Dear Friends,
Two women, Sister Theresa Croteau (Marie Felicite) and Sister Lorraine Durand, with ties to the Somerset/Swansea Catholic Community, are celebrating significant anniversaries in religious life this summer.
Sister Theresa (Terry) is marking the 75th anniversary of her entrance into the Sisters of Saint Joseph. A native of Fall River, Sister taught at Saint Jean Baptiste and Blessed Sacrament schools in Fall River, Saint Joseph and Saint Therese schools in New Bedford and Saint Michael School, Swansea. For a number of years Sister Theresa served as Director of Religious Education at Saint Louis de France where she also served as parish secretary and Director of Parish Outreach with her good friend, Fr. Richard Gendreau.
Sister Lorraine Durand, a native daughter of Saint Louis de France Parish, is marking the 60th anniversary of her entrance into the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Sister taught at Saint Michael School, Swansea and Saint Therese and Saint Joseph schools in New Bedford. For a good number of years, Sister Lorraine served in pastoral ministry in Texas and served her community in administrative posts at Mont Marie, the Sisters of Saint Joseph Motherhouse in Holyoke, and Elms College.
The Sisters of Saint Joseph of LePuy conducted the school at Saint Louis de France for a good number of years. In the mid-1970’s, the Fall River based community merged with the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Springfield, MA.
Our prayerful best wishes are extended to Sister Theresa and Sister Lorraine as they mark this joyous event. We thank them for their faithful witness and their many, many years of service to God’s people. We pray that the Lord will continue to bless their fidelity and grant them good health and the grace of perseverance.
Please also remember in your prayers this week, Sister Kathee and the Holy Union Sisters who will be meeting for their annual Province Assembly. Sister Kathee, as a member of the Leadership Team, has a major role to play in this gathering and has already put a significant amount of time and energy into planning and preparing for this event.
I’m sure Sister appreciates your thoughts and prayers.
In a few weeks we will celebrate the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, a holyday of obligation. As we move forward in our pastoral planning, the schedule for Masses for this summertime feast needs to be adapted.
Being the only priest available for the holyday, it is impossible to follow previous schedules.
There will be one Mass scheduled in each of our three church buildings. Please participate in the Mass that best fits your schedule. As is our diocesan custom, the collection taken on the holyday in all three parishes will benefit the good works of the Saint Vincent de Paul Society.
The holyday Mass schedule will be:
Wednesday, August 14 7:00 p.m. Vigil at Saint Thomas More Church
Thursday, August 15 8:00 a.m. Mass at Saint Patrick Church
Thursday, August 15 12:05 p.m. Mass at Saint Louis de France Church
Lastly, I invite you to join the Catholic Family Life Chapter, #442 of Somerset, as they host a Parish Family Clam Boil on Sunday, August 18, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Lepage’s Seafood and Grill on Route 6 in Fall River. The price per ticket is $25.00. For more information please contact Rita Pelissier at (508) 672-4325.
Have a great week!