From Fr Greg's Desk: Sunday 15th December, 2024

Hi everyone!

Deliveries of 'Christmas Mass Cards' into Letterboxes begins this Weekend
As you enter into our Churches this weekend, you will see boxes of brightly coloured 'post cards' in bundles, ready for delivery into letterboxes near you. Could you please give me a hand to get these out this week? We have found in the past that this little reminder has been an effective tool for connecting new Catholic residents in our area with the Parish ... and be a visible sign to the neighbourhood that we are alive and kicking!

Request for Volunteer 'Posties' To Deliver Them In time for Christmas
We now need a small army of volunteers to bring these 'post cards' to the streets and apartment complexes within our Parish boundaries. Could you please help us out? All the information of the street concerned is contained on the form in which the bundles have been conveniently wrapped so as to make it easier for you. Just follow the instructions and let us know if you were 'short' on cards (you can pick up whatever was lacking at the Parish Office during the week) or drop off any 'leftovers' with the completed form so that we can adjust the numbers for next year's effort. I thank you in advance for your help.

We Are Still In Need Of Helpers This Christmas
We farewell our staff and students from our schools and colleges this week for the summer break, so things should be a bit quieter at the Parish in a couple of weeks' time. For now, though, there is still much to be done at the Parish to get ready for the Christmas celebrations. And, as I have said last week, we are still in need of more 'helpers' to cater for the 3000 or so people we are expecting to pass through our doors and gates between Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. So please 'don't be backwards in coming forward' ... let me know how you can help out. Ring the Parish Office on 9807 2966 or contact Judy, my 'EA', at ea@rgcp.org.au.

New Christmas Banners Are Now 'Up' Outside Churches and Schools
New posters of a similar design to the 'Christmas Mass Postcards' have also been made and hung in front of our Churches, Schools, and even Holy Cross College to inform passing traffic often same. We have asked that this info be also displayed on their electronic bulletin boards as well, to catch the attention of as many people as possible passing by. We hope you like them!

Organ, Keyboard and AV Equipment Repositioned at OLQP Church
For those of you attending Masses this weekend at OLQP Church, you will notice something a bit different ... the front of the Church is now 'uncluttered' and the organ, keyboard and AV equipment have taken up residence towards the back of the Church. As a result, two of the pews have been moved to the side chapel, and outside in the foyer near the Victoria Road entrance to the Church.

New Carpet On The Way for OLQP Church
As a preparation for the Centenary Celebrations at OLQP Church, we are currently seeking quotes to get new carpet throughout the Church, including the choir loft, stairs and foyer areas. We plan to have this done by late February 2025, in time for the Centenary Celebrations in March.

New Fans to be Installed at Both SCB and OLQP Churches
To help circulate the air within both our churches and enhance the work of the air conditioning, new fans should soon be installed at both SCB and OLQP Churches, and hopefully in time for Christmas. Two of the side ceiling fans at SCB no longer work, so we decided to just replace them all rather than replace the individual fans as they wear out (they are certainly not recent additions!). We are currently looking into the best possible replacements for the wall fans at OLQP Church as well, so that they both be as silent and as effective as possible, however, the range available is rather limited.

Other Maintenance Matters
The paths and walls of the Church are in the process of being cleaned and sealed (thanks Keith!) making the place look so much clearer. We have also done maintenance to the air con facilities at both Churches to improve its' effectiveness so as to better cater for the very large numbers of attendees we are expecting this Christmas. Hopefully the issues we are currently experiencing with our live streaming will also be resolved shortly.

And that's about it for this week. God bless you all, and 'safe travels' for all of you who are on holidays at this time.

Fr. Greg