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Outreach Ministry -
Partner Parish - St. Martin de Porres
| What is St. Martin de Porres Outreach? |
| What are volunteers and parishioners asked to do? |
| How is it organized? |
| How do I join or help? |
What is St. Martin de Porres Outreach?
St. Martin de Porres Parish, St. Katharine’s sister parish, is located at 24th and Lehigh Streets in Philadelphia. The Pastor is Reverend Edward Hallinan who shepherds over 820 families. There are currently 460 children enrolled in the school (K-8) and the principal is Sister Nancy Fitzgerald, SSJ.
The members of St. Katharine’s work in many ways throughout the year to help support the efforts of our sister parish:
† Parish feast days are celebrated together.
† At Christmas, our parishioners "adopt" St. Martin de Porres families and deliver gifts and all the fixings for Christmas dinner.
† Education of St. Martin de Porres children is assisted through support of their library
† Funds collected in our monthly Food drive (third Sunday of each month) are shared with St. Martin de Porres parish.
What are Volunteers and St. Katharine’s Parishioners asked to do?
Volunteers are asked to:
† Assist in maintaining an effective library - In 2002, with assistance from both parishes, work began on re-establishing a library that had not been operational for several years. This project included all the work necessary to produce a useful library. In 2005, computerization of the library started. Presently, there are 6,000 volumes on the shelves with another thousand to be entered into the system.
The library is opened twice a week for about three hours each session during the school year. A goal is to have three volunteers each time the library is opened. The volunteers help the children select books, check out books, login returned books, and reshelf books. Also, for
K-2 grades, one or two books are read to the children during the session. Volunteers also help with the preparation of new books.
Future plans include:
• Classes in library research for older children.
• Finishing the reference and video sections.
• Selecting out-of-date books and removing them.
• Continuing adding new books when available.
† Assist in loading and unloading the gifts and food for the Christmas program (8-10 persons of high school age). Check the Calendar under St. Martin de Porres for the date and time.
Parishioners are asked to:
† Contribute to the Annual Appeal – Father Hallinan and the St. Martin de Porres choir visit St. Katharine’s in mid-June for the Annual Appeal. Father Hallinan speaks at all the weekend Masses, giving insight on the status, hopes and goals of his parish.
† Donate, on a continuing basis throughout the year, any usable items such as clothing, food and household items. These gifts are delivered to St. Martin de Porres regularly to be distributed to their community.
† Participate in the Christmas program:
• Food Basket – This is a box, available at St. Katharine’s in late November, that is filled with non-perishable items a family needs for Christmas dinner (perishable items are provided with the financial contributions).
• Adopt-a-Family – Parishioners provide gifts for each member of a St. Martin de Porres family that they “adopt”.
• Financial Contributions – a collection is taken around the end of November to purchase perishable items that are included in the food baskets.
† Support the Friends of St. Martin de Porres School. Learn more...
Ann De Laura 610-688-1746 is Chairperson for the Outreach activities: Christmas Program, Fund Drive and Library Support.
These couples plan and coordinate the Christmas Adopt-a-Family Program:
† Bob & Jayne Risk
† Anita & Dick Bannister, 610-688-2599
† Gwen & John McConnell, 610-687-5466
† Buzz & Kathleen Millner
How do I join or help?
To volunteer for:
- Christmas Program, contact one of the couples listed above.
- Library Support, contact Dorothy Binns 610-688-7348.
For general information or questions about this ministry, please
contact Dorothy Binns, 610-688-7348.
To help, you can participate in the activities described above. Also, check the Calendar, under St. Martin de Porres, for events during the year.
St. Katharine of Siena Parish Wayne, PA USA |
| Information about St. Martin de Porres Parish... |
| St. Martin de Porres Church & School Events in Pictures... |