“If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.” Col 3:1
Christ is seated at the Father’s right hand in Robert Hoffman’s
depiction of The Trinity in our church’s baldachino.
Photo credit: Gary Kelley

August 4 – August 11, 2019

Weekly Activities

Tuesday, August 6 from 5-8:00 p.m. ~ National Night Out celebration at Blessed Trinity

Wednesday, August 7 from 12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m. ~ Catholic Central Food Pantry in St. Charles Hall (Food Pantry operates every Wednesday from Noon-4pm)

Thursday, August 8 at 8:00 p.m. ~ Bingo will be played in St. Charles Hall.*

Saturday, August 10 at 8:00 p.m. ~ Bingo will be played in St. Charles Hall.*

Sunday, August 11 following 10:00 a.m. Mass ~ Parish Council “Meet and Greet” on newly repaved front plaza

*To check the Red, White & Blue and progressive Share-the-Wealth carry over amounts and progressive numbers for this week, click HERE and visit our Facebook page.

Mass Intentions

Sunday , August 4 ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – Thanksgiving for the Life of Sister Agnes Clare Hatch, SSJ (Requested by Seta Chapman)

Monday, August 5 ~ Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major ~ No Service

Tuesday, August 6 ~ The Transfiguration of the Lord ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – For the intentions of our parishioners, both living and deceased (Blessed Trinity Parish)

Wednesday, August 7 ~St. Sixtus II & Companions; St. Cajetan ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)

Thursday, August 8 ~ St. Dominic ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)

Friday, August 9 ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross ~ Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)

Saturday, August 10 ~ St. Lawrence ~ Mass at 4:30 p.m. – For the intentions of our parishioners, both living and deceased (Blessed Trinity Parish)

Sunday, August 11 ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – Thanksgiving for Malinda C. Cavitt (“Eldo”)

Ministry Schedule for Saturday and Sunday, August 10/11, 2019:

Saturday, 4:30 p.m.  Reader: Gary Kelley; Eucharistic Minister: John Curtin

Sunday, 10:00 a.m.  Readers: Mary Kresse, David Iheke; Eucharistic Ministers: Dan Korchowsky, Pat Hartinger, Pam Zanghi

 

St. Dominic (1170-1221), whose feast day is celebrated on August 8, is depicted in this grouping of monks, hermits and religious in the dome of our church. He is the standing figure, second from the left, shown holding a book. The painting is by Joseph Mazur. Photo credit: Gary Kelley.

News from our Parish Community

Our second collection on the weekend of August 3/4 is for the Retired Diocesan Priests Medical Benefits Fund. Please give generously.

We were blessed with beautiful weather when we hosted “National Night Out” in 2016. Hoping for more of the same on Tuesday, Aug. 6.

CCCB “National Night Out” Celebration is Tuesday evening, August 6 at BT ~ Blessed Trinity is hosting this year’s National Night Out festivities — a chance for CCCB parishes to celebrate together. Please join us from 5–8pm on the parish grounds. This is an opportunity to get to know one another at a fun event. There will be DJ music, good food, and games for the children. Bring your own chair! Hot dogs from the grill will be provided. Volunteer help is essential for the “heavy lifting,” beginning with table and tent set up at 4pm and continuing through clean up at the end. Please let Dan Korchowsky or Bob Heicklen know  if you are able to assist. Thank you to everyone who has volunteered to bring a dish to share. Yellow sign-up sheets may be found on the right side of the communion rail.

Father Victor will be away until August 29. We wish him safe travels and a restful vacation.

