a beautiful day for the moq fall festival (continued beautiful day for the moq fall festival 5...
TRANSCRIPT
It was a new dimension for the MOQ Fall Festival. By coincidence, the date of the 2016 event fell on the eleventh of Sep-
tember, bringing to many minds the loss of thousands of lives 15 years earlier during the 9/11 Al Qaeda attacks on the
World Trade Center and the Pentagon as well as the Flight 93 crash in Pennsylvania. Organizers of the Fall Festival in-
cluded a memorial program. Here, Boy Scouts Ben Olson, Jack Kramer, Sam Matney, Gerald Righter and Jackson Petrzil-
ka participate in the solemn moment. (Photo by Gene Schlegel.)
A beautiful day for the MOQ Fall Festival 5
A quarterly newsletter for the community of Mary Our Queen Church, Omaha, Nebraska, October 2016
The annual Fall Festival spent its second year on
119th Street, and the street was packed! Packed with
families, neighbors and friends all coming together for
food, fellowship, fun and raising funds, too.
The festival kicked off with a memorable 15th
anniversary tribute conducted by the Boy Scouts for
those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001. Other high-
(Continued on page 10)
Photos: Festival chairs Dave and Angie Mills, at right, had
much to smile about after a successful event. Participants
included Father Gama, at left, who took a sandwich-and-cola
break.
A letter from the pastor
Page 2, The Steward, October 2016___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Dear Mary Our Queen Parishioners, This year the main focus for the parish will be to work on a Five-Year Strategic Plan. The Archdiocese of Omaha asked us to wait until after the October Clergy Conference before we begin working on our strategic plan since the archdiocese is unveiling its strategic plan at the clergy conference. The archdiocese wants us to tie our plan in with their plan and also to focus on the pastoral needs of the parish. Scott Kinnaird and Rob Woodling will be the co-chairmen who facilitate the process and implementation of the strategic plan. The Steering Committee consists of: Fr. Bob English, Fr. Augustine Gama, Deacon Ste-ve Floersch, Maureen Hoy, Renee Spicka, Barb Eastridge, Jodi Meyer, Craig Ha-genau, Dan Reeder and Paul West. We will again be looking at having a survey conducted for parishioner input. For the past three months we have had monthly ministry meetings to begin looking at the pastoral needs of the parish to help us with our Five-Year Strategic Plan. We have been looking at what pastoral ministries we have here at Mary Our Queen, what pastoral ministries we may possibly add, and the best way to market the things that are happening here. We have been looking at ministries that help us grow in our faith (Alpha, CEC, Bible study programs, healing ministries, contempla-tive formation, etc.), ministries that help us go out and serve in the parish and be-yond (servers, lectors, music, human needs, hospital, etc.), and ways to connect in
the parish (MARQUEE, Knights of Columbus, Ladies Guild, Picnic in the Parking
Lot, etc.) We are making a change in the Stewardship Fair this year. For many years we have had an annual Stewardship Fair with all the organizations that wished to have a booth with their information. We believe that there was too much information for people to absorb with, so we are now looking at having a booth every weekend in the narthex with one or two of the organizations so that people have a better chance to become more familiar with them. We hope to start this in October. We may still have a Stewardship Fair of all the or-ganizations every two or three years. Last year a committee was formed to create a five-year strategic plan for the MOQ school. One of the goals was to increase student enrollmentl. In order to do this, one of the objectives was to form a committee that would look at creating a pre-kindergarten program. After consulting with many parishes, it was discovered that in-house pre-school kindergarten programs had greater student enrollment and retention of students for kindergarten so it was decided that The Littlest Angels pre-kindergarten program would be moved over to the school and incorporated into the MOQ pre-kindergarten program. Next year the MOQ school will begin its pre-kindergarten program. Pre-registration beings in November of this year. I want to thank Dan Reeder for coordinating the painting and carpeting of the parish offices this summer and the Men’s Club volunteers for the many hours they spent helping with the painting of the offices. I also want to thank Dick Liebentritt and the Building and Maintenance Committee for all the maintenance projects they worked on this summer.
May the Lord’s blessing be with you,
Fr. Bob English
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________The Steward, October 2016, Page 3
Guild members at the raffle booth are Colleen Bermel, Sue Brown, Mary Ferrel. Gladys Skinner, Kathy Schlautman and Lu-
cy Marasco.
Ladies Guild thanks supporters, pushes forward with service Thank you to all who supported the Ladies
Guild raffle and booths at the Fall Festival. The funds
received at this event are used throughout the year for
our services provided to the church and parish.
