Dear Parishioners,

Next Sunday, March 14, Pacific Daylight Savings Time begins. Please be sure to set your clocks AHEAD ONE HOUR prior to retiring Saturday evening so that you will arrive Sunday at the proper time!

This Sunday evening following the 5:00 p.m. Mass, our Life Teen youth ministry will present a Life Nite at our Faith Formation Building for our high school teens. All are welcome; we expect our Confirmation I and II teens to attend. The theme will be Lenten: Living out the Paschal mystery as an essential part of our being followers of Christ.

Monday the Building and Landscaping Maintenance Committee will meet in the parlor at 6:00 p.m.; the Fundraising Committee will meet in the parlor at 7:00 p.m. We expect all organizations and groups utilizing our parish facilities to have a responsible representative present at the Fundraising meeting.

Tuesday at 7:00 p.m., the Knights of Columbus will meet in the hall; the Ladies Guild will meet in the Faith Formation Building. Both are our major men’s and women’s parish organizations. It is our hope that all adult parishioners will become members and active participants of these groups, for they do such fine supportive work for our parish.

Saturday evening, the Knights of Columbus will hold our annual St. Patrick’s Day Dinner in the hall, with dinner served at 7:00 p.m. The Blanchette School of Irish Dance will entertain and there will be valuable raffle prizes. Tickets will be on sale following Mass this weekend. Remember, we are all Irish on St. Patrick’s Day!

The 2010 Catholic Services Appeal in our parish continues to rise, nearing our assessment/goal with $78,559 in contributions and pledges made as of this past Tuesday. Again, I thank you for your generosity! Participating in the Appeal is a faithful disciple’s action in seeing that the vital ministries and services sponsored by our Diocese take place: Catholic Community Services, chaplaincy ministry at Renown and the VA Hospitals, support for our seminarians and their education, faith formation support, family services that include Respect Life and Natural Family Planning, support for the weekly Channel 8 TV Mass, and many other programs which benefit us all in many ways. It is my hope and prayer that every family and individual in our parish will participate in as much as God has blessed you. Contributing to CSA is a form of almsgiving and a Lenten means of atoning for one’s sins. Pledges may be spread over a 10-month period. Envelopes may be found at the entrance to our worship space.

I received confirmation this past week of the coming to our parish of Father John Keefe, CSC, for a mission the week of April 12th. Father Keefe was the pastor of St. John Bosco in Battle Mountain for four years and was with us here at Immaculate Conception several years ago to present our Confirmation retreat. A Holy Cross Father, he served missions in Africa for 20 years and in Mexico for 9 years. Currently, he resides in Phoenix. He is a very inspirational and likeable priest. His talks will center on Eucharistic devotion. Ask anyone from Battle Mountain . . . they will confirm that we have so much to look forward to in Father Keefe!