Your Opinion Matters! Summer is a great time to try out some different hymns for the Liturgy, and this week there were two offerings never before used at Blessed Trinity. The Offertory Hymn, In Every Age, was written by Janèt Sullivan Whitaker in 1998. She is a lifelong music minister for the Diocese of Oakland. In addition to her work as a composer and recording artist, Janèt is a dynamic cantor, pianist, arranger, percussionist, workshop presenter and retreat leader. For almost two decades, she has served on the catechetical music staff for the One Bread, One Cup Summer Liturgical Leadership Conferences at St. Meinrad Archabbey in Southern Indiana. She holds a BA in music from California State University, Hayward (CSUEB), and a master of theological studies from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley. The Communion Hymn, Bread of Angels, combined a Latin text penned by St. Thomas Aquinas with an English text written by the composer, Curtis Stephan, in 2002. In less than 15 years, Curtis Stephan has leapfrogged from promising young songwriter to one of the most productive forces in liturgical music today. A lifelong musician, he received his bachelor’s in music and his master’s in jazz studies from the University of North Texas. He is a parish music director, composer, concert and recording artist and workshop clinician. Curtis currently lives in Frisco, Texas, with his wife and three sons. He is director of music and liturgy for St. Ann Catholic Church in Coppell, a mega-parish with more than 30,000 attendees. Did you enjoy the new music at Mass today?  Please let Elizabeth or any member of the choir know so we can build a musical repertoire that feeds everyone’s soul. Choir practice resumes in September.  All are invited to participate. … Elizabeth

Sunday, August 11 – Parish Council Meet & Greet ~ The Parish Council would like to invite you to find out more about our mission. We will have an informal reception on the newly repaved front plaza immediately after Mass. Please come, ask questions, or see if you would like to be a candidate for the upcoming elections in September. Looking forward to seeing you there. (In case of rain, we’ll greet you in the front vestibule). Light refreshments will be served.

What’s My Line? A few of you may be old enough to remember the long-running TV panel show (1950-75) of that name, in which celebrities questioned members of the public to try to guess their occupations. Fast-forward to the 2019 BT version. You are the celebrity, and our organist and choir director, Elizabeth Clay, is the mystery guest. How many guesses would you need to discover that Elizabeth leads a double life?

Monday-Saturday, Elizabeth Clay is a Pediatric Physical Therapist at Beyond Boundaries: Therapy for Kids. Three years ago, Elizabeth received a scholarship through The Make LemonAide for Cerebral Palsy Foundation to become certified in The Symptom Recovery ModelsThe Models are a series of techniques that accurately assess the primary dysfunction, prepare the body for healing, treat the problem, regulate the area of disruption, and provide exercises and activities to promote improvement. Since receiving the award, Elizabeth has traveled to Atlanta nine times for intensive weekend classes – the reason she was occasionally absent from the organ bench. Upon the successful completion of her certification exam at the end of July, our Elizabeth became the first therapist in the Northeastern United States to earn the distinction of Manual Structural Correction Specialist.

While Elizabeth’s area of expertise is with children, these techniques were actually developed in the adult population. Elizabeth plans to hold her first introductory class on the Symptom Recovery Models this fall with the ultimate goal of training all WNY therapists in these cutting-edge techniques.

We have long recognized that Elizabeth’s musical talents enhance the quality of our liturgies. Now we know that in her “other life,” she is equally dedicated to enhancing the lives of children. Please join in congratulating Elizabeth on her achievement and pray for her continued success in her dual careers.

Post-Construction Beautification ~ Now that the restoration work on the front stairs and concrete plaza is near completion, our parish volunteers are rushing to catch up with Mother Nature. Many thanks to: the “Duffy Girls” for removing weeds and debris from the large planters near the front doors; the “Brodfuehrer Boys” for maneuvering the planters back to their customary locations; and Bud & Mickey Dick for the mid-summer floral additions.

Construction Report No. 1 ~ In May and June we watched masons working behind the fence to restore the front steps to the church. There are only a couple extra “touches” to be done and we can again welcome lots of guests to tour the fascinating façade of the church with us! Last week we noticed signs posted on all the doors of the church. They are required by law to alert the public to removal of asbestos and other hazardous materials. The asbestos is contained in the original tar paper underlying the clay tiles at the top of our roof. There is no need for parishioners to have health concerns about the asbestos abatement work. The contractor is taking careful containment procedures, as required by law, and the work is occurring outside on the roof, far from where people are passing. The asbestos being abated is also non-friable (i.e., solid) which is much less dangerous than fibrous or powder material. There is no danger to persons in the church, or entering/exiting at any time. The abatement contractor plans to start removal this coming week. Once that process is completed, workers skilled in replacing historic roof tiles will start their task of replacing lost or damaged old tiles, flashing, gutters, etc. to eliminate the risk from existing/potential leaks. We in WNY are most privileged to have in our area Boston Valley Terra Cotta, who have been “cooking” new replacement tiles (in multiple colors) for us for several months. As soon as we know the start date for full roofing process, we will let you know.

