Dear Parishioners,As we head into the season of giving thanks and showing gratitude for others, let us give thanks to Our Lord. This Sunday, we celebrate the last Sunday of Ordinary Time before we begin the Advent season. Let us offer our prayers of thanksgiving for what God provides for us especially this year. May God bless your families.
We pray each day for the souls in purgatory, especially for those who have died within the constraints of the pandemic.
St. Mary's Online Youth Group, Sunday, November 22, at 7pm: All high school students are invited to join us as our online small group meets by Zoom video call! We hope your teens can join us as we share a Bible Study on Jesus' suffering on the Cross for our salvation, and play the popular game, Among Us, as a community! For the meeting link and permission form, please e-mail [email protected]. Parents are requested to give their interest for potential youth group activities in our online parent survey HERE.
Screenagers Documentary- Technology is definitely here to stay and as time goes on, it is a bigger part of our lives. A few years ago, we were so concerned about how much time our kids spent on the computer or their phones after school and what impact that had on their development. Now we know we cannot get away from technology so we need to find ways for our kids to use it in a healthy manner. As professionals, we are always looking at ways to gain knowledge and improve our practice On
Tuesday, November 24,
at7 pm we will have a virtual screening of the documentary,
Screenagers, for the St. Mary's School and Parish community. You can obtain your ticket to the virtual screening and our virtual Q & A with our school guidance counselor, Ms. Yolanda McLaughlin
HERE.
Our nation celebrates Thanksgiving Day this
Thursday, November 26, we invite you to join us for our special
Thanksgiving Day Mass at 10 amin the Main Church. Msgr. Amey will be the celebrant. For those neither able or comfortable with attending the Mass in-person, Fr. Fields will offer a pre-recorded Thanksgiving Mass on our YouTube page.
The parish office will be closed on Thursday, November 26 and Friday, November 27 in observance of the Thanksgiving Holiday.
We invite all households to bring non-perishable food to Mass
NEXT WEEKEND, November 28-29, as part of our parish’s partnership with the Greg Gannon Food Drive. We also seek volunteers to help collect food or assist with its safe distribution on Saturday, December 5. With your donations NEXT WEEKEND and help on December 5, we can match our efforts last year in collecting more than 12,000 cans for over 8 non-profits in the Rockville area.
We are excited to announce that St. Mary's is participating in
#iGiveCatholic on #GivingTuesday,
December 1, 2020! Please prayerfully consider making a gift by visiting
HERE. A special YouTube message from Fr. Fields is on the page. If you can't donate online, you can mail or drop off your check or cash gift to the parish. All gifts made between now and December 1 will help us reach our goal of $25,000 during #iGiveCatholic. Join our parish to inspire and celebrate Catholic giving by spreading the word about #iGiveCatholic to your friends, family, and colleagues! Thank you for supporting St. Mary's Church!
Indian River Fruit Sale thru December 4-St. Mary’s School is selling hand-picked Indian River fruit through online sales. Please support the fundraising effort by offering a healthy and delicious product to family, friends, and co-workers. Orders ship directly to the consumer. Perfect for holiday gifts or a nutritious and delicious snack at home! You can find our personalized site at https://www.floridaindianrivergroves.com/ecommerce/1021412 The proceeds of this sale will help our school to reach our goal for our one-to-one device program PreK-grade 8! Your efforts to help us reach our goal is greatly appreciated!
ST. MARY'S PARTNERSHIP WITH THE GREG GANNON CANNED FOOD DRIVE - DEC 5, 2020
St. Mary's Parish continues its partnership with the Greg Gannon Canned Food Drive for the Annual Holiday Food Drive -- Saturday,December 5, 2020.
Put your Faith into Action by:
1- Donating your non-perishable food items at St Mary's Church weekend of Nov. 28th-29th
2-Volunteer to collect food in your local community or assist at the church with the food collection/distribution.
Last year St. Mary's Parish collected more than 12,000 cans for over eight non-profits in the Rockville area. Volunteers are needed to assist with various aspects of the canned food drive, please contact Maggie Harwell or Yanellys Ortiz at [email protected].
To learn more about the community outreach check out the website, www.greggannoncfd.org
St. Mary's School Gala -Ready to get a jump on that online Christmas shopping? Want to help St. Mary's School at the same time? Well, here's your chance to do both, without even leaving your house!
This year so many traditions have taken on new forms and greater meaning, and the Gala is no different. While we can't come together in person for a celebration of all that is wonderful about St. Mary's, we can still come together in our hearts and warm wishes to support the school we love so much. This year's Gala theme is "All In This Together." It will be an online auction and raffle, and there are so many ways you, your friends and your family can help out and enjoy this beloved event.
The Gala committee has generated a Wish List to help us create amazing and unique baskets for our silent auction, which will be open for just four days, between February 3 - 6, 2021. While you're online doing your own Christmas shopping this season, you can log on to Amazon Smile and purchase items from the Gala Wish List to help complete wonderful baskets. Just click-click-click, and the items will be shipped directly to the school with a note that they came from you. It couldn't be easier to support the Gala, and you don't even have to step outside or fiddle with wrapping paper.
Grandparents, aunts, uncles, godparents, and anyone else who wants to support our school can help with just a few clicks. This is an especially good opportunity for folks who live far away and don't always get to see the difference their donations make. When the Gala arrives, they can log onto Bidpal and see their generosity in action, and even bid on items online from home! Plus, Amazon Smile donates a portion of every purchase back to St. Mary's. So it's a win-win-win.
Since we can't gather in person, the online auction and raffle are more important than ever to our fundraising efforts for the school.But that has its advantages, too: since you are saving money on Gala tickets and evening gowns, you have more available to indulge yourself at the auction!
This year, to encourage out-of-town participation, we will be offering limited shipping on some items (out-of-area only) so be sure to check it out when you're feasting your eyes on the incredible packages we will have to offer. Please share the Amazon Wish List with friends and family near and far.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are just around the corner--take advantage of this opportunity to donate to the Gala without having to deal with parking problems or shipping hassles. Just click HERE and have some fun!
Mark your calendars for the first week of February; you don't want to miss any of the action!
Thank you for supporting the St. Mary's Gala. Now, more than ever, your generosity and fellowship will make all the difference!
Confessionswill be offered Saturday, November 21, 1 pm (2 priests) and Wednesday, November 25, 5 pm(1 priest) in the Main Church.
Pre-recorded Sunday Massis available on Saturdays at 5:00 pm on our parish's Facebook page, (@stmarysrockville), Twitter feed, (@stmaryrockville) and YouTube channel. When participating in the Mass, remember to fast as you would do when attending church in person and pray a spiritual communion prayer as Father Fields is receiving Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament in the liturgy.
If you are considering Catholic School for your student the Fall 2021, now is also the time to apply for financial aid. The Archdiocese of Washington is accepting applications for Financial Aid for the 2021-22 School Year. Applications are now being accepted for students who may enter Catholic School in the Fall 2021. Please see the Archdiocese website for information: https://adwcatholicschools.org/tuition-assistance/