RENOVATION AND SEISMIC PROJECT UPDATE
How Will We Raise the Needed Funds?
Introducing our Scale of Giving!
In last week’s update, you may have read that Holy Cross is embarking on a capital campaign to raise $500,000 to complete our renovations and seismic upgrade project. How will we raise these funds? Introducing – our Scale of Giving (shown below). This is a common approach used in Capital Campaigns where donors are invited to pledge their gift over a 5-year period. It is a cost-effective way to raise a large amount of money, and it gives donors the time to contribute larger gifts than they might otherwise be able to do. This Scale of Giving will be a useful tool throughout our campaign and will provide a clear path to success!
MOVIE NIGHT IS TONIGHT FRIDAY NOVEMBER 8TH
The Holy Cross CWL and the Christian Addictions Recovery Ministries Society (CHARM) invite you to a free “Movie Night’ tonight at 7:00 pm in the Holy Cross School Gym. The movie will be “The Downside of High”. This is a 42 minute video narrated by David Suzuki and shown on the CBC program the Nature of Things. It is the story of three BC teens and their doctors who agree that the mental health challenges they now face in their 20s are the result of starting to smoke marijuana in their teens. There will be a guest speaker and a Q&A period after the movie.
For further information contact Angela von Werder at 604-998-3270 or email hello@charmrecovery.org. or go to the website www.charmrecovery.org
COFFEE SUNDAY
This Sunday November 10 will be our monthly Coffee Sunday in the School Gym after all morning Masses (8am, 10am, 12pm). This Sunday, we are once again doing a raffle draw for a gift basket donated by the CWL (valued at over $150.00). Tickets are $2.00 each and 3 for $5.00 – please bring cash. The draw will take place after the 12:00 pm Mass. Please come and get to know your fellow parishioners while enjoying free coffee and treats donated by Hill’s Bakery, Valley Bakery, and Cobs on Kensington. Thanks to parishioners who are also baking some treats for us. We look forward to seeing you!
OFFICE IS CLOSED MONDAY NOVEMBER 11
The Parish office is closed on Monday November 11th for the Remembrance Day statutory holiday and morning Mass on Monday will be at 9:00 am.
MASSES CANCELLED Tues Nov 12 to Fri Nov 15
There will be no Masses from Tuesday, November 12 to Friday November 15 (also no Divine Mercy Mass on Friday November 15). At 8.15 am on these days, there will be the Liturgy of the Word with the distribution of Holy Communion officiated by our acolyte Carmine Morelli.
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
The Knights of Columbus General Meeting is on Thursday Nov. 14th at 7pm in the Music Room.
ALL SOULS ENVELOPES
The Catholic Church dedicates the entire month of November to the Holy Souls in Purgatory. This season begins with the Hallowtide Triduum, which consists of All Hallows’ Eve, All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day. During November we pray for the souls of those who have died, especially those whom we have known and loved. Remembering them, praying for them, and giving thanks for them pleases God, who makes use of our prayers to help purify those souls in Purgatory that He loves.
The Roman Catholic celebration is associated with the doctrine that the souls of the faithful, who at death have not been cleansed from temporal punishment, due to light sins and from attachment to mortal sins, cannot immediately enter heaven. Therefore, they must be purified of “lesser faults,” and the temporal effects of sin.
The Catholic Church calls this purification “purgatory”. The universal Christian teaching on Purgatory requires belief in two realities:
1) That there will be a purification of believers prior to entering heaven and
2) That the prayers and Masses of the faithful in some way benefit those in this state of purification.
We, as Catholics, believe that these souls may be helped by our prayers and by the sacrifice of the Mass.
During the month of November we have a long-standing tradition of accepting Masses by All Souls Envelopes:
1. Each envelope is a request for one Mass. Please take these from the entrance of the church or make your own envelope that is clearly marked “All Souls”.
2. Write the names of your deceased on the front and, along with your donation, put it in the Sunday collection basket (during the entire month of November), or bring it to our parish office OR send it to us via mail.
3. Each of these envelopes will be used as one Mass intention, celebrated by Fr. Tomasz or myself, or perhaps another priest. PLEASE NOTE: we will not be able to let you know the date on which your Mass will be observed.
I encourage you to continue this beautiful practice that will help in setting our hearts and minds in the strong belief of Christ’s resurrection. This is our spiritual gift, not only for our deceased, but also for all the forgotten souls. May they rest in peace!
Please remember that we can assist all the departed by way of almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance on their behalf.
12-HOUR EUCHARISTIC ADORATION
We would like to encourage everyone to come and participate in our
12-hour Eucharistic Adoration starting after the Divine Mercy Mass
at 9:00 pm on November 22nd and ending at 9:00 am before morning Mass the next day, November 23rd. It can be a holy hour or a holy 15 minutes…. come and spend some time with Jesus. There will always be at least one male person at every hour, so you won’t be alone. Come and see Jesus face to face. He is waiting for you!
