month of October be shared with council members. It highlights some of the organizations that Outreach assists. Amberlie passed them out and asked everyone to encourage parishioners to stop by after weekend Masses in October. Representatives will be at a table in the narthex with information about their organization.
Men’s Club:
Mark shared that entry for home sports games is credit card only.
Younger men have started coming to meetings and it’s going well.
They will have a fundraiser March 14th.
Additional News:
Pons (Project outdoor Nativity Scene)
Ja-Deen shared that the parish is selling nativity sets through a local company.
The $15 profit from each kit will go towards purchasing the building materials to create a stable for our new larger nativity figures.
It was suggested if someone needs assistance with construction or installation, have them reach out to the parish office.
Parish engagement ideas
We discussed briefly the book Theresa shared prior with council members “Forming Intentional Disciples”. She was able to acquire a few copies and shared some with staff. She suggested a possible book study in which we share highlights and lessons gleaned.
Father Showreddy closed the meeting leading us in prayer.
The next Parish Council Meeting will be October 28th at 6:30 pm in the Hope Center.
