Catholic Charities Tornado Relief : Special Collections This Weekend

Destruction in Henryville, Indiana

 In light of the needs of those affected by the recent tornadoes, we will have baskets at each of the church entrances for donations the weekend of March 10/11. Our archdiocesan Catholic Charities agency will be coordinating our local response for relief efforts. (Checks can be written to Catholic Charities or All Saints with a notation for tornado relief.)

The archdiocese has been in touch with the Dioceses of Lexington and Covington where several parishes had significant damage and at least one church in each diocese was totally destroyed. The loss of family members and property has had a significant impact on many parishioners. Likewise there are similar stories and experiences in southern Indiana.

Donations can also be sent to the office and will be forwarded to Catholic Charities.

Prayers needed: 12 year old shot in Glenmary

A 12-year-old was reported shot in the 7700 block of Kendrick Crossing Lane late Monday, police said.

The shooting was reported shortly before 10 p.m., according to Louisville Metro Police spokesman Dwight Mitchell.

It was not immediately known the severity of the youth’s injuries or other details. The shooting took place in the Glenmary area of southeast Jefferson County.

The first retreat

Beginning To Pray by Anthony Lilles:

The first retreat I ever made was in a Camaldolese Hermitage in Big Sur, California. This part of the Central Coast is bathed in a rugged wild beauty. Though the hermitage is high above the ocean, I remember, if you listened carefully at night, you could hear the surf beating against the rocks far below. It was like the heartbeat of God. In fact, the whole experience was very soothing even if as a teenager I found the silence difficult to maintain.

A high school freshman invited to join a group of college students - all of whom were interested in prayer - I had no idea what graces were in store for me. Having grown up in a household of seven brothers with lots of guests and relatives coming in and out, long hours of silence seemed so exotic I could not imagine what it would be like. Something was drawing me. A silent retreat with an invitation to punctuate our solitude by joining the hermits for Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours, the enchanting memories of those couple days all those years ago stirs something deep within me even now.

I spent most of my time reading and trying to listen to the Lord. In a blanket of beautiful silence, I discovered that prayer was not easy and that the God to whom I pledged my life was much more mysterious and awesome than I could ever understand. I wanted a spiritual experience, but the Lord gave me something much more important.

I did not fully realize it at the time, but He gently set before me an invitation to begin to pray. The pathway of prayer which began to unfold on that retreat is not one trod by following feelings or our own thoughts or what we produce by our imagination - even if along the way we do feel, and think and imagine many beautiful things. An impression was made in my heart that prayer was not about a state of consciousness or any other psychological achievement - even if along the way all kinds of transforming and purifying moments can overtake our psychological faculties.

What I began to understand is that the pathway of prayer is followed by cleaving to the Word made flesh in faith. It is fired, not by experiences that please us, but rather by the holy desire to please the Lord. Such a desire inevitably ignites in the heart that realizes how much it is loved first by Him. Pondering the love of God is dangerous - you never know when the truth about this love might pierce into deep places you did not even know were there.

There are those who spend a lifetime availing themselves to just such moments. Those souls yearn to do something beautiful for God - and feel the need to make all kinds of heroic resolutions, taking up the most difficult work without ever counting the cost. Overwhelmed by the unsurpassed love that flows from an ongoing conversation with the Lord, they would not have it any other way.

Jeff Grabosky's run across America fueled by prayers

Jeff Grabosky posted this self portrait to his Facebook page,
Jeff Runs America, Feb. 2 from Arizona. He regularly updates
his Facebook page and website with stories from his four-month
trek from California to New York.

from The Arkansas Catholic

Jeff Grabosky is running and praying his way across America, and he’s found the journey to be both humbling and amazing.

“I’m just trying to be an instrument of God’s will,” he said recently in a telephone interview with Arkansas Catholic. “The world really does need prayer.”

It hasn’t been easy for the young runner who’s pledged to pray a decade of the rosary for anyone who asks. Just 45 days and 1,400 miles into the journey, the physical pain became so severe, he had to stop for medical treatment in Oklahoma. The good news was he hadn’t suffered a stress fracture, but Grabosky was clearly in pain despite medication when he spoke by telephone from near Oklahoma City March 6.

