Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Byzantine Catholic Church PARISH INVOLVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Catholic Church

PARISH INVOLVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Invitation to involvement: Below is a list of existing and new organizations open to all parishioners and the main contact person for each.  Please prayerfully consider these opportunities and discern where you and your family can contribute and get involved on “Commitment Sunday”, July 1, 2012.

Here are the existing organizations and what they do…

1. Parish Council– Steering committee for all of the day to day operations of the parish 

              (Jim McMahon, President)

1. Financial Committee– Oversees church finances, annual audits, the collection of donations and payment of bills. (Stephen Kuropas, President)
2. Brotherhood of St. Michael the Archangel– A group of committed men dedicated to prayer, fellowship and fundraising for church needs.  Plans special Holiday dinners and brunches, football tailgate BBQ’s, Lenten prayer gatherings and various other miscellaneous duties.  (Michael Panko, President)
3. Apostleship of Prayer–  A group of women dedicated to praying for the parish, leading the rosary on Sunday’s and fellowship.  In the past the Apostleship of Prayer provided for church needs through fund raising by making pyrohy and hosting bake sales and preparing the meals for parish celebrations.  With new and younger members they plan to be able to resume some of their former works for the good of our parish.  (Betty Jachniw, President)
4. Sisterhood of the Mother of God – A group of women committed to the prayer needs of the parish that meets monthly for prayer, fellowship and helps in various ways with parish events.  (Svitlana Jelnin – contact person)
5. Mothers in Prayer – A group of women praying for their children, parish needs and helping the parish when possible.  They meet every first Monday of the month at 7P.M. in our church.
6. Vigil in Presence of Eucharistic Lord – A monthly devotion to spending one hour with our Eucharistic Lord.  Coordinated by Mr. Brown, this calendar is created monthly with the goal of covering each day of the month with adorers.  (Bob Brown)
7. Picnic– Our existing major annual fundraising event for the parish, this picnic takes place in September and its main focus is fellowship, traditional Ukrainian food and BBQ items, a raffle and games for the kids.  (Stefko & Lesia Kurpopas)
8. Church Cleaning– What better way to serve the Lord than by helping to ensure that His house is kept immaculate for our weekly services?  It’s also a good way to pray and work at the same time.  We are always in need of individuals or families who will lovingly share this ongoing task.  (Oksana Kuzma)
9. Religious Education and Formation of our youth– Each year we rely on volunteers to help us bring the Word of God and His church to our youngsters.  This takes place from September to May, with a break for summer.  Please consider serving as one of our Catechists for this coming fall.  (Leann Seitz)
10. Altar Boys– As our current group of young men continues to grow older and move on into High School and College, we are always looking for new young men to learn how to serve at Our Lord’s altar.  It’s fun, spiritually enriching and you get to actually be involved in the Divine Liturgy.  We are also open to re-training any of you former altar boys (men) for those occasions when Father Mykhailo may be left on his own.  Open to boys who have already received their First Holy Communion.  (John Panko)
11. Coffee and– Each month we look for individuals to provide baked goods and refreshments after both Divine Liturgies.  Wouldn’t it be great to establish one calendar for the entire year?  Anyone interested in helping to formalize this process?  
    1. (Joann Panko)
12. Parish Secretary– Fr. Mykhailo is in need of a detail oriented individual who is bilingual and  willing to volunteer a few hours a week to assist with managing the demands of the office.  Please inquire at the rectory if you have such skills and would be willing to assist in managing the ever growing tasks of our beloved Pastor, as his demands will only continue to grow.
13. Building Committee– This group was formed out of the initial group that set out to analyze the need for and feasibility of building a new church.  It is charged with leading all of the processes of fundraising, financing and building our new church and shrine.  We will be reaching out to the entire parish to help fulfill this wonderful task.  
    1. (Michael Panko, President)
14. Building Committee Prayer Warriors– A group of individuals committed to praying for the new church and shrine.  “In all you do, put God first and He will crown your efforts with success.”  Prov. 3: 5-6  (Bob Brown)

(The Pastor is the final say in all matters of the parish and is required to have access to all financial accounts related to the above groups.)

New Groups Needed:

1. Parish events: This group will take on the leadership role of managing and planning our annual Holiday luncheons, and will seek the help of each parish family to volunteer to assist in at least one traditional parish event annually.
2. Entertainment: This group will be in charge of coordinating the entertainment at our “Parish events” (aside from the Gala).
3. Liturgical Music: In preparation for our new church, are there others that would like to get involved and learn the traditional Ukrainian Byzantine Liturgical music?  Our goal would be to have specific Holy Days and Feast Days where a small choir or group of voices could help us raise our worship to another level.  (Fr. Andrew Plishka, Marty Seitz, Natalka Retmueller)

**Lastly, in order to build the new church and shrine, we will need to establish a committed and well trained group of individuals to assist with the overall fundraising efforts.  Please reach out to Tom Kashul, who is currently heading up the formation of this core group of individuals.  This is new territory for us and we truly need the vast experiences of many to be successful.

As a foundation for the fundraising effort, we are creating two major fundraising activities that will require the dedication of the entire parish.

1. Pyrohy making**- A core team of leaders will be established to lead and coordinate the production teams necessary to make and sell pyrohy.  At first we will start with a bi-monthly effort (every other month).  All families or individual members of the parish will be requested to dedicate their time to a minimum of one of the bi-monthly production and sales efforts annually for this endeavor.  (Anna Chorney)
2. 50^th Anniversary Celebration and Annual Gala**- This team will plan and execute ALL of the 50^th Anniversary celebration events and the First Annual Gala fund raising event which will reach out to the Ukrainian community at large with dinner, dancing, silent auction and live entertainment.  This Gala will become an annual event.  (Jill Panko)

** We are a small parish and in most cases the current participants in the groups outlined above, 1-14, are also involved in more than one.  God is calling all of us to join together.  We need the hands of many to bring His plans to fruition for our new church and shrine.  Therefore, the opportunities marked with the two stars are meant to be in addition to other groups you will be involved in.  

Through the intercession of our Ever Virgin Immaculate Mother and Protectress, we can achieve our goals of building a new parish church and shrine to honor Our Lady and provide a new temple for the greater glory of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to carry us into the next 50+ years.