September 2, 2005
In This Issue:
Hurricane Katrina
Silent Auction Results
Parish Picnic
Taizé Founder
Jim McEntee Memorial Service
50th Wedding Anniversary
Announcements
Weekly Readings
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Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, I am there.
Hurricane Katrina
by Bruno Martinez
As many of you have no doubt heard
and seen on the news, Hurricane Katrina has brought to New Orleans and
surrounding area the catastrophe they have long
feared, the total flooding of the city, as well as other nearby cities and
parishes. New Orleans is being completely evacuated. Hundreds of thousands
of people have fled their homes and may never be able to return to what they
remember. And sadly, thousands may have lost their lives.
This disaster will take weeks, if not months, to clean up, and the need for aid will go on for many more months, if not years beyond that.
In
the coming week, I will be coordinating with the school, diocese and other
agencies to see how we might best help those in need. Once we have a better
handle on what is needed most, more information will be sent out.
In the mean time, please pray for all those who are displaced, have lost a loved one and who have died as a result of this heart wrenching disaster. If you have any questions, please contact me, Bruno Martinez in the Community Ministry –Outreach office at ext. 23 or bruno@sjvonline.net.
The Silent Auction at the Parish Picnic Sunday was a big success and a lot of fun. We had lots of happy winners and raise a bit of cash toward funding our new Multipurpose building. Here are some of the winners:
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Princess Diana plates were snapped up by Rosie Ramirez, Inez Lara, Rosana Madrigal, and Araceli Cruz. No one took me up on the offer to learn jam making, but I am still willing. Just send an email to newsletter@sjvnews.net if you are interested.
Special thanks to all our generous donors, who made this all possible. Especially thanks to Manoli Kelly and Pat Garcia who decided to double their donations on the spot and offer two Spanish dinners and two Italian dinners, and to Ann McEntee who also doubled her donation, offering two sets of swimming lessons. Other high ticket items were the hotel accommodations from Bruno Martinez, and everyone's favorite: 3 x 3, Gustavo Gonzales, his brother, and his brother-in-law working for three hours at the winners home.
We have not yet delivered and collected payment for all the items, but it appears we made a little over $1700 from the auction, so it was all worth doing. Thanks to all who participated!
What a great time we had at the Parish Picnic Shindig! Sunday, August 28, about 300 parishioners gathered to enjoy the great weather, yummy food, delightful music, face painting, our Silent Auction, and each other. People met old friends and new friends. Click here to see a collection of photos from the picnic.
Mike Monroe, of
Integrity Express, brought Fair Trade items to sell to interested
parishioners. When we use Fair Trade products we know our purchase supports
a worker who is being paid a living wage. Did you know
that the plates, cups, and napkins we used for the picnic also came from
Mike and are Fair Trade and environmentally safe? That's just one little way
that St. John Vianney Parish is taking care of our neighbors.
This year, we had a Silent Auction to raise funds for our new Multipurpose Building. The way it worked is: parishioners offered a service or an item for the auction. At the Parish Picnic Shindig, people made an offer for the item or service that they wish to purchase. Another person, willing to pay more, may have made a higher offer. The original person could go back and make a higher offer than that one. After a flurry of last minute bids, the auction closed at 3:45 PM and winners names were announced. Click here to see the list of auction items offered. It was great fun and we raised a nice amount of money for the Multipurpose Building fund!
Thanks to all the fine folks who kept the food tables full and pretty, as well as all the people who brought the yummy food. Special thanks to the parish musicians who provided lovely music, and to Lisa Tomasello, who donated her time to do face painting for our younger parishioners. They loved it!
Thanks to the SJV students and the youth ministry volunteers who helped with setting up the picnic tables and garbage cans. Thanks to Revelations Choir for the PA System. (Sorry about the mix-up regarding when you were to perform.) And special thanks to the Young Adult Ministry group for handling the clean up after the picnic! You were all wonderful help!
Gustavo Gonzales volunteered as our MC for the day and did a great job introducing people. Fr. Tim announced that we have received a $500,000 grant that will allow us to start construction of the Multipurpose Building right after the Fiesta 2006. The funds we have will allow us to complete the shell of the building. We will need to do more fundraising to finish all the detail work, but soon we will have our much needed new building and we will be able to have more fun events for everyone.
In
1940, a 25 year old Swiss man
left his home to travel to France, the country of his mother. There, near
the line that divided France in the early days of World War II, he
established a small community where "kindness of heart would be a
matter of practical experience, and where love would be at the heart of all
things". The location was the little town of Taizé, where he hoped to
be present in the midst of the suffering of the time.
The little community founded by Brother Roger took in many refugees during the war, most of them Jews hiding from Nazis. After the war, people began to gather around Brother Roger. Taizé attracted both Catholics and Protestants from all over the world.
The community gathers for daily prayer, punctuated by simple chant. The Taizé chant and prayer is known around the world. We have used it here at St. John Vianney. People from all over the world come to Taizé to pray. Pope John Paul II visited, as did, three Archbishops of Canterbury, Orthodox metropolitans, the fourteen Lutheran bishops of Sweden, and countless pastors from all over the world.
Brother Roger wrote a yearly letter, as well as a number of books. Two books were written with Mother Theresa. On Tuesday 16 August, in the midst of the crowd surrounding the Community in the Church of Reconciliation, a woman -- probably mentally disturbed -- struck Brother Roger violently with knife blows. He died a few moments later.
For more information about Br. Roger and Taizé, visit the web page www.taize.fr/en_article2468.html.
Jim McEntee Memorial Service: September 13
Jim McEntee, SJV Parishioner and community leader,
will be remembered at an InterFaith memorial 
service
on September 13, the first anniversary of his death. The service will be
held at St. John Vianney Church at 7:00 PM and will feature religious
leaders from various faith traditions because Jim worked with all of them.