“I’ve had probably about 50 dogs chase me, and I ran into a mountain lion once,” he said. But Grabosky, 28, a member of St. Mary Parish in Alexandria, Va., shrugged off those dangers. “I’m still here and I’m still OK.” The mountain lion hadn’t really sought him out anyway. “It kept going. It didn’t want anything to do with me.”

Still, “If I never run into another one,” he said, that would be just fine.

So what leads a young man to leave his job, family and friends for a sometimes lonely and often difficult run of 3,800 miles?

For Grabosky, it was heartbreak.

A 2005 graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Grabosky landed a plum insurance industry job in the Chicago area, married his college sweetheart and bought a house.

It seemed an ideal life but in 2006, everything fell apart. His mother died in October and a few days later his wife left. Grabosky, who tells the story on his website (www.jeffrunsamerica.com), admits he was devastated. He moved to Washington, D.C., to be near family and took up running again, returning to a sport he had first enjoyed as a youngster. He began running 5K races and trained for and participated in marathons.

After toying with the idea of a cross-country run for a couple of years, Grabosky found himself at a crossroads last summer when his brother, who was also his roommate, got married. Faced with the prospect of signing a new lease or moving on, Grabosky opted to train for the run of his life.

He mapped out the route from Oceanside, Calif., starting Jan. 20 to Long Island, N.Y., and sent e-mail messages to churches along the route, asking for help in spreading the word.

“The purpose of this run is to encourage prayer, especially through the rosary. While I will be running across the country, the real journey will be more of praying across the nation as I have begun to take prayer requests and will pray a decade of the rosary for each intention I receive as I run,” his note said in part. “I am not raising money for any cause, but hopefully will show the message that we should always put our trust and faith in the Lord for whatever is going on in our lives. My Catholic faith is a big part of who I am and prayers to our Heavenly Father (have) helped me overcome many obstacles. My desire is to use my talents as a runner to bring the same message of hope through prayer to others.”

In Arkansas, Grabosky will come through the northwest corner, passing through Siloam Springs about March 22.

While he’s comfortable camping or staying in hotels, Grabosky happily accepts invitations to crash on a couch. His run is a solo commitment, but anyone is welcome to run with him for a few miles. His spirits have been lifted by passersby who stop to check on him and he’s gotten prayer requests from throughout the world.

The road can be lonely but, “I have a lot of people praying for me. I’m definitely not out there alone.”

And yes, he believes his mother is watching his progress.

“Oh, I have no doubt (about that),” he said. “If she were here, she’d be driving along. I’m sure she’s keeping me safe and watching over me the entire way.”

He doesn’t know what he’ll do after he completes the run, scheduled for May 28, but that doesn’t faze Grabosky. He said he’s learned that God’s plans are better than his anyway.

Grabosky is glad he undertook the run. “I wouldn’t change a thing. I feel like I’m where I’m supposed to be.”

Prayers requested: Driver identified in fatal accident near Glenmary

 

Police have confirmed that one person was killed in a fatal crash this morning on Bardstown Road. It happened just before 6:30 a.m. near the intersection of Bardstown Road and Fairmont Road just south of the Gene Snyder Freeway.

Police at the scene say the driver of a silver Ford Focus was traveling north in the southbound lanes of Bardstown Road when it struck a red Dodge Durango and a silver Camaro.

The driver of the Ford Focus died at scene. No word yet on his identity.

Police say one person was in the Durango and they were taken to the hospital. No word yet on their condition. The driver of the Camaro was also hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

Calls to 911 dispatchers indicate the driver of the Focus may have been heading in the wrong for several miles.

Police do not know if drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash.

The southbound lanes of Bardstown Road at Race Road are closed and traffic is being diverted. One way to get around the crash is to take Old Bardstown Road to Thixton Lane back to southbound Bardstown Road.

Police say the road will be closed until at least 10 a.m. while they clear the scene.

Note from Carl...prayers requested

Please pray for my baby sister, Olivia Fahringer. She has pulmonary fibrosis and pulmonary hypertension--lung function dropping as low as 30% on her "good" days--and that condition has now been worsened by a bad respiratory condition.

Please pray that newly prescribed antibiotics will clear the infection quickly.

