St. Mary of Victories Catholic Church Come Join our 4th degree communications chairmen in a 5K run for St Mary Queen of Victories parish. Ben will organize KofC shirts to any member who wants to join him.
Dear Friends of St. Mary of Victories,
Before we jump into the August update, we wanted to let you know that Fr. Brian Harrison and Hungarian parishioner Monika Keszei will be appearing on Fox 2 tomorrow morning between 9 am and 10 am to promote the upcoming Homecoming Picnic. Monika will be demonstrating some of the foods we will be serving and Father Brian will be explaining the history of our wonderful parish. The interview will be conducted by Randi Naughton, who apparently has Hungarian ancestry herself! Please tune in to Channel 2 tomorrow between 9 am and 10 am. Or you can watch online live streaming by clicking here.
Yes, August 20 is almost here, and we are ready to celebrate the Feast of St. Stephen of Hungary at our annual Homecoming Picnic. This year will be our 174th Annual Picnic and we're excited! There will be goulash and fried chicken, live music from the Czech Express, poppy seed and nut roll pastries, and delicious Langos (fried bread). Of course there will be plenty of beer and soda on tap, and this year we'll be featuring a special tent with ice cream and "Philadelphia Water Ice," as well as Kettle Corn! Fr. Harrison has purchased special "solar eclipse glasses" for the first 200 purchasing a meal - the total eclipse is the very next day, as you know!
This year we will not only be having a raffle, but TWO raffles. Yes, friends - raffle #1 will involve a Stainless Steel 4 Burner gas barbecue grill as the first prize, a $50 gift card as the second prize, and a $25 gift card as the third prize. Our new raffle will be a 50/50 raffle. For those of you that don't know what that is - that's a raffle that gives 1/2 of the collected money as the prize. (So far we're up to $225). Like last year, we're saving money by not mailing raffle tickets. You can purchase tickets online at SMV-RAFFLE.COM or at the door. You can also mail us a check and we'll fill those out for you. You do not need to be present to win (but you do have to come get your grill!)
We're also having another Silent Auction, which was a huge hit last year. The baskets are shaping up nicely, and you will be amazed at the treasures and edible goodies we've assembled for your bidding pleasure. To participate, simply go to the raffle table to register as a bidder. We'll give you a number and then you simply write your number, with your bid, on the clip board next to the basket. Winners will be announced in the 4 pm hour the day of the Homecoming Picnic.
We hope to see you there this year. Bring a friend and help support St. Mary of Victories in our 174th Year!!
The King to Queen Rosary Run Weekend.
As you may have already heard, we're starting a new tradition this year to celebrate our 175th Anniversary on our patronal feast day, October 7 - The Feast of Our Lady of Victories / Our Lady of the Rosary! We're planning a spectacular event, a public witness to our faith and longevity in St. Louis - its a weekend that has something for everyone to enjoy! We're calling it the King to Queen Rosary Run Weekend.
The weekend kicks off on Friday, October 6 at 7 pm with a special talk by famous speaker and Knight of Malta Raymond DeSousa. Raymond will speak on Fatima, the Five First Saturday Devotion, and the Rosary in the Church. Admission is Free, but we do ask that you make a free-will donation to help support St. Mary of Victories if you can. As you know, most months we are running in the red and draining our savings, so that would be a tremendous help. We hope that all of you come down to hear this amazing speaker. This event is sponsored by The Wanderer Newspaper.
Saturday morning, at 8am will be the centerpiece event: The King to Queen 5K Rosary Run. This event will start in the 8 am hour at the Old Cathedral (Louis IX, King of France), trace the perimeter of the Jefferson National Expansion Arch Grounds and conclude at St. Mary of Victories (the Queen). We will also be hosting the Hungarian Fun Run, which will start at the Old Cathedral and come directly south to St. Mary of Victories; this route will be slightly less than 1 K. Both of these courses can be walked if desired. Our 5K will start with the National Anthem sung by Scott Kennebeck, and the first few prayers of the Rosary. The LifeRunners will display their massive United States Flag. The Knights of Columbus on Bikes will lead the way as the race starts. Its more than a race - its devotion in motion!
