Prayer and Worship Committee (Next meeting 9/20/22 at 7 pm )

   Chairperson:  

The Prayer and Worship Committee is responsible for the planning, recruitment and training necessary for the spiritual life of the parish.  They also are the planners and facilitators of the environment for the seasons and special celebrations throughout the year.  Training for Lectors and Communion ministers is offered several times a year on an as needed basis.
 
Homebound parishioners may contact the office if there is a desire to have a Communion Minister visit you so that he or she may receive Eucharist. Training for Lectors and Ministers of Communion is provided through this Committee on an as needed basis.  Volunteers are always welcome in our Hospitality Ministry (ushers and greeters) and to launder the altar linens.

This Committee is seeking new Members! Please contact the parish office (518-234-2892).

Structure
The committee has a chairperson and 8 members, including the deacon, who meet twice a year in January and September for planning and review. An additional resource are 6 church members who completed the formation for ministry program in the 1980’s. 
Responsibilities:
Recruit and train communion ministers, lectors, sacristans, and altar servers.
Arrange for distribution of communion to the hospitalized and home bound.
Assist the pastor in scheduling ministers, lectors, and sacristans for funerals and holy days.
Assist the pastor in the scheduling and planning of days of prayer and reflection, and penance services.
Maintaining the church environment which includes:
            Cleaning of linens for masses
            Changing the banners and altar linens for each of the liturgical seasons, holy days, and
                        for special events like first communion and confirmation.
            Ordering flowers and plants for Easter, Christmas, and special events.
            Doing minor repairs and maintaining the Baptismal font.

Christian Service Committee  (Next meeting 9/13/22 at 7 PM).
   
    Chairperson:          Kathy Kosier
 
The Christian Service Committee members are parish members who have committed themselves to the many charitable functions and outreach activities of the parish. Among its varied activities are: the annual Harvest dinner to welcome new parishioners; the Advent Giving Tree that benefits Catholic Charities, Community Maternity Services, and the Cobleskill-Richmondville Central School District; Thanksgiving and Christmas Food Baskets; stocking the local Food Pantry; the annual Father’s Day Baby Shower to benefit Community Maternity Services; and the annual drive for school supplies. This committee also organizes and provides food for after-funeral receptions. 

This Committeee is seeking new members! Please contact Kathy through the parish office if interested (518-234-2892).


Christian Service Support Team

We also have a Support Team made up of members of the parish whose mission is to provide a free helping hand to anyone in need of doing small repairs around their house, gardening, preparing meals, running errands, or things of that nature. If you are in need of any of these services, please contact the church office at 518-234-2892.

If you would like to be a member of the Support Team and assist others, please contact the parish office.


Christian Service Committee

Purpose:  The Christian Service Committee provides an outreach and service function for the St. Vincent community.  The committee identifies and coordinates on-going and annual projects as well as special needs projects to assist with needs within the faith community and the greater local community.

Structure:  The committee is structured with two co-chairpersons and 6-10 members of the St. Vincent community including the deacon.  New members are always welcome.  Work of the committee is extended by volunteers who work on projects as they arise.  The committee meets twice per year in January and September.

On-going and Annual Projects:
Support Team – new initiative, see separate write-up
Bereavement receptions as requested by families suffering a loss
Baking and receptions for special events e.g. Confirmation, Baccalaureate
On-going collections for Catholic Charities’ food pantry
Fathers’ Day “Baby Shower” for Catholic Charities’ Community Maternity Services
Annual Feast of St. Vincent Harvest dinner to welcome new members of community
School Supplies collection
Thanksgiving Basket prep with Catholic Charities and Joshua Project
Advent Giving Tree gift support for families in need
Holiday cards written for distribution to veterans at the VA Hospital
Get well and sympathy cards to parishioners

Special Projects:
Fund raiser breakfasts to support specific identified needs
New Home Baskets collections of household goods for the Catholic Charities shelter
Special collection to support the school districts’ backpack programs for low-income children
Souper Bowl Sunday gathering and food pantry collection
 

Christian Service Support Team

Background
St. Vincent’s took a survey of its members in which one question was, “What could the parish do better?”  One of the suggestions was to have a way to provide services to respond to the needs of parishioners.  From that suggestion, the Christian Service Committee decided to create a Support Team.
 
