From Fr Greg's Desk: Sunday 2nd June, 2024

Hi everyone!
"Little Noah's Cafe" Launched and Afloat
"Little Noah's Cafe" was relaunched last Sunday, and we gave away more than 300 coffees, hot chocolates and cafe mochas! A huge thank you to our volunteer 'baristas' who did an amazing job last Sunday and again on Thursday. Feedback indicates that the quality of the coffee (same coffee beans and machine as before with Dom and Jessica) was very good and a great community atmosphere was enjoyed by all.

We also began a Thursday morning service, knowing that our young Mums and toddlers have their playgroups then, but we'd also love to have a celebratory 'Thank God It's Friday' service, or even a consolation 'I Don't Like Mondays' coffee team. For now, we will just concentrate on Thursdays and Sundays.

We are currently in the process of drawing up rosters for the service, hoping to have it 'open for business' every Sunday morning from about 8.45 am to 11.30 to cater for the 'Sunday morning Mass crowd'. So, how about becoming one of our volunteers to be there regularly? Get in contact with the Parish Office for more details.

Going forward we intend to just ask for a donation of $2 per coffee or hot chocolate to cover the costs of the premium roasted coffee beans and other consumables we need to buy for the service to continue. Instant coffee and tea will still also be on offer free of charge, along with the usual 'bikkies' and whatever little cakes our volunteers might bring along.

Why not come on over next Sunday morning to chat with the priests and parishioners, and grab an excellent coffee (or hot chocolate) at the same time??

Painting and repair work of walls and ceilings at OLQP Church
Mass attendees at OLQP Church this weekend will see the next segment of work done in the back entrance to the Church off Victoria Road, and what a difference it has made! Extensive repairs have had to be made on the plaster rendering due to decades of water infiltrations, so the work is both needed and timely, and on track to have the Church fully painted and the organ and AV moved from the Altar area to the body of the Church, well before the end of this year.

The next segments of work will most likely be to the stairway leading to the choir loft, the confessional, the priest's vesting room, and the two side entrances to the Church. The last part should be to the body of the Church, which will require scaffolding and extensive repair to ceilings (apologies in advance for the temporary inconveniences that will cause). As you can imagine, this is a major piece of work for OLQP Church, but I feel sure that the finished product will more than justify the inconvenience. Check it out for yourselves while you're there.

Need for Wardens at the SCB Church
The Church at SCB is now usually closed to visits on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, for lack of a Warden to keep it open. If you can please spare an hour around this time for your own 'quiet time' in the Church, we could keep it open then as well. Anyone available??? Contact the Parish Office: office@rgcp.org.au

And that's about all for now.

Fr. Greg