Words of thanks…
I received a letter this week. The salient parts said this: “Without your parish exceeding its goals, I would not have such good news to report today about this most important appeal.
I ask you please to express, in your Sunday bulletin and other forms of parish communication, my gratitude to your parishioners for their generous support of the Annual Catholic Appeal. I am grateful for their solidarity with all Catholics in the Archdiocese of St. Louis through their participation in this important Appeal. Working together in this way, we practice Christian Stewardship and bring Christ’s love to our communities.”
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Archbishop Robert J. Carlson
Let ME express my thanks to Bob Beckring for his work on making our St. Ann version of the appeal such a success. His work exemplifies all that is good about this parish of ours – the willingness to say yes, to work hard, to do all the little things as well as the big ones to help our brothers and sisters in need. Thanks for the gift of your service to our parish, and for helping us raise $28,187 to serve the greater needs of the Archdiocese.
It was all quiet on the Sprenke front by the time I got home tonight from the Newman Center. The lights were off, the parking lot empty. There were no cheering fans, no blowing of whistles, no sounds of the thrill of victory out on the field. Just an eerie silence as I pulled into the garage. Though as I write this, there are still a few more days yet to go, I miss the tournament already. Let me take a moment just to say a huge word of THANKS to the Men’s Club for this annual tradition. I tell my classmates that though they might have a one or two day parish picnic, we have three weeks of celebration.
It doesn’t happen by magic; there is a lot of man and woman hours that go into this tournament. Thanks one and all for your time and energy as coaches, BBQ-ers, concession stand workers, field caretakers, recyclers, trash cleaners, fire starters, beverage orderers, loud-speaker announcers, referees, and the like. This really is among our ‘finest hours’ here at St. Ann.
And a final word to Keith and Stacey Leahy, our tournament chair and wife (and kids) for “living here” the past three weeks. What a gift of self for the next generation of Sprenke athletes and parents. I don’t know how to say it any other way, but THANK YOU from us all for all you have done these Sprenke days…