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From the heart of our Pastoral Associate...Dr. Kathie Amidei
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Winter Reflection
Driving to the parish early Sunday, the morning's program was on my mind... well, that, and not sliding into a ditch and staying in my lane, though I didn't always know where that was on the snow-covered road.
I was mentally reviewing our plans for Family Program. Then other thoughts came cascading. Would folks come out in this weather? Would the people helping us show up? Would the sleeping husband I left at home, also known as the fifth-grade catechist, indeed wake up and be there in time? Anxiety gathered in my gut, as other responsibilities came to mind... emails... deadlines... the work piled up on my desk...
As I have been trying to do with this wonderful but crowded life of mine, I began to simply ask the Holy Spirit to pour down on my heart, to still my mind, and trust in God's power to lead my life. It may sound simplistic, but I invite the Holy Spirit into my life, in a very literal and childlike way. Jesus said, "I will send you, a Helper, the Holy Spirit to remind you of what I have taught you." (John 14:26)
Maybe it was because of my prayer, but I glanced upward. I could still see the slick road ahead, but I could also see the loveliness of the snow on the pine trees lining that road. It was just beautiful! And I almost missed it because I hadn't looked up. It was a fleeting vision of this old highway transformed into something beautiful.
Faith gives that kind of vision. It doesn't change the reality of a morning commute, but it lifts worrisome thoughts that weigh us down, incubate our fears and generally stress us out. Having faith doesn't mean we get to pull over and just ponder the beauty along the roadside instead of facing the challenges of the day. But it reminds us to love the day. The lens of faith gives us a perspective to look up and be surprised to see God's beauty and presence even on a busy winter morning.
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This weekend! Looking forward to seeing you there and thank you to each of you that has supported this event and supports Lifelong Faith Formation in so many ways throughout the year.
This biennial event is a wonderful evening spent with St. Anthony families, friends, and community members to raise funds that support our many Lifelong Faith Formation programs.
The evening will include:
5:00 PM: Registration Begins
5:00 - 7:00 PM: Silent Auction | Hosted Bar | Hors d'Oeuvres
7:00 PM: Dinner (wine served at the table) | Live Auction/Raffle
Following Dinner: We proudly present Felix and Fingers Dueling Pianos
"I'm so proud to be part of this community, a community that supports one another on their faith journey. The point of all the programs is to lead us to Jesus."
Dr. Kathie Amidei
More information about the Mid-Winter Gala
Want to support us but cannot attend? One easy way to participate is to drop off a bottle of wine in the Faith Formation Office for the Wine Pull! You can also give a monetary donation
online
or in person in the parish office.
Silent auction items are now open for bidding. If you are signed up, you should have received a link to the site. If you not attending, but would like to bid on silent auction items, email your cell number to
Kelsey.
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Upcoming Events...
Thursday, 8th
9:15-11:15am
Alpha at Queen of Apostles
10am-1pm
Young at Heart Mass and Valentine's Party
1-3pm
Quilters
2:30/4:30pm
Children's Choir Rehearsal
5:30-7pm
Junior Retreat Planning Meeting
5:45-6:45pm
Handbell Rehearsal
7-9pm
Adult Choir Rehearsal
Friday 9th
8-9:15am
Active at St. Anthony
10-11:30am
Bible Study
Saturday 10th
5-11pm
FAITH FORMATION GALA AUCTION AND DINNER
Sunday 11th
10-11am
New Parishioner Welcome
8-9:30pm
Buckets and Beliefs
Monday 12th
9:30-11:00am
Molly Ministry Planning Meeting
Tuesday 13th
8-9:30am
Active
at St. Anthony
9:30-11am
MOM's Group
5:30-7:15pm
Fat Tuesday Celebration
6-8:30pm
Men of St. Anthony
6:15-7:15pm
Perpetual Help
7-8:30pm
Bible Study
7-8:30pm
Prayer Shawl
7-8:30pm
SVdP Meeting
Wednesday 14th
6:30-8am
Men's Spirituality
8-9am
Ash Wednesday Mass
9:30-11am
WOW-Women of Wisdom
7-8pm
Ash Wednesday Mass
8-9pm
Adult Choir Rehearsal
Thursday, 15th
9-11:30am
Molly Ministry Field Trip - Children's Play Gallery(Oconomowoc)
9:15-11:15am
Alpha at Queen of Apostles
2:30/4:30pm
Children's Choir
5:30-7pm
Junior Retreat Planning Meeting
Friday, 16th
8-9:15am
Active at St. Anthony
10-11:30am
Bible Study
6-6:30pm
Stations of the Cross
Sunday, 18th
8:30-10:00am
La Petite Program
10-11:45am
Alpha at St. Anthony
10am-12pm
Family Program
8-9:30pm
Buckets and Beliefs
Monday, 19th
10-11:30am
Molly Ministry - Open Gym
1:30pm Stations of the Cross
5:30-7:30pm
Family Program
Tuesday, 20th
8-9:30am
Active at St. Anthony
6:15-7:15pm
Perpetual Help
7-8:30pm
Bible Study
Wednesday, 21st
6:30-8am
Men's Spirituality
9:30-11am
Guardians and Angels Playgroup
9:30-11am
WOW-Women of Wisdom
6:15-8pm
Middle in the Middle
6:30-8:30pm
11th Grade Confirmation Session
6:30-8:30pm
Alpha at St. Anthony
Thursday, 22nd
9:15-11:15am
Alpha at Queen of Apostles
1-3 pm
Quilters
2:30/4:30pm
Children's Choir Practice
7-9pm
Adult Choir Practice
7-8:30pm
Mom's Group
Friday, 23rd
8-9:15am
Active at St. Anthony
10-11:30am
Bible Study
6-6:30pm
Stations of the Cross
Saturday, 24th
6-8pm
Pizza with a Purpose
4th Annual Trivia Night was great fun for adults and children!