Our booths at the festival were the bake sale,
cake walk, grocery booth, jar booth, coin toss and root
beer floats. Thanks you to all who provided items for
these booths or bought raffle tickets. You were the
backbone to our success at this fundraiser.
Many of our Circle members have been busy
with recent events such as Fr. Gama’s welcome cele-
bration, the RCIA welcome breakfast and the Golden
Years lunches. In addition, they have been busy with
service projects such as deep cleaning of the St. Jo-
seph room, serving lunch at the Holy Family Church,
helping at Project Harmony and donating items to the
Bethlehem House.
One future event of the Ladies Guild will in-
clude spearheading cleaning of the church and re-
stocking the Trinity Room kitchen. This will require
volunteers and donations, so if you or your organiza-
tion is interested in helping, please email Maureen
Duff or Maria Fitzgerald at
In November we will be hosting “Gather with
the Guild” which is an opportunity for the women of
our parish to meet informally with many of our past
presidents and current Circle members. Please feel
free to stop in for more information about what the
Mary Our Queen Ladies Guild is all about.
One of our ongoing ministries is providing des-
serts and helpers for our funeral luncheons held at the
Kenny Center. We have a great need for more volun-
teers to become involved in these services. If you are
interested in providing desserts, please contact Kelly
Seipold, our ARK Angels coordinator, at
[email protected] . If you would like more infor-
mation about helping serve at the luncheons, please
contact Janelle Reeder, our Helping Hands coordina-
tor, at [email protected] .
All women of the parish are invited to become
involved with our Ladies Guild ministry. Please email
[email protected] as we would love to an-
swer your questions.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Painting at the parish offices.
Page 4, The Steward, October 2016___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Picnic in the Parking Lot, sponsored by the Men’s Club, has become an MOQ summer tradition.
Men’s Club members back causes with cash, labor “Faith. Fellowship. Service.”
This is the motto of the MOQ Men’s Club, and
a busy summer brought a multitude of ways for mem-
bers to live out this theme. For our August meeting,
we spent time painting the parish offices and repairing
the ceiling. We also lent time and sweat pulling weeds
around the grounds, assisting in the landscaping and
rebuilding the retaining wall on the northwest side of
the school. Thank you to all of the volunteers for mak-
ing these improvements around the parish!
The final Picnic in the Parking Lot had a great
turnout -- it was nice to see so many parishioners
gathered together for food, music and conversation.
Special congratulations to Mrs. Scheppers’ class --
they had the highest attendance and will receive an
iPad or Chromebook courtesy of the Men’s Club.
The Men’s Club also had a strong presence at
the Fall Festival, manning a food booth and providing
drinks. Thanks to all who assisted with the setup and
takedown for this important parish event.
In addition, the Men’s Club has extended finan-
cial assistance the past few months by contributing to
the 8th grade D.C. trip, sponsoring a hole at the Ben
Petrzilka golf tournament, providing a gift to the Boy
Scouts, and donating funds for other parish grounds
and maintenance related items. We are happy to sup-
port these worthy parish and school causes.
Our next major event is the Wild Game Feed,
our primary fundraising event. Tickets for this Feb. 4
event will be available in December. If you or your
company is interested in helping sponsor this event,
please contact any Men’s Club member or contact us
via phone or email as listed below.
Men’s Club meetings are the first Monday of
each month at 7 p.m. in the school cafeteria. All adult
men of the parish are welcome. If you are interested
in learning more about the Men’s Club you may con-
tact Luke Ranck at 402-212-6566 or
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________The Steward, October 2016, Page 5
HERE’S A WAY TO EXTEND COMPASSION
Dorothy Day Ministry thanks the parish for its
ongoing generosity to our mission of feeding the hun-
gry. We are supporting the Door Ministry of Holy
Family Church (17th and Izard) by collecting food
each month. If you are able, we would love to have
your support in helping to stock the pantry during the
fall and winter months.
The following items are in high demand:
canned meat, vegetables and fruitm soup, pasta and
sauce, rice, cereal, peanut butter and snacks for chil-
dren.
We deliver to Holy Family the last Wednesday
of every month. Donations can be left at the Villotas’
driveway, 3414 South. 114th Ave from the last Sun-
day until the Tuesday before delivery. You can also
drop off items in the narthex box outside the church
entrance. If you would like to be added to our email
reminder list, or if you have questions about the pro-
gram, contact Patrick Hoarty at [email protected]
or 402-502-0606.
