Sitting around the Thanksgiving table last week, I was fortunate to be surrounded by family, enjoying a wonderful meal. So many people do not have a home or enough food to feed their families. Others have lost their loved ones, or cannot travel to be with them. I am so blessed to be where I am. It also reminded me just how amazing the Parish Family of St. John is when living out our Catholic Faith, to know, to love, and to serve God, in His church and our community. We showcased our service this past week with every step we took.
I am thankful first for the Saint Vincent DePaul Society. This tireless ministry helps those in need in the geographical boundaries of Collier County. When possible, SVDP helps in situations with rental assistance, electricity and water bills, lack of food, clothing, furniture, and in rare instances, funeral expenses. No act of charity is excluded. This was especially clear with the Thanksgiving Food Drive last weekend. The amount of brown paper bags filled with groceries and necessities was amazing. Thank you to all of you who gave to this worthy cause. A special additional thanks needs to be given to the Cub Scouts, who assisted SVDP with receiving the generosity of our Parish Family and with loading up the truck.
As you have seen on our website, in the bulletin, and even in the local news (http://www.naplesnews.com/news/local/thanksgiving-in-the-park-honors-immokalee-farmworkers-with-food-tradition-254bb1eb-3af6-7162-e053-01-355044761.html), St. John was asked by the Guadalupe Center to become the primary religious organization to support Thanksgiving in the Park, one of the largest community service events in Naples, with hundreds of volunteers working over multiple days to prepare and serve Thanksgiving meals for those in need in Immokalee. Our ministries responded in force, with over 100 volunteers pulling turkey and setting up mashed potatoes in our kitchen and the Ballroom last Wednesday. In particular, the Knights of Columbus, whose lead of food service, Lou Altieri, the Ladies of Charity, our Youth Group, and the Saint John Neumann High School Honor Society, spent all day on Wednesday chopping turkey and loading the refrigerator truck full of food. It was an amazing illustration of our ecumenical connection to serve the larger community, along with a clear illustration of how much we can accomplish together as a Parish Family. We helped feed 1700 people on Thanksgiving, which was over 400 more than last year. And we are looking forward to it again next year!
From individuals who help families in need during these holidays, provide persistent food support with A Simple Gesture (bags will be picked up next weekend at Mass by the Youth Group and new bags will be handed out) and serve in the Guadalupe Social Services Soup Kitchen, to major programs like the Vocations Dinner, JOP Tea, and Thanksgiving in the Park, it is clear that St. John actively lives our Holy Father’s call.
“Works of love directed to one’s neighbor are the most perfect external manifestation of the interior grace of the Spirit.” – Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium