Spirited Times - November 2007

Ministry participants get thanks, pizza, enrichment

By MARK T. HOSKE
 
Ministry participants received a thank you party for thousands of hours of collective volunteer time donated to Church of the Holy Spirit.

The Sept. 15 afternoon—suggested and organized by the Town Hall steering group and Fr. Bill Tkachuk, pastor—included food, fun, and fellowship, with pizza and beverages to nourish the body and an inspirational speaker with words, songs, and activities to nourish the mind and spirit.

“We’re all called to leadership, according to the Vatican II documents,” said Mark Teresi, VP for Institutional Advancement at Mundelein Seminary. We can find wisdom in all of us, even the youngest among us, the future of the church, he noted. “Don’t underestimate young people. They have the skills; let them in. See the need in peoples’ hearts.”

We all are endowed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit by virtue of our baptism, he reminded those attending. The Spirit can help those gifts, even if they seem hidden, to grow strong. The gifts are: strength, counsel, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, piety, and fear of the Lord.

Thank you for choosing to be instruments of God’s love, and rejoicing in the success of others, as we come together with our talents in more than 100 ministries, he added.
 

 
Graciela Contreras puts her leaf on the ministry tree. The tree represents a small fraction of the huge amount of time and talent that goes into more than 100 ministries at Church of the Holy Spirit.

Town Hall Steering Group members smile with the featured speaker for Sept. 15 meeting. From the left: Cindy Coklan Hope, Ron Coklan, Tricia Mendoza, Sue Truesdell, Cooki Turner, speaker Mark Teresi, Tom Evon, and Ding Victoria. Ramon Correa, also on the steering group, could not attend.