This event is NOT JUST FOR RUNNERS AND WALKERS! We are looking for hundreds of prayerful and enthusiastic spectators to cheer our runners and walkers along the way. There will be two zones along the route of particular interest and WE NEED YOUR HELP to make them a success! "Ave Maria Avenue" will feature musicians and singers at the river front across from the Grand Staircase of the Arch. We are calling the second zone "Icon Alley" and this one is going to knock your socks off!!! In this area near Chouteau and 3rd, we are requesting the faithful to come down and display their favorite icon, picture, or statue of the Blessed Mother as the runners go by. That's not all! Towards the end of the race, a bag piper and the Knights of Columbus honor guard will lead the group into the Finish Line 2 blocks away. A 4 foot high statue of Jesus and Mary (on display now at St. Mary of Victories near the St. Joseph Altar) will be carried on a platform. Flowers will be provided to throw on the platform and show your devotion to Jesus and his wonderful mother, Our Lady of Victories! Now how about that? This procession will conclude with the Blessing of the Icons and the kick off of the awards ceremony.
Following the race, the parish will host the Victory Festival. This big party (a lot like the homecoming picnic) will feature live music on our Victory Stage, barbecue provided by the Knights of Columbus, games for the kids, ice cream, and the Second Annual Great Cookie Sale featuring delicious cookies from area bakeries (we have some new bakeries participating this year - they're listed on the web site). Vendors will also be on site to share their information and offer goods for sale as well. This is going to be a blast!
Please sign on to ROSARYRUN.COM for more information - including pictures of the T-Shirts and the Bling which will be given to the runners. We still need donations to help defray the costs of this race - but most of all (please tell all your friends) we need runners and walkers to sign up. We have about a dozen so far - and want to attract hundreds. Our work is cut out for us. Please spread the word!
Please patronize our many sponsors who are listed here: http://rosaryrun.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11&Itemid=270
Newly Remodeled Restrooms
Thanks to a generous grant provided by the Archdiocese of St. Louis Annual Catholic Appeal, we were able to remodel both the men's and women's restrooms in the parish hall. Our contractor Rick Bernstein of Bernstein Remodelers has done a fabulous job turning our small restrooms into elegant and clean spaces of which we can all be proud. Be sure to check them out when you visit for the Homecoming Picnic.
Street Evangelization Outing
In the weeks following the Homecoming Picnic, parishioners of St. Mary of Victories and others from the area - including our good friend Michael Horn from the Archdiocese office of Evangelzation will be heading out to evangelize on the streets. This is a remarkably simple and quite enjoyable experience to meet people, listen to their stories, and invite them to come home to the Church (or consider the Church). If you're interested, please contact me (Jim Hooper) at hooper@smov.info for more information. I will contact you when the final place and date is chosen.
Welcome Visitors Night at the Ballpark
As a part of our membership in the Tourism and Visitors Bureau, St. Mary of Victories will have the opportunity to welcome visitors to Busch Stadium on Saturday August 26. We will have a table and be able to hand out materials inviting people to St. Mary of Victories (only a couple of blocks away). Those manning the table will receive a free ticket to the game. Participants would need to arrive at the Stadium by 4 pm to set up the table and pack it up by 6:15. During the 4th inning we can hold up signs and this will be aired on TV and the Jumbo-Tron! Please contact Parish Council President Bill Saccente if you're interested in participating in this important evangelization activity. He will need to hear from you by end of day Thursday, August 17. If we have a lot of people signing up, we may need to take first come first served, so please reach out ASAP if you are interested. Bill's contact information is billsaccente@gmail.com
Thank you, and please keep St. Mary of Victories in your prayers. Please consider coming to Mass once a month, and bring a friend. You can help us fill those pews once again!
In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,
James Hooper, OHT
Director of Communications
St. Mary of Victories Catholic Church
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