Thanks and God bless,

Carl Fahringer

Update: Hayley Ryan, 8-year-old girl killed in Alabama accident, remembered...

from fox41.com

Mourners crowded into the Clifton Heights Christian Church as friends and family came together to remember 8-year-old Hayley Ryan.

Ryan was killed on the night of Friday, Dec. 17, when the vehicle she was riding in was struck by a suspected drunk driver. Her mother, Julie Fore Ryan, suffered six broken ribs and a head injury. Her father, Rick Ryan, remains in a coma in Alabama.

Click HERE for our original story.

On Tuesday afternoon, as the funeral began, there were so many mourners present that the crowd quickly filled the church pews, covered the back walls and spilled out into the church lobby.

A minister told the crowd -- while fighting back tears -- that Christians in the audience would forget the trials of life when they were in heaven, as Hayley is.

He also urged those in attendance to pray for the Ryan family.

45-year-old Kenneth Burns of Alabama has been charged with DUI, manslaughter, vehicular homicide and four counts of assault in connection with the accident.

A fund has been set up to help pay for funeral expenses. Anyone wishing to make donations can do so at any Fifth Third Bank. Donations should be made to the Hayley Ryan Memorial Fund. Alternatively, donations can be mailed to the Clifton Heights Christian Church, PO Box 8149, Louisville, KY 40257.

Additionally, friends of the family have set up a page on Facebook, the "Hayley Ryan Memorial page," to remember the young girl.

Click HERE to access the page.

Prayers needed...

Please pray for Felicia and her family. Felicia has been diagnosed with breast cancer and will have a double mastectomy soon. She is the youngest sister of Michael Rippy, the husband of Saint Francis Xavier secretary, Markee Rippy.


Felicia's husband is named Tom and they have three children. Two daughters attend Assumption High School, and a son who attends Saint Francis of Assisi Elementary School.


Michael had another sister who passed away a few years ago with breast cancer.

Thanks in advance for your prayers.

Prayers needed

Please keep James Shehan and his family in your prayers. Mr. Shehan is the father of parishioner Kathy Bishop.  He was near death yesterday evening at Jewish Hospital  and was anointed last night by Father Joe Fowler. 

Thanks for your prayers

I want to thank everyone for the prayers yesterday for my daughter-in-law, Tiffany. Her gall bladder surgery went well. She was released from the hospital last evening and is recuperating at home. Tiffany was rushed to the hospital Thanksgiving night.

This is so sad...please pray for the families involved

Two Louisville teenagers died Friday from injuries suffered in a Thanksgiving Day crash on Interstate 71 in Oldham County.

Adrian L. Hightower, 19, of the 4200 block of Graf Drive, was pronounced dead at 8:20 a.m., Jefferson County deputy coroner Sam Weakley said. Hightower's girlfriend, Maddie Thomas, 17, was a passenger in his car and died at 1:44 p.m., Oldham County police said.

They were taken to University Hospital after the car Hightower was driving collided with a vehicle that had crossed the median near mile marker 14 about 4:30 p.m. Thursday, a press release from police said.

Hightower and Thomas were in the southbound lane of I-71 in a 2000 Nissan Altima when a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer driven by Robert P. Kane, 33, of the 4100 block of Grimes Cove in Buckner, crossed the median, police said. Kane’s 5-year-old daughter was in the car with him and was ejected from the Trailblazer, according to police. She was taken to Kosair Children’s Hospital.

Neither Kane nor his daughter was wearing a seatbelt, police said. Hightower and Thomas were wearing seatbelts and had to be extricated from the vehicle. They, along with Kane, were taken to University Hospital by Oldham County EMS. Kane was listed in critical condition Friday.

Police said alcohol may have been a factor in the collision.

According to friends, Hightower was a recent Seneca High School graduate and was a freshman at the University of Kentucky.

Brennan Price, who has been friends with Hightower since they were students at Myers Middle School, said he spent Thursday night at University Hospital with other friends and family of the teens.

Hightower was always doing something to put a smile on your face, Price said. Hightower also was a cancer survivor, having been diagnosed with Leukemia his freshman year, Price said. “He fought against the odds and he beat that.”

Hightower and Thomas lived around the corner from each other in the Klondike neighborhood. The couple had just celebrated Thanksgiving with Thomas’ family and were on their way to celebrate with Hightower’s family when the crash occurred, Price said.