Revelation Choir, from our Sunday 7:00 PM congregation, will provide the
music. Jim loved to watch and listen to Revelation, so it is a joy to have
them honor him with their gift of music at this service.
For more information about Jim McEntee, visit the Jim McEntee Legacy web site at www.JimMcEnteeLegacy.org. You are also invited to share your story of Jim by submitting it on that web site.
The County of Santa Clara has named the big plaza in front of the County Government Building at 70 West Hedding Street after Jim. The Legacy committee, along with Friends of Human Relations (a non-profit founded by Jim) are starting to plan for some type of public art to be placed in that space to honor Jim and the many communities he supported during his long and fruitful ministry. Envelopes for donations toward the plaza project will be available at the service. Please be generous.
Joe and Gloria Ponte Celebrate 50th Anniversary
by
Ray Turner
Joe and Gloria Ponte
of St. John Vianney will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on
September 5. They met in high school in Providence, Rhode Island. 
After
high school, Joe went into the service and served in the Korean War. When he
returned from Korea they got married and moved to San Jose the same day.
While Gloria worked at San Jose Hardware, Joe went to work for Pacific Bell as a technician. Eventually Joe worked for AT&T, which became Lucent, retiring from there as Communications Manager after 45 years of service - four years ago. Joe worked at Avaya as a consultant for 13 months to aid in the transition of Lucent into Avaya. Joe now works part time with a friend installing and servicing ATM machines.
All his life Joe has been busy in a variety of organizations - the Portuguese club in Mountain View and the Italian American Heritage club. Joe also helped on a Habitat for Humanity house in East Palo Alto.
Joe and Gloria have
been in St. John Vianney for 47 years. Here Joe has been president of the
Dad's club, Men's club, helped run Fiesta in 1970's, been in the Holy Name
Society, and St. Vincent de Paul. An avid golfer, Joe helped put on the Lou
Canepa memorial golf tournament - now the St. John Vianney tournament -
for 17 years. Gloria has been busy too. She belonged to Our Lady of Good
Council, was president of the Mother's club, and works in community
ministry. You can usually find Joe and Gloria at the 9 AM Mass.
Joe recalls that when they first lived in San Jose 50 years ago, they went on "blossom tours" as the valley was all agricultural then, called the Valley of Hearts Delight. Alum Rock and McKee were just two lane roads.
Joe and Gloria will be celebrating their 50th with a party at the San Jose Country Club and following up in December with an 11-day cruise to the Mexican Riviera. Since Joe and Gloria left their family and old friends in Providence behind 50 years ago, Joe says the new friends they've made here have become like family to them.
Hurricane Katrina: Fr. Tim has asked us to announce that St. John Vianney parish will have a special collection for the hurricane victims. The date for this special collection will be announced a month in advance.
Jack Jezreel, founder of the JustFaith program, is giving a workshop in our diocese on Sunday, September 11, at St. Francis High School in Mountain View, 12:30 PM to 5:00 PM. Workshop reservations can be sent to Sylvia Blanch at the Diocesan office, 900 Lafayette Street, Suite 301 Santa Clara, California 95050-4966. Full Workshop - donation of $10 - $30. For more information on JustFaith, visit the web site: www.CatholicCharitiesUSA.org/justfaith
Holy Family 26th Annual Festival - September 16, 17 & 18: Holy Family Parish invites you to come and celebrate its 100th Jubilee with three days of festival fun for the whole family. Enjoy Carnival Rides, Continuous Entertainment, Games, International Food, Beer, Wine, Silent Auction, Bingo, Cherry Bells, Raffles, and KidFest (for kids 7 and under) on Saturday 10:00-3:30 PM. The JOE SHARINO BAND 7-10 PM on Friday. The SAGE BAND 7-10 PM on Saturday. The MUSICIAN’S WAREHOUSE BAND 12:30-2:00 PM on Sunday. Admission is FREE. Festival hours are Friday 6-11 PM, Saturday 10 AM - 11 PM, and Sunday 12-6 PM. 4848 Pearl Avenue (behind Westfield Oakridge)
RAINBOWS - A grief support program for children who are hurting because of a divorce or death in the family. We have helped many children to cope with their painful situation. Our 12 week sessions on Monday evenings begins on September 19. Rainbows is held at St. John Vianney School from 7 PM to 8 PM. There are four age levels for children, kindergarten to 8th grade. For more information, or to register, call Lily Tenes at 272-1861.
Unity Nights at Most Holy Trinity on September 23 is from 6 to 10 PM. This event, hosted by Most Holy Trinity Parish Youth Group, will feature a FREE live concert with positive music geared towards 16-25 year olds. For more information go to www.UnityNights.com.
Monthly Parish Newsletter:
Did you receive the first and second monthly newsletters from SJV parish? If
not, click
here to read the July issue, and click
here to read the August issue. If you did not receive these two
issues in your US Mail box, let us know by calling the parish office at
258-7832. If you are willing to receive future issues via email, which will
save the parish money, let us know by sending an email to newsletter@sjvnews.net
or phone Ellen Turner at (408) 272-9234.
A hospital bed in good condition has been donated to SJV parish. If anyone needs a hospital bed, please contact Bruno Martinez at SJV Community Ministry in the parish office center at bruno@sjvonline.net or, 258-7832 ext.23.
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This Week:
23rd Sunday in Ordinary
Next Week:
24th Sunday in Ordinary
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Praying the Scriptures:
Visit this web site for ideas on praying the Scriptures: www.liturgy.slu.edu
Take a Moment to Pray:
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