Seventh Sunday of Easter and the Celebration of the Ascension.

May 23, 2017

by Fr. Reginald Samuels

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Jesus ascension is a farewell event during which he gives the gift of himself to us and the gift of us to the world. We encounter this gift in prayer, service to one another and the through creation. We are His gift to the world when we teach and preach the good news of salvation. The revelation that Jesus shares with us is that we are called to take up his saving mission by making “disciples of all nations” through baptizing and teaching.

Next Sunday on Pentecost, Cardinal DiNardo will invoke the Holy Spirit for Confirmation upon 10 of our adults. The common theme in the Adult Confirmation program is “the gifts of the Holy Spirit” as expressed in the Confirmation Prayer, that the candidates should see, know, understand, trust and experience the Holy Spirit in their own lives. Please pray for our adult Confirmation candidates, their sponsors and families.

Speaking of Confirmations, on Thursday June 22nd at 7:00 pm we will have our Mass of Confirmation with Bishop George Sheltz. St. Hyacinth has 50 young people being confirmed this year. We congratulate all of our teens, their sponsors and families and pray that the Holy Spirit will always guide them.

Sorry that it took an extended time to calculate the totals, but I am happy to report that our recent 2017 STHY Spring Festival was our biggest ever, netting a record $58,512* for the parish; *(Total does not account for expenses). Thank you one and all who made it possible. Leading the way was our ticket sales which brought in a whopping $20,928. Every booth, ride and game did well over the Sunday, but beyond that I think that everyone who attended had a great time.

All of that was made possible by you, the parishioners of STHY, who gave of your time. Thank you again to everyone who volunteered in a booth, bought a ticket, or lent a hand in any way. We couldn’t have done it without you. As for what the parish does with the funds generated by the Spring Festival, it always goes to a variety of areas. We’re also planning on using part of the proceeds to expand and create a nursery to provide child care during our Masses on Sunday.

Finally, let me again express my sincere thanks to our dedicated core committee, led by Raul Turner our chairperson. I want to give a sincere thank you to our Raul and his team of festival volunteers for all of their hard work and efforts. What a blessing they all are to our parish. And remember, they are parishioners just like you and me. They give of their time and talent to make this possible, so be sure and thank them when you see them at church. We’re already looking forward to Spring Festival 2018!

Summer is almost here and that means Vacation Bible School. Registration has begun for this yearly event which will be held July 10^th 14^th in Guyot Hall. This year’s theme will be “Maker Fun Factory”. VBS, kids experience God’s Word in surprising and unforgettable ways. Please continue to pray for the young people of our parish.

The STHY music department will be having their annual rummage sale next Saturday June 3rd from 8 am to 6:30 p.m. in Guyot Hall. Please drop off your donations during business hours and come out and support the music ministry at STHY.

As we gear up for the summer, I want to make you all aware of the 2017 Annual Archdiocesan Youth Conference which takes place this year on July 28-30th at the Hilton Americas Hotel in downtown Houston under the theme “Holiness” Registration for A.Y.C. 2017 is currently underway. If you would like to sponsor a young person for this event, contact our Faith Formation. For our young people who are eligible to attend the conference, registration for A.Y.C. 2017 ends soon. Please continue to pray for the young people of our parish.

Thanks to all those who have made their pledges for the capital campaign. Thank you for your generosity and sacrifice. I know that you will do whatever you can to make this campaign a success. We entrust this campaign to the intercession of Our Blessed Mother and our patron St Hyacinth. Thanking you in advance for your response in faith. As your pastor, I invite you to discern how best you are able to support the new sanctuary…..We are all called to build Family, Faith and Future….our Sanctuary …. Our home.

God Bless,
Fr. Reginald Samuels