Prayers needed: Tiffany Mattingly

Please keep my daughter-in-law, Tiffany, in your prayers. They took her in the operating room a few minutes ago for gall bladder surgery. Deacon Gerry

Update on Carolyn from her Mom

From Helen's Facebook page at 7:50 PM Sunday evening...

Helen Hagan: Carolyn continues to improve. They took her neck brace off today and took out an IV. Was awake more today and asked for pain medicine - no surprise! She's confused and doesn't remember the wreck. We're so happy to have our Carolyn back!!!!

Please continue to pray for Carolyn's complete and speedy recovery!


Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, patron saint of teens, intercede for us.


Link to Pray for Carolyn Facebook page...

Prayer Request...

A note from Saint Francis Xavier parishioner, Michelle:

I have a friend named Gladys.  She gave birth to a baby girl, Isabella Grace, on Thursday morning. When the baby was born, she was born with the cord wrapped around her neck SIX times!  Mom and baby were transported to the hospital and before Mom got there, Isabella was dead. 

The mom, Gladys, is so heartbroken to say the least. I know she needs prayers.  Last year she dealt with a miscarriage just before she got pregnant with this baby.  She has had a hard time...

Please pray for Gladys, Dad and Isabella Grace's family

Prayer for Service Men and Women

Almighty God, we commend to your gracious care and keeping all the service men and women serving our country  at home and abroad. Defend them day by day with your heavenly grace, strengthen them in their trials and temptations, give them courage to face the perils which beset them, and grant them a sense of your abiding presence wherever they may be, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Update on Deacon John Hamilton from Saint Joseph in Bardstown

An update from Father Bill Hammer, the Pastor:

Deacon John is scheduled to have triple by-pass surgery tomorrow. He expects to in the hospital 4-5 days  for recovery. Please pray that the surgery is successful and Deacon John has a speedy recovery

Please pray for Saint Francis Xavier Business Manager, Helen Hagan's daughter, Carolyn...

Carolyn was involved in a serious traffic accident yesterday at around 4 PM. The accident occurred on Taylorsville Road just south of the Gene Snyder Freeway. Carolyn is a junior at Sacred Heart Academy. Carolyn has been on a ventilator since arriving at the hospital. The good news is that 2 CT scans indicate that she does not have brain damage. 

I visited Carolyn and Helen at University Hospital this afternoon. Doctors have told Helen that they are going to remove the ventilator this afternon. It appears that Carolyn's guardian angel was with her. Below is a message from Helen's Facebook page. 

From Facebook: "Article about our Carolyn. Thanks so much to all of you for your prayers and thoughtfulness. We have been told Carolyn will come off of the ventilator this afternoon. We are encouraged by the news. It looks as though she doesn't have any brain damage. Please keep the prayers coming."

I have included a link to the article that Helen refers to. Also, here's a link to a Facebook page that Carolyn's friends at Sacred Heart have started for her called "Pray for Carolyn" 

Please keep Carolyn, Helen and the family in your prayers.

Link to article 

Spouses' Prayer

O Lord, omnipotent and eternal God, we give you thanks and we bless your holy name. You created man and woman in your image and blessed their union, so that each would be for the other a help and support. 







Remember us today. Protect us and grant that our love may be in the image of the devotion and love of Christ for his Church. Grant us a long and fruitful life together, in joy and in peace, so that, through your Son and in the Holy Spirit, our hearts may always rise to you in praise and goods works. Amen

Deacon John Hamilton, St Joseph parish, Bardstown

Fr Bill Hammer, the pastor at Saint Joseph, just called the Deacon Office and said Deacon John had a heart attack last night. He is in Jewish hospital and will/is having triple by-pass surgery this morning.

Parishioner, Imelda Fleitz, passed away this morning

I just got word that Imelda Fleitz, a parishioner at All Saints, passed away a few minutes ago. Imelda was a young woman whose death was very unexpected.

Imelda and her husband, Tom, have a daughter, Anastasia, who is a a student at Spencer County Elementary School. Imelda's parents,Tony and Helen Caldoza, are also All Saints parishioners. Imelda and her parents are natives of the Phillipines.

 May Imelda rest in peace. Please keep Imelda's family in your prayers.