“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9).

Well, having celebrated Independence Day this past week, it is a good time to reflect on the past year. As we welcomed Fr. Samuel Aliba this past week, likewise a year ago, you all warmly welcomed me to Blessed Sacrament Pariah as your new Pastor.

I am confident that you will agree that it has been a very good year. Together, we have achieved a lot in twelve months with the Lord’s grace and with your generous support also.

We have added an extra daily Mass at 8:30am to our Monday-to-Friday schedule and have celebrated many weddings, anniversaries and special occasions. We have welcomed Stephen Mikitish (as well as his new bride) as our new Youth and Young Adult Ministries Coordinator. He has been a great addition to our staff.

We are all set, ready and very much looking forward to our Golden Jubilee, our 50th year here in north Scottsdale, which begins on July 30th.

I was always mindful that this important milestone was coming soon. With this in mind, we have commissioned our Parish Engagement Study in the Spring and have just received notice that it is completed.

We have many exciting events, projects and renovations planned and have also welcomed Kurt Carrick as our new Parish Manager to help with strategic planning and in helping support our parishioners and staff.

We have also started some new traditions including the Labor Day Barbecue, the Christmas Market, more social and movie nights as well as the Epiphany Blessing of Cars.

We have also started a Parish Mental Health Ministry Team and now with Fr. Samuel onboard, and with the help of retired priests, it promises to be a very exciting year and we look well beyond as we prepare for the next 50 years as a very blessed parish.

We especially look forward to welcoming our Bishop, John Dolan, this Fall for some of our special events as well as old friends.

It promises to be a busy July as we host Bible Study on Monday evenings, host our Tuesday Miraculous Novena for Vocations and for The Family and in August prepare for the new School Year.

A Special Word of Thanks to All of our Families, Volunteers and Staff who helped with our SCUBA Vacation Bible School a week ago. It really was a great success.

Please pray for our teens and Youth Group as they prepare for Steubenville West at U of A in Tucson next weekend.

Fr. Kilian, Fr. Samuel, our Deacons and Seminarian and all of our Parish Staff and great Disciples and Volunteers.

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