HOLY CROSS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 2025 KINDERGARTEN APPLICATIONS
Holy Cross Elementary School will be accepting applications for prospective Kindergarten students who will be 5 years old (born in 2020). If you are interested in having your child attend Holy Cross Elementary, please complete the application form which can be found on the school website (www.holycrosselementary.ca) and bring the following to the school office: child’s birth certificate, baptismal certificate (if baptized Catholic), completed application form and a $25.00 application fee payable by cash or cheque between November 1 and November 29, 2024. In-person interviews for families selected based on our admissions policy will be on January 10, 2025.
HOLY CROSS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL REUNION
It is with great pleasure that the organizing committee would like to report that the reunion for those who attended Holy Cross School in the 1960’s was a resounding success.
We would like to extend a special thank you to Mr. Peter Veltri, for the tour of Holy Cross School.
It brought back a lot of great memories for all who attended and the group applauded all the improvements to the school.
(The gym was the church in our years of attendance).
Sincerely, The Organizing Committee members; Wayne Shalagan; Debra Quercetti; Sheila (Moodie) McMillan, Joanne MacDonald; and Alice (MacDonald) Spencer.
PURDY’S CHOCOLATES FOR CHRISTMAS (FUNDRAISER)
This is a reminder that you only have 3 weeks left to support the CWL Purdy’s fundraiser. We know that Christmas is 6 weeks away and you may not want to think of shopping, but… If you do want to get some shopping done from the comfort of your home, you can support our Holy Cross Catholic Women’s League’s (CWL) Christmas fundraiser by buying Purdy’s chocolates for your Christmas stockings, or as Christmas gifts. The CWL supports our parish in many ways so any support is greatly appreciated.
To place an order, click on the following link to “Join a Campaign”:
Holy Cross CWL Christmas 2024 Fundraising Link: https://fundraising.purdys.com/1536029-118406
If have trouble accessing the site when clicking on the link, please visit: www.fundraising.purdys.com and select “Join a Campaign”. You will be asked to provide your email address and our Customer Number (63039).
If you don’t want chocolates, you can still support our CWL with a monetary donation.
Deadline to place an order is Monday December 2nd and orders will be available for pick up after all Sunday Masses on December 15.
If you can’t order online, or have any questions, please call or email the Parish office (parish.hcb@rcav.org) or email Marisa (marisademare@gmail.com). Thank you!
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS ANNUAL CHARITY APPEAL
Knights of Columbus Annual Charity Appeal is now live, draw date is December 14th. Tickets can be purchased online from the following link: https://kofcdraw.net/C05423
First prize is a Ford Escape Hybrid and there are a number of cash and early bird prizes. A portion of the ticket sales come back directly to our Council to support the various charities and ministries in our community.
LITTLE BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS AND ADVENT
The Little Books for Advent and Christmas are available for sale in the back of the church for $3.00 each. Please place the money in the brown box.
CHRISTMAS MIDNIGHT MASS CHOIR
Our Christmas Midnight Mass choir will start practicing this Sunday and musicians and those who would like to sing with us in this choir are very welcome. We will practice in the Church on Sundays November 10, 17, 24 and December 1, 8, 15, 22 from 6:00-7:30 pm. Please contact Lanny Hui at lanny.hui@gmail.com, if you would like to join or for more information.
2025 SAVE THE DATES
Holy Cross Super Bowl Party
Sunday February 9,2025 – 2:30 pm to 7:00 pm
Holy Cross Annual Golf Tournament
Friday May 9, 2025 – 12:00 pm to 9:00 pm
MASS INTENTIONS for Monday November 11, 2024 to Sunday November 17, 2024 (Requested by)
Mon. Nov 11 9:00 am
+Vince Abbinante (Family)
++Zacharias and Alfredo Nopre (Albina Halfar)
Tues. Nov 12 8:15 am
No Mass
Wed. Nov 13 8:15 am
No Mass
Thurs. Nov 14 8:15 am
No Mass
Fri. Nov 15 8:15 am
No Mass
Fri. Nov 15 7:30 pm
No DM Mass
Sat. Nov 16 9:00 am
++Deceased Members of the D’Elia Family (Family)
Sat. Nov 16 5:00 pm
Parishioners
Sun. Nov 17 8:00 am
+Sante Campeotte
+Tony De Santis (Family)
+Tony Ceccato (Poato Family)
+Martino Poato (Poato Family)
Sun. Nov 17 10:00am
+Tony De Santis (Giovanni and Nadia De Santis)
+Anis Nakhleh (Liguori Family)
+Rosa Merandi (Liguori Family)
++Deceased Members of the Famiglia Bagnolese Society (Society Members)
Spl. Int. Lucille Sandhurst (Daphne)
Spl. Int. for Kung and Chan Families
Sun. Nov 17 12:00 Noon
+Ivan Despot (Anke Bratanic Family)
+Pasquale Ferrara (Sorace Family)
++Raffaele and Domenica Losorelli (Family)
++Zorka and Marko Zupan (Family)
+Sabatino Bellico (Family)
+John Ford (Gray Family)
+Donato Aresta (Family)
++Rosa and Michele Aresta (Family)
Spl. Int. Marie and Allen (Family)
Sun. Nov 17 5:00 pm
ParishIoners