Mission
Simply stated, the mission of the Christian Service Support Team is to give a helping hand to those in need.  So, for example, if someone needs a hand in doing yard work, making minor repairs around the house, running an errand, preparing a meal, a ride, or things of that nature, they can call the parish office and we will try to get someone from the team to assist them.
 
We do not do things like major repairs, roofing, or whole house painting, but we want people to know that they are not alone.  We are here to offer a helping hand.  These services are free and open to all, not only the parishioners of St. Vincent’s.
 
Current membership and activity
This service was first offered in April, 2018.  We currently have 21 members, who have all had background checks by the diocese.  In the past 8 months we have provided over 50 services to 15 individuals.  Several of these services are ongoing and require weekly/monthly service.
 
Future plans
We would like to change the dynamics of the team to not only be an “on request” service, but also an “adopt-a-family” type service, meaning that a team member or members become committed to a particular person or family in need and provide continual support to them on a personal level.
 
This new service is still evolving and we are always looking for ways to make it better.

Buildings and Grounds Committee

The members of the committee are Pete Nichols, Edward Carroll, Richard Milak, Leo McAllister, Jim Bogart, and Ted Krisowaty.

ROOFS
Roofs on New Church, Parish House, and Garage were replaced in 2013.
 
CONCRETE
Courtyard, sidewalks and steps from parking lot were replaced/repaired in 2014.
Need:   repair work on steps in front of church and in front of fire doors
 
PARKING LOT was totally redone in 2012.
Need:  re-sealing and striping
 
RAILINGS are structurally sound
Need:  re-painting.
 
CHURCH INTERIOR was re-painted and re-carpeted in 2014.
 
CHAIRS are in good repair and currently kept up to date by Bob Stark,
Need:  to train someone else to keep up the repairs
 
PARISH HOUSE was repainted in August, 2018.
          Washer and dryer, refrigerator, and dishwasher have been replaced within the past 10 years.
Need:  1^st floor rooms will need re-painting when Sr. Connie moves.
           Outside brick work (back sidewalk) is uneven.
           Back porch could be made permanently more accessible.
 
OLD CHURCH
 
          The old church continues to be the major problem on the property. It has been looked at several times by both diocesan people and independent contractors.

The cost to bring it up to code (not usable) is far too cost prohibitive to consider – over $1 million - this goes back to Fr. Tom Berardi, who first had it examined and sought recommendations.  The last estimate to take it down would come to about $100,000 - including minimal landscaping.

          The lower level of the church is unsafe – filled with black mold. The “basement” was hand-dug long after the original church was built and is not structurally sound as a foundation for the building.
 
Currently, the upper church building is used for much needed storage.  This may not be possible for much longer because of the major leaks in the roof. So, the catch-22 continues as the new church was literally built without the storage space necessary for seasonal liturgical and event (Boutique) supplies.
         
          The stained glass windows and some antique lighting fixtures need to be dealt with prior to anything being done. One contractor suggested that the slate roofing might be a source of some funds.
 

Choir/Music Ministry
            Music Director:  Kathy Burgin
 Music for Mass and special celebrations is chosen by an Ad Hoc Committee.
  

 St. Vincent’s music ministry is made up of ~10 adults.  We have one pianist/choir director who leads all rehearsals and liturgies.  Music at Saturday evening Mass is led by the pianist and a cantor, and sometimes one or two other singers.  Sunday morning Mass has the adult choir, the pianist, a guitarist, and a flutist.
 
Holy days are covered by the pianist and a mixture of others.  Funerals are covered by the pianist and cantor; the choir joins in at the family’s request.  Weddings are covered by the pianist and occasionally the cantor.
 
Music is selected seasonally by a small committee.  Every effort is made to choose appropriate songs to fit the readings and theme for the week/day, and to balance using music everyone knows and learning new songs.  All music for weekly Masses is chosen from the hymnal.
 
