How life-giving it was to have record numbers of people at all of the Christmas Masses this year! The church looked beautiful, the music inspired, and spirits were high as we welcomed the newborn King. As you can imagine, it takes a great number of hard-working and creative souls to make Christmas happen at Saint Aloysius. So, let me express my deepest gratitude to those who helped make this a truly special Christmas season for our parish family. Thanks to…
Judy and Gregg Strba and the crew from Gregg’s Landscaping for the design and installation of the church decorations. Each year they come up with something different, and this year we received a record number of compliments! Trisha Albus for her many contributions to the beauty of Christmas and her gift of flowers and their care throughout the year. Working with Trisha is a faithful team of helpers, who, among other things, watered and cared for the poinsettias and dressed our altar. Dr. John Michniewicz, our choristers, and orchestra for enhancing our worship and lifting our hearts. Nancy Leville who leads our children’s choir. My brother Knights of Columbus who directed traffic and kept everyone safe in the parking lot and served as greeters and ushers at Masses. Christine Ayoub who coordinates our usher ministry. Guillermo “Willie” Roeder and Angel Dominguez who take great care of our church and other buildings all year long. My brother priests and Deacons: Father Franklin, Father Bob, Father Flavian, Father Tim, and Deacon Bill. They serve with joy, and I am blessed with their fellowship. We were blessed to have Msgr. Scheyd as the celebrant of one of our Christmas Eve Masses. Our faithful Readers and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion who proclaim the Word and distribute the Body of Christ with reverence. Special thanks to Joanne Santulli, Leigh Fiorito, and Christine Otis who coordinate these ministries. Our dedicated Altar Servers, and our faithful volunteer sacristans who serve weekdays.
I am blessed with an amazing staff, some of whom were mentioned above, but the rest of the team works tirelessly to serve you: John Palma, Lynn Turiano, Jerry Murray, Susan Kiernan, Danielle Sibilia, Marie Osterndorf, Allison McCarthy, and Maria Molloy. Others assist us in important tasks to get all of our work done: John Grosso, John Osterndorf, and Mark Murphy. Many volunteers help us out daily, and we couldn’t do what we do without them: whether they count the collection, greet you at the front desk, assist with special projects or give generously of their time to our many ministries, they make our work of living out the Gospel possible in beautiful ways!
The Parish Finance Committee and Pastoral Council are talented advisors to me and have been so valuable as we navigate the day-to-day and complete our capital campaign. I am particularly grateful to Holly Doherty-Lemoine and Joe Sindelar and the many who have partnered with us to make our building and renovation plan become a reality. Special thanks to Christine Hussey and Steve Schlegel, the trustees of our parish corporation, for their counsel.
And finally, I thank YOU for your faith, prayers, and support throughout the year. I pray that the Lord Jesus who came into the world on Christmas as a “light to the nations” will bless you and your loved ones abundantly and give the world the gift of peace.
Yours in Christ,
Welcome to the Saint Aloysius! Our parish was founded in 1896 to serve the Catholic families that were settling in the greater New Canaan area.