MARQUEE 2017 SEEKS VOLUNTEERS
Mary Our Queen will host its 19th
annual
MARQUEE dinner dance and auction on Saturday,
Feb. 11. Our theme, reflected in the logo we have
chosen, is “Let Your Light Shine,” is inspired by Mat-
thew 5:16 -- “In the same way, let your light shine be-
fore others, that they may see your good deeds and
glorify your Father in heaven.” This represents the
unique gifts God has graced each one of us with and
how we can use these gifts to glorify Him.
MARQUEE is the single largest parish fund-
raiser. Whether you are a founding member or a new
member of the parish, we all believe in the amazing
community that we are blessed with here at Mary Our
Queen. Mark your calendar now and plan on attending
this wonderful event.
If you are interested in getting involved with
this year’s MARQUEE we still have two open com-
mittee chairs. If you feel the time is right to give your
talents to the parish, contact Rose McCormick at
(402) 333-9813.
TNTs INVITE YOU TO JOIN
There is still time for MOQ’s over-50 parish-
ioners to become members of TNTs. The membership
drive kicked off in late September at a potluck supper
with entertainment by Walter Graham, a delightful
magician. The drive will continue until Nov. 4, when
we will have a catered dinner and music by the ever-
popular Kim Eames.
On Oct. 12, we hosted a talk by Fr. Gama. The
parish had an opportunity to hear about his life expe-
riences and African culture.
Part of our mission is to help those in most
need. We will again collect money for the people of
Porcupine Indian Reservation. The money is distribut-
ed among many families who might otherwise have a
very cold winter. They have always been most appre-
ciative, and we are hoping to help even more families
this year. Donations can be made at the parish office
until Thanksgiving.
In December we will again have Holiday Under
Glass at Joslyn Art Museum. In January, by popular
demand, the chili cookoff will return. Watch the bulle-
tin for information. Game Day continues the first,
third and fifth Fridays at 12:30 in the St. Joseph room.
Monthly planning meeting is the first Monday of each
month at 10:30 in the Trinity room; all members are
welcome.
Mickey Riesberg [email protected] 402-558-0109
MARIAN PROCESSION HELD OCT. 7
The 17th Annual Our Lady of the Rosary can-
dlelight procession was held on the Feast day, Oct.
7. It was led by some Junior Legion of Mary mem-
bers along with Fr. Gama and Deacon Hamilton. The
Knights of Columbus (below) were gracious in carry-
ing the platform around the MOQ grounds. This is
sponsored by the Legion of Mary and was assisted by
boys and girls from the Junior Legion of Mary. Ap-
proximately 100 people prayed in the church with the
Blessed Sacrament or did the candlelight procession
with Fr. Gama leading two rosaries.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________________The Steward, October 2016, Page 6
Page 7. The Steward, October 2016_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Page 8, The Steward, October 2016________________________________________________________________________________________________
Alpha to be offered at MOQ in January MOQ's Winter Alpha will begin
with a launch party on Sunday, Jan. 8, at
6 p.m. in the Trinity Room. Childcare
may be provided.
Alpha is a basic introduction to the
Christian faith presented in a relaxed,
friendly setting where guests have an op-
portunity to explore the meaning of
life. The course meets once a week for
11 weeks and includes a weekend geta-
way in the middle. At each session, peo-
ple enjoy food, laughter and learning
about the teachings of Jesus in a fun and
friendly atmosphere where no question
about life or God is seen as too simple or
too hostile. There is no charge to attend
Alpha.
Who is Alpha for? Alpha is for anyone. People attend Alpha from all backgrounds, religions and viewpoints. They come to
investigate questions about the existence of God, the purpose of life, the teachings of Jesus and more. Many
guests have never been to church; others may have attended church occasionally but feel they have never really
understood the basics of the Christian faith. Lifelong, active Catholics have reported that Alpha strengthened
their existing faith, helped them to develop a more personal relationship with God and allowed them to develop
new friendships. Everyone is welcome.
Is the Alpha Course a Catholic program? Alpha IS Catholic, since it teaches the core of the Christian faith. Although Alpha was developed by pas-
tors from the Church of England, it has received strong support from Catholic leaders at all levels, including the
Vatican, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and numerous well-respected lay leaders, such as
Jeff Cavins, Neal Lozano, Ralph Martin, and theologian Dr. Mary Healy.
His Eminence, Walter Cardinal Kasper describes why the program works: “Parishioners who feel that
their faith has been renewed invite friends and acquaintances to a further discussion about faith. They have
found the courage to tell others around them about their faith and to get them excited about it.” The Alpha
course is currently offered in 169 countries, and over 29 million people have completed the course world-wide.