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Make a Difference
On Friday, February 9, St Anthony will provide and serve supper at MBHS. The meal is served to homeless and at-risk homeless people in the Amani neighborhood of Milwaukee from 3:00 to 5:00pm. Food donations can be dropped off at St Anthony anytime before noon on Friday and volunteers can join a carpool leaving the church parking lot at 1:45pm and returning around 6:00pm. Sign up to help here.
Thank you to everyone who made and returned Valentines. We'll be delivering them to local retirement communities in the next few days before Valentine's Day. S
H
ope Center Meal Feb. 14
Families with children in the 5th grade and up are invited to provide food and/or serve dinner to low-income families at the Hope Center in Waukesha on Wed., Feb. 14 from 5-7 pm. This is a great way to volunteer together as a family or for teens to get service hours!
Sign up online.
Pizza with a Purpose Feb. 24
Join us after 5:00 Mass for a pizza dinner, followed by a fun time decorating birthday cards and making bookmarks for senior citizens. These gifts will be used by ERAs Senior Network in Waukesha County. Donations of thin gripper socks are also needed.
(Medline from Amazon are recommended). All ages are welcome-this is a great event for the entire family!
Sign up to join us!
Parish Mission Service Project - March 2-3
We are nourished in order to nourish others. So part of our Parish Mission, All Is Holy, is a service project to help the homeless and hungry at The Gathering in Milwaukee. Sign up to set up, do crafts, make lunches, donate food, pass out bag lunches or serve a hot meal.
You may sign up for one, or more than one, of the activities online
. Thank you for living the Gospel of Jesus and recognizing that all are indeed holy!
Sign up to be a Hospitality Greeter at Mass
Offertory Gift Bearer
Sign your family up to bring up the gifts at Mass once or twice this year. Present the gifts of bread and wine at the altar in preparation for the celebration of Eucharist.
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Molly Ministry/Early Childhood
Upcoming Molly Ministry Events:
Morning Moms Group: meets Tuesday, February 13, 9:30-11am. New moms always welcome.
Email Angie if you would like more information.
Fat Tuesday family event, February 13 5:30-7:15pm
Fieldtrip: Feb. 15 at 9:00 we will meet at The Children's Play Gallery in Oconomowoc
Open Gym: Please note the gym days are now on MONDAYS and dates have changed! They are still 10:00-11:30. New dates are Feb. 19, March 12, and April 16.
Evening Moms Group: meets Thursday, Feb. 22, in the Fireplace Lounge, 7-8:30pm. No RSVP required, join us if you can!
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Grades 1-5
CLOW, Children's Liturgy of the Word and Childcare
is each Sunday, during the 9:00 Mass.
Youth grades 5 and over are able to help by serving for Mass.
Contact us if you would like to be trained or need a refresher to help with this important ministry.
First Communion
First Communion preparation begins February 28.
Family Program child classes
:
The 4th graders played 10 Commandment Bingo!
The 2nd graders learned about god's Good News and how to share it!
The 1st graders painted crosses as the learned about Jesus the Savior.
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Middle School Ministry
Middle in the Middle: Our next gathering for youth in grades 6, 7 and 8, to share faith and fun is on Wednesday, February 21 at 6:15pm.
More information. Email
Ann Fons to let her know you are able to come.
Middle School Family Program Class
At Family Program each youth received a pack of Virtues cards, and we discussed what it means to live a virtuous life - to practice the virtues. You can read more about this on the Middle School Blog.
