From Monsignor’s Desk
Dear Friends,
There are times when responsible stewardship requires us to make challenging choices. While our parish expenses have continued to increase over the past few years, our income has remained fairly constant. This scenario requires us to make some adjustments to how we deliver the ministries of our parish. In making these decisions, I have kept foremost before me the mission of our parish: To be a sign and instrument of the presence of Christ at the University of Toledo. I am grateful for the good counsel of our parish finance council when I must make difficult decisions, and so I am following their advice in making some changes to our parish operations beginning July 1, 2016.
While most of our community life will remain the same, here are some changes:
The parish office will be open on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 11am – 5 p.m. It will also be open on Sundays from 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. [when there is 6 p.m. Mass] and be closed on Thursdays. These hours are designed to be convenient for all our parishioners, most especially when we are here to worship on Sundays. This means that the parish secretary position moves from a full-time to a part-time position. Our present parish secretary, Susette Malak-McNutt, chose not to accept this position change and has left us for another position.
The weekly bulletin is being outsourced to Diocesan Publications that will publish it at no cost to the parish while they sell the advertising on the back page of the bulletin. This company, that serves many of the parishes in our diocese, will also publish at no cost to us both of our fall brochures and our Lenten brochure while providing us with a parish app to stay in contact with all our parishioners and students.
The Pastoral Administrator position, held by Pam Meseroll, is being reduced to ¾ time and the title will be changing to Parish Manager to be brought in line with the similar ministry titles used throughout the diocese.
Kimberly Myers will be joining our parish staff as the Campus Ministry Associate and she will join me as the co-advisor to the Catholic Student Association. Father Philip Smith, Deacon Tom Sheehan, Luke Rosen and Deacon Bob Fedynich will continue in their present ministries in the parish.
I will be seeking some sponsors for our University Outreach Program to assist with some additional income. In the Fall I will be asking all our parishioners to assess their financial support of our parish and encourage the use the EFT process to make contributions to the parish or our new credit card contribution opportunity.
I would invite you to continue to pray for our parish community as we strive to exercise our ministry in a responsible fashion.
Your brother in Corpus Christi,
Msgr. Michael
Monsignor Michael Billian