Weekly Letter from the Pastor

Dear Fellow Parishioners of St. Benedict:

We have hit the midpoint of May and Memorial Day is quickly coming upon us. The school year is winding down and our students are ready to be graduated and to move on to their respective high schools. It is with much disappointment, but certainly not much surprise, that we learned this past week of the closing of Mater Dei High School at the end of the current school year. A staple in our community for some sixty years, the model on which they were operating was just not sustainable for the future. We do have some parishioners who are students there and our school office will be happy to assist anyone who is seeking admission to a different Catholic high school. Fortunately we are blessed to have many good Catholic high schools within the general vicinity of our parish. None of the forty students that we are graduating this year were enrolled there for the coming school year.

As our enrollment for the upcoming school year continues to grow, please be aware that there are some grades with waiting lists. We have only two spots available in the Pre-K 3 year old program, and our now third section of PreK-4 is almost closed as well. We do have some openings being posted for faculty positions so if you know of anyone who might be interested, please direct them to the school website for more information.

We are almost complete with First Holy Communion for this cycle. We are grateful to Mrs. Arkin and the teachers in our religious education program for preparing the students for this most important sacramental step in their lives. We are gearing up for the Religious Education Summer Academy. There are still some spots open and we have a need for some additional teachers and volunteers as well. Please make contact with the RE office if you are interested and available. Speaking of the RE office, I am happy to announce that we have hired a new administrative assistant for the office. Mrs. Loretta Assini joined us a few weeks ago. She has returned to Monmouth County after some years living in Alabama. There she worked in a parish office, so she has plenty of experience with the computer applications and programs that are used in church settings. We are happy to have her here with us.

Last week I extended an invitation for you to consider offering your talents to the parish as a possible member of the pastoral council, the finance council, or the school board. I am still open to additional inquiries if you are still interested. Thank you.

Due to the hard work and commitment of many new volunteers, along with the steady hand of the stalwarts who have served here for many years, the Food Pantry is now open three days and one night a week. With the rising food costs and other family and financial issues, the need in our area is growing steadily. If you are interested in volunteering, please make contact with the parish office.

On a personal note, this past week I completed (graduated) from the cardio rehab regimen at Bay Shore Hospital.

I am grateful to the staff there for their dedication, care, and guidance over the past four months. It is now incumbent on me to maintain the healthy habits and program that they have laid out for me. I am feeling so much better than I did in February when I began the program. I would enthusiastically recommend the cardio rehab team at Bay Shore to anyone in need.

In the spring we have many milestones to celebrate, among which are graduations. We invite all those who are being graduated from high school, college, and graduate and post-graduate programs to present themselves for a special blessing of graduates at the Masses on the weekend of June 11 and 12. Our parish is proud of their accomplishments and giving thanks to God for His blessings and asking for His grace going forward is integral to our faith.

May we all have a blessed week ahead,
Father Garry