For more information the Virtues Cards see The Virtues Project, a grassroots initiative to promote a kinder, more just world.
Reminder: Coming up at the next Family Program, parents of youth in grades 6 - 8 are invited to join their children during class for a special presentation on substance abuse.
See the website for details.
February 18 & 19 we are pleased to be able to host Melanie from
Your Choice to Live, Inc
. This is one part of our parish response to the opioid addiction crisis in Waukesha County.
Please email
Ann Fons
if you know you are coming.
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High School Ministry
11th GRADE
WEDNESDAY NIGHT CONFIRMATION SESSION: Meet in the PLC,
February 21, from
6:30-8:30.
JUNIOR RETREAT PLANNING MEETINGS: Planning for the Junior Confirmation Retreat will take place on Thursdays, February 15, 24 and
March 1, 8 from
5:30-7pm. Pizza will be served. Retreat is the weekend of
March 9-11. All high school seniors, college students and interested adults are welcome to join us. Any questions contact Cindi Petre at
[email protected]
SPARK: Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament specifically geared for teens, and young adults takes place once a month on
Monday evening. It is a beautiful prayer experience. Join us this Lent on Feb. 26th and March 26 at
5:30pm, for time with Jesus, stay the hour or stop in for 15 minutes. Parents attend with your teen! ALL are welcome!
SOPHOMORE RETREAT: About 55 sophomores and 32 leaders had a wonderful retreat with a social justice focus. They explored situations of inclusion/exclusion, privilege, taking care of the poor and vulnerable in our communities, country and world. Speakers from MacCanon Brown's Homeless The retreat was based on the Core Principles of Catholic Social Teaching.
Summer 2018 Mission Trips
Junior trip to Kentucky skill training sessions are scheduled for Feb. 18 at 4:00pm or February 28 at 7:30pm. Please plan to attend one of these, let
Ann Fons know which one works for you.
Our parish provides life-changing, Christ-centered service opportunities for youth in grades 7 through 12. These trips are an opportunity to live out the love of Christ, to commit to growth in faith and community, and to serve those we meet in our travels.
Sign up now.
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Family Program
Our next programs are February 18 and 19, 2018.
This week at Family Program we introduced another way to reflect on Scripture. We showed a video clip from the series Son of God and then imagined ourselves as Peter, hearing Jesus' invitation to trust in Him and step out of the boat to follow him. We asked, where in your life, do you need to trust Jesus more fully? After seeing a dramatic presentation of a Scripture story I always like to go back to the Bible and read the passage there. You can find the story of Jesus inviting Peter to walk on the water in Matthew, Chapter 14.
We learn from one another!
Sometimes we look for God's guidance in "experts" which is good and true. But sometimes God comes to us in the quiet discussion with a friend or from a companion on the road, like in the Road to Emmaus story. Christ's presence manifests itself in many ways. The hope of the parent panel discussion is that it was a special opportunity for our families to see there is a wealth of wisdom and love right here in the peers of their St. Anthony family. The video we viewed and more information on Sticky Faith can be found here. Please contact Kathie if you would be interested in going through the series with a group of parents.
Challenge met! Four weeks ago we challenged adults and teens at the Family Program to accept the 1% Percent: to spend 15 minutes per day praying with Scripture for 30 days. A list of Scriptures to read, and a simple guide as to how to do that was provided on the 1% Challenge cards developed by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and Evangelical Catholic. By the time you read this, many of you will be just completing the last of the 30 days. Now what? Now that you have established a habit of praying with Scripture don't stop! See the
Family Program Blog for ideas on next steps.
What if you didn't meet the challenge? Don't despair! It is never too late to try again. Just pick up where you left off, or start over again. More 1% Challenge cards are available in the Faith Formation Office, or read the card and Scripture suggestions online each day here.
The Family Challenge continues for another 25 weeks. This challenge is for a family to gather once per week to spend 15 minutes praying on Scripture together. Here are some of the take-away words families sent to us from weeks 4 and 5. See the Family Challenge card here.
Share your experiences with this challenge, the good and the bad, your struggles and your triumphs, on our
Family Program Blog. It's one way we can support each other on this journey of faith.
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LaPetite Family Program
In LaPetite Family Program, students Grades 1-3 are given an assignment at the beginning of the year to work on at home and have the full program year to complete it. We call it the "At Home Project". Each grade is given a different topic and the students present their project during any of the class times throughout the year as they are ready. Grade 1 focuses on Baptism, specifically their own baptism. Grade 2 focuses on Sacramentals and Grade 3, Corporal Works of Mercy.
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Family Inspiration:
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In addition to the amazing speaker for all adults, and family service project, we are offering exciting programming for all children as well.
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