Reminder: Funding for this project comes from a large grant from the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, with a local match from hundreds of donations to Blessed Trinity’s Under This Roof Fund. Thank you for your support!!!

Father George Reger is now undergoing rehabilitation at the McAuley Residence, 1503 Military Road, Kenmore, NY 14217. We are sure he would appreciate your prayers, cards and notes of encouragement as he works to regain his strength.

Travel AND stay connected ~ Even when you are away on vacation, you can keep in touch with your parish family by visiting www.blessedtrinitybuffalo.org. It is optimized for use with mobile devices, so whether you check in with a cellphone, tablet or desktop computer, there is all kinds of information at your finger tips. Just click on the post with the current week’s date; e.g., “Week of August 4, 2019 ~ 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time,” to find scheduled activities, coming events, and Mass intentions, not to mention examples of church symbolism and artwork relating to the week’s readings or feast days.

Blessed Trinity Needs Your Help! We’re not asking for money, but for something maybe even more valuable: a little bit of your TIME. Just a bit. ONE or TWO nights a month that will really help your parish. Our most recent financial report shows the importance of BINGO. Clearly, this fundraiser is essential for our parish’s financial health. Just as clearly, it needs broad parish support in the way of MORE workers. We have Bingo every Thursday and Saturday night. Can you PLEASE commit to one or two nights a month? You can start simply by helping to sell things and — as you learn the routine — cross-train for other essential tasks. Our friendly team of workers stands ready to help you. Please contact Kathy Press at 716-445-8160 for more information. Your Parish Bingo Team thanks you!

Our Kids Parent Education and Awareness Program (OKPEAP) is a Catholic Charities program available to families who are experiencing conflict related to custody issues. Visit ccwny.org/okpeap.

Do you know that Mass is the highest and greatest form of prayer? The Catechism of the Catholic Church reveals that “from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, [the Church] has honored with great respect the memory of the dead.” In its reference to the Second Vatican Council’s conclusion that “it is a wholly and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins,” the Catechism adds: “Our prayer for them is capable of not only helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.” Consider contacting the church office (716-833-0301) to request a Mass for yourself, your deceased loved ones, or  for any intention. The stipend is $15.

Presentation of Offertory Gifts ~ For those who have requested a Mass and would like to present the Offertory gifts, please see Head Usher, Ed Marien, prior to Mass. This also applies to those whose family members are being remembered during the Liturgy.

Is it time to update your contact information? We know that not everyone can attend church every weekend, so when there is important information to be shared, we often mail it.  If you have not received some of our recent mailings, please make sure that we have your correct contact information by completing this form. This is also a chance to let us know if you: wish to be included in our online email list, register as a parishioner, or request envelopes. You can also submit the requested information by phoning our secretary at 716-833-0301 any Tuesday-Thursday between 10:30am and 2:30pm; sending an email to blessedtrinitychurch [at] gmail [dot] com; or Clicking HERE to use the contact feature of our web site to submit the information. If you choose either of the last two, please use “Contact Update” as the subject of the email or message.

Home Visits ~ Please notify the church office if you know of aged, sick, or homebound parishioners who may wish to receive a visit and the Eucharist on the last Friday of each month.

“If God can cloth in such splendor the [flowers] of the field…, will he not provide much more for you, O weak in faith!” Mt 6:30
Photo credit: Margaret Dick

News from our Vicariate Cluster and the Wider Community

Celebration at St. Lawrence Church ~ Parishioners of St. Lawrence (1520 Delavan Avenue, Buffalo) will celebrate the feast day of their patron saint on Saturday, August 10. You are invited to join them at 4:30pm Mass, which will be followed by an evening of fun with honored guests, Fr. Ron Sajdak and Fr. Daniel Ogbeifun. A chicken dinner and raffles (win $1000) are included. Call 892-2471 for information.

Employment Opportunity ~ Full time Customer Service / Account Collections position available immediately.  Please send resume by August 12, 2019 to: Office manager, Catholic Cemeteries, 4000 Elmwood Avenue, Kenmore, NY 14217.