The Super Bowl this past Sunday was an amazing success. Nearly 300 guests enjoyed an epic battle featuring two of the best quarterbacks in the game. This was the first year with our new audio visual system and to say that it was well received is an understatement. Everyone was amazed at the quality of the picture, and the fact that there was not a bad seat in the house was an added bonus. Attached is a picture; although dark, you get the idea.
Cappelli’s catered the event for the first time and did an excellent job. Our guests gorged themselves and there was plenty of food remaining until the end. If you did not join us, talk to someone who did, and I guarantee that you will buy a ticket next year. Many thanks to those who gave rave reviews of our 14th Annual Super Bowl Party. The proceeds from the event will be used for Youth Ministry.
Included on the opposite page is a consolidated statement of receipts and disbursements for the first six months of our fiscal year. I have also included a comparison to the same period in 2010/2011. Items that may be of particular interest to you are:
- Offertory collection is up nearly 4% over last year.
- Receipts from all sources are up 5.25% over last year.
- Salary expense has been reduced by 3.5%.
- Repairs and maintenance includes several large projects including the re-sealing and re-striping of the parking lot and complete renovation of the kitchen.
- Subsidies to parishes include the final payoff for the convent in Clewiston.
- The Early Learning and Childcare Center closed in June of 2011.
As you know, we generally operate “in the red” seven out of twelve months. Five of those seven months (July – November) are recognized in this financial statement resulting in a net loss of $138,752.00. With a strong showing through the remainder of the fiscal year (July1-June 30), we will optimistically finish “in the black.” We thank you for your continued financial support to allow us to remain solvent.
Painting of the doors in the church has begun and will continue until completed. We have made the decision to paint all of the church doors (interior and exterior) due to extremely competitive pricing. We are confident that you will appreciate the change.
After a slight delay, you will now notice that we have sprayed Roundup on much of the grass on the east side of the church in order to kill any weeds or nuisance grass that may be lying in wait to re-emerge. Once we have eradicated all of the problem grasses we will replant with new Floratam St. Augustine sod. Please accept our apologies for the poor aesthetic appearance over the next several week
Due to popular demand, we have decided to bring back the Reverse Raffle. The raffle will take place on Saturday, March 31 in the ballroom of the Parish Life Center. Tickets will be $100.00 each and includes admission for two, dinner, entertainment, open bar and the chance to win $10,000.00. We will sell ONLY 300 tickets. The proceeds from the Reverse Raffle will be used for the Catholic Faith Appeal. This is a very fun event and I urge you to buy a ticket. For $100, this is an amazing deal. For those unfamiliar with a reverse raffle, I will include the details in next week’s bulletin.
Also due to popular demand, we have begun a new bench campaign for those who missed out last year. The beautiful granite benches are currently located in the memorial garden, prayer garden and in front of church. They are engraved with a silver lithograph and have been very well received. We are going to offer 15 more benches for sale at the cost of $3,000.00 each. Three will be located in the memorial garden, one in the prayer garden and the remainder will be in the courtyard between the church and the PLC. If you are interested in honoring or memorializing a loved one, please contact me at your earliest convenience to reserve a location.
Do you have trouble hearing during Mass? If so, we have ordered 10 new hearing devices to assist you. The devices may be checked out during Mass in the sacristy.
The second excursion to the Horse Races at Gulfstream Park will take place on February 24. Please see this bulletin for further details on a great day trip.
As you can see from the collection summary, we have received our 2012 Catholic Faith Appeal Goal. Our new goal is $443,000, which is an increase of $3,000.00 over last year. Although our assessment could have been much higher, we received substantial credits (26%) for the payment of our remaining debt on the convent in Clewiston. We also received credit for our contributions to Catholic Schools for subsidy at the rate of 30%. Due to your generosity, we are already at 12% of our goal before the appeal has begun. Please prayerfully consider making a pledge for the CFA next weekend as we officially kickoff the 2012 appeal. Thank you so much for your consideration.
In His work together,
Scott Schlossberg, MBA
General Manager