Everyone said that St. Mary’s always had the best Fish Frys during Lent. We all worked together on the Catholic tradition during Lent of offering a good meal on “meatless Fridays” while at the same time working together as a parish team to bring 500+ people into the parish center for each dinner on the six Fridays of Lent, raising needed funds for the parish, and showing to our neighbors the friendly hospitality of our Catholic people. We stopped Lenten Fish Frys because of insurance regulations. Now we have an opportunity to address that issue at a cost that is relatively minimal. But what we will definitely need is parishioners to be on the “team”! The team needs all kinds of players: from leaders to workers, from a chairperson to dishwashers, etc. Before we go forward on this, we need to know if YOU would be willing to help. Please let Fr. Bosco know you WANT us to begin Fish Frys again and that you will HELP the team!

Insurance regulations stopped our parish Fish Frys 10 years ago. We have an opportunity now at minimal cost to get equipment and an outdoor structure that meets all codes for frying so that we can begin having Fish Frys again for Lent 2018. The project is big (always has been big, but it also has always has been both fun and profitable!) If you want St. Mary’s to begin having Fish Frys again, Fr. Bosco needs to know that you are enthusiastic and that you will help as you are able. The window of opportunity will not stay open for long.

Many thanks to the parishioners who purchased or made donations to our Pizza Kit Fundraiser to help Religious Education purchase workbooks for the 2018/19 school year. Thanks to your generous support, we raised EXACTLY $500. If you were unable to participate in this fundraiser but are still interested in helping, we will be reaching out to all of the talented green thumbs in our Parish in the fall with our Fall Bulb Fundraiser!

Thank you for supporting the Religious Education Pizza Kit Fundraiser. Kits will be available for pick up at the Parish Center following the masses on Saturday, June 10th and Sunday, June 11th.

The Parish Picnic is scheduled for Wednesday, August 23rd. Mark your calendars and plan to join your fellow parishioners for some old-fashioned summer fun.

Seniors and their immediate family are cordially invited to this year’s Senior Grad Breakfast on Sunday, June 11th following 8:30 am Mass in FFH. Please wear your cap and gown and meet 15 minutes prior to Mass in FFH.

A sign up sheet is available in the entryway of the Church for those interested in sponsoring flowers to be placed on the Altar. Fill out the form with your intention and place your check made out to “The Flower Garden” in the collection basket. The usual donation is $30, your intention will also appear in the bulletin.

It is a long-standing tradition for Catholic parishes to honor the Blessed Mother by crowning her statue in the month of May. The May Crowning ceremony includes a procession of First Communicants and other children presenting flowers to Our Lady. In keeping with this tradition, St.Mary’s will be having a May Crowning ceremony at the beginning of the 7pm Mass on Thursday, May 4th.

In order to complete spring cleaning at the parish cemetery, please remove any grave decorations by April 15th. We also ask that you wait until May 7th before redecorating the graves.

Our final Family Faith Day will be on Sunday, April 24th. The Amazing Greys will share their a m a z i n g c o o k i e s . R e l i g i o u s Education will be sharing the story The Jesus Garden. The Knights of Columbus will be running our S t a t i o n s o f M e r c y . A n d Evangelization will be hosting our final Faith in Flint collection and prayer card writing for the year. Flint has made a special request for filling their summer closet. Please consider donating these new items: Children's Socks, Children's Underwear, Adult Socks, Adult Underwear, and Body Wash. A collection box will be in the vestibule for your donations. Many thanks for your generosity this year toward our brothers and sisters in Flint!

Additional cleaners are needed to help clean our church and hall. Each person is asked to make a commitment of about 2 hours, once per month. Scheduling is fairly flexible. Helping to clean our parish is a wonderful way to serve Our Lord and to help our parish stay within budget. If you would like to volunteer or for more information, please contact Tina at (734)904-2841.

Please mark your calendars for April 26th when the Adult choir will have a rehearsal for the Mass with Bishop Boyea on April 29th at St Mary (5 pm) in honor of the 25th Anniversary of Fr. Bosco's ordination. Rehearsal will be at 7 pm in the choir loft.

First Communion is coming FAST!! We only have a week and a month to go. Here's a friendly reminder of the schedule for these last weeks: TODAY—Sunday, March 26th: First Communion Class held at the Parish Center from 12-1. Sunday, April 9th: First Communion Class held at the Parish Center from 12-1. *SATURDAY, April 22nd: First Communion Retreat held in the Church from 10am-12 noon. We d n e s d a y , Ap r i l 2 6 t h : F i r s t Communion Rehearsal in the Church from 6-7pm. Sunday, April 30th: First Communion during the 10:30am Mass.

There will again be a Children's Choir this year for the Easter Sunday 10:30 a.m. Mass. Please spread the word to anyone with children in 3rd through 8th grades who might be interested in having them participate. Children's Choir rehearsals will be at 5:45 pm on March 29th, April 5th & 12th in the choir loft.

Each Friday during Lent Stations of the Cross will be prayed in Church at 7:00 pm followed by Confession until all have been heard. This week the devotion will be led by Religious Education.

This Lent at St. Mary we will have a Potluck meal at 5:30 p.m. in the Fr. Fisher Hall followed by Solemn Vespers in the church at 7 pm on Sunday, March 26th. Please mark your calendars and join us for this evening of fellowship and prayer, and of course, beautiful music provided by the St. Mary adult choir.

Additional cleaners are needed to help clean our church and hall. Each person is asked to make a commitment of about 2 hours, once per month. Scheduling is fairly flexible. Helping to clean our parish is a wonderful way to serve Our Lord and to help our parish stay within budget. If you would like to volunteer or for more information, please contact Tina at (734) 904-2841.

Starting the 1st weekend of Lent, March 4-5th and continuing until Divine Mercy Sunday, April 23rd, with the exception of Easter Sunday weekend, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy will be prayed 20 minutes before each of the weekend Masses. I am looking for people to lead this devotion. If you would like to do this or want more information on it, you can call me, Marja Warner at 428-9506 or email me at marjadiann@gmail.com

Have you given thought to offering your help with the funeral visitation option that the parish will now be offering? Hopefully you recall the “Bereavement Support Group” that was described in a previous bulletin insert, in the booklet you received in the mail called “Seeking to Help Lessen Your Burden,” and in a recent email. Since those were sent, we have learned that the name “Bereavement Support Group” led some to think it is a “counseling” role. And it is not. So we have changed the name to something more descriptive: “Funeral Visitation Group.” Men and women are needed to be part of this small team of people who will assist the parish as it now offers visitation space and time. This is NOT a counseling role but rather provides practical help – setting up the visitation space, providing refreshments, organizing the space, greeting people, etc. The details will be worked out as a group develops, but it is anticipated that help will be needed at various times, so if you can only help in the evening, or only in the morning, etc – but your heart wants to help – there is a great need you can fill as your time permits. To help, please contact the Parish Office (734-428-8811). Be part of this tender Work of Mercy.

Men of St. Mary's, you are invited to a men's retreat at the St. Francis Retreat Center in DeWitt February 24th- 26th. The theme of the retreat is "Mass Matters:We Are Called to Glory." Suggested offering for the retreat is $175 for the three days. You can register by calling 866-669-8321 or online at www.stfrancis.ws.