The pianist/choir director is a paid position, as is the funeral cantor.  A substitute pianist is hired when needed, which is not often.  All other music ministers are volunteers.
 

Christmas Boutique -  First meeting  @ 6:30 pm
            Chairperson:  Jennifer Swift
           Raffle Chair:  Kathy Livingston
 

For over 50 years, St. Vincent de Paul Church has hosted an event commonly referred to as “The Christmas Boutique”. This started out as an opportunity to offer parishioners access to Christian / Catholic themed products at Christmas time since the area was devoid of any similar shopping opportunities. It has evolved over the years into an event designed to bring the entire community together, both parishioners and non-parishoners, for a day filled with Christmas themed fun and festivities. The Christmas Boutique is free and open to the general public, but the offerings at the boutique, and the successes in the past have made this our largest fundraising event of the year.
 
The preparation for this event begins in early June, but the Christmas Boutique itself is always on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, from 9 am to 6 pm in the lower level of the church. What follows is a list of the “areas” and a summary of their part.
 

1. Raffle: Items are donated to the church by individuals or by local businesses and bundled into groupings with a minimum value of $50. The items / baskets / gift certificates / etc. are raffled off at the end of the day. Raffle tickets are sold starting in October for $1 each or 12 tickets for $10. We generally have approximately 30 different items to raffle off. This area generally nets $5000 in profits.

2. Bake Sale: Parishioners bake and prepare homemade desserts and breads and deliver these items to the church either on Friday or early on Saturday morning. These items are priced and sold at the boutique, generally netting $800 in profits.

3. Handicrafts: All year long parishioners make a wide assortment of homemade crafts, ornaments, knitted or crocheted items, etc. These are priced and sold at the boutique, generally netting $600 in profits.

4. Santa’s Bargain Basement: Parishioners donate gently used items which are priced and sold at the boutique, generally netting $450 in profits. These items are not new and not Christmas themed, per se. This area is more like a “garage sale”. There have been conversations about changing and / or eliminating this part of the boutique.

5. Children’s Area: This area changes some from year to year, depending on what the chairperson has had time to do. Most of the time, children make small, simple crafts in advance to sell to parishioners. This area is also used to set up small crafts  for the children attending the boutique to work on during their visit. This area generally nets $150 in profits.

6. Kitchen: Parishioners donate a wide assortment of homemade foods that are sold throughout the day. Ex: breakfast casseroles, soups, chili, hot dogs, desserts, etc. This area generally nets $450 in profit.

7. Religious Articles: The chairperson of this area purchases, in advance, a collection of small religious themed items for re-sale. This area generally nets $50 in profit.

8. Photos with Santa: Santa usually comes to the boutique at around 11 am and stays until about 1 pm. We set up an area for photos and families come to take photos with Santa. There is no charge for this. Santa usually has candy canes to hand out to the children that come to see him. This area does not generate any profit.

9. Holiday Gifts: Parishioners donate brand new, unused items for sale at this area. In the past, we have asked parishioners to consider purchasing an item and  donating it  for this area if they see something for sale at a considerable discount. This area generally nets $250 in profit.

 
While we are all mindful that the Christmas Boutique is our largest fundraiser of the year,  the chairpeople and organizers of this event all agree that the Boutique serves as one of our best opportunities to come together as a community - and a community of faith - as we begin the preparations for the coming Christmas season.

Campus Ministry

             Since they began 17 or so years ago, Greg Rys and Pastor Ray Richards of Calvary Assembly of God have taken a group of four students on probation and have grown the club to the point where we average 25 students per semester.  We meet officially every other week, offering food, drinks, and dessert, and a message with discussion.  The student officers of the club meet with the students on the off weeks, discussing world and school events.  When we can, these weeks are also covered by Greg and/or Ray.  We have a worship weekend event once a year, we take part as a group in numerous campus activities, and we have several outings to concerts or other Christian events.  We have an annual Thanksgiving/Christmas dinner at St. Vincent’s and an end-of-the-year dinner/activity that varies each year.  The club is now considered one of the most active clubs on campus and in the community at large.  We are asked by the administration to host prayer vigils on campus during tragic events and looked to during troubling times for support and comfort.