How can I get involved? Parishioners are encouraged to invite friends who are non-Christians or former Catholics to go through
the course with them. Participants are not pressured at all to join the church but just to “come and see” and have
a chance to hear answers to questions they may have about Christianity.
VOLUNTEER! To ensure the success of Alpha at MOQ, volunteers are needed to support the program.
They can help by praying for the success of the program, preparing and serving meals, or providing child care.
The course will be offered at Mary Our Queen from September through mid-November. Anyone
interested in attending or volunteering should contact Jodi Meyer at [email protected], or 402-669-
0972. Please register by Dec. 30.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Reflecting the hard work accomplished by scores of
Human Needs volunteers, this mirrored dresser, with or
without the potted plant, was among the thousands of
items awaiting a new home.
Page 9, The Steward, October 2016___________________________________________________________________________
Human Needs Garage sale tops $38,000 to aid the less fortunate Thanks to everyone who once again made the
MOQ Human Needs Garage Sale a big success. In this,
the 36th
annual staging of the fund-raiser, we made
$38,580. The proceeds were shared with Restored
Hope, Holy Family Door Ministry, St. Mary’s Church
Door Ministry, St. Joseph’s Church Door Ministry,
Heart Ministry, Heartland Hope Mission, Siena-Francis
House and Prairie Lane LifeHouse. These folks send
their sincere thanks!
The MOQ Human Needs share will go toward
helping those in financial need throughout the year and
sponsoring our 200 plus needy families at Christmas
This certainly is an all-parish stewardship event.
Roughly 300 adults, teens and seventh and eighth grad-
ers earning confirmation credits worked from Sunday
to Sunday at setting up, pricing, selling and cleaning
up.
Thanks to each and every one of you for your
efforts in making the sale a huge success.
Please give a big round of applause to all the people who donated items.
Remember, if you know of someone in material need, please call us or call the Parish Center.
Thanks again to everyone; the Mary Our Queen Parish family is a cut above.
Mary Parizek, MOQ Human Needs chairperson, 402-496-4778 ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Among the service projects of MOQ Knights is the annual manning of the refreshment table at the Archdiocesan Priests’
Appreciation Day at Mount Michael. Lending a hand this year were Knights John Hagedorn, George Vulje, Ralph Constan-
za, Russ Morfeld, Joe Bonaiuto, Dick Liebentritt, John Stolte and Walt Ernesti.
Knights’ activities support education, vocations and much more MOQ’s Knights of Columbus Council, #11700,
continued its active support of vocations by hosting its
annual steak fry for archdiocesan seminarians and as-
sisting with the priests appreciation day. Its educa-
tion-related spending included support of the Vacation
Bible School, tuition support for MOQ school and do-
nations for various individual school purposes. Con-
tributions also went to Madonna School.
Knights and their families enjoyed a midsum-
mer social time at Prairie Lane Pool in August. Plans
are proceeding for the Christmas bike build, the Vet-
erans Day barbecue for the homeless and other com-
munity and parish events.
The Knights invite all MOQ men to consider
membership. Contact any Knight for information.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Return Service Requested
Page 10, The Steward, October 2016______________________________________________________________________________________________
Stewardship of the Spirit July 1 – Sept. 30 . . .
BAPTISMS:
Catherine Louise Farrage, Owen Leo Friedrichsen, Fran-
cesca Patricia Hagenau, Ella Grace Knutson, Scarlett Lynn Mey-
er, Lucy Nichole Parys, Hayden Rae Schlautman, Lillianna Elise
Stonys, Eleanor Therese Van Winkle, Addison Wagner.
NEW PARISHONERS Bradley and Heidi Amolde-Arens and family, Randalynn
Michelle Bates and family, Michelle Bauer, Nick and Colleen
Gibilisco and family, Bredan and Andrea Joyce and family, Rob-
ert and Sarah Paladino and family, Steve and Anne Rogers and
family, Michael and Kristi Rooney, Donald and Jennifer Russell
and family, Jacque Silver, David Spulak.
DEATHS:
Sam Caniglia, Edwin Hull, Margaret McMahon, Ruth
Medinger, Elizabeth Osberg, Mike Parizek, Chester J. Plewa,
Bernadette Schultz, Joelynne “Jody” Wane
MARRIAGES: Kyle David Herren and Fallon Fasanella - Aug. 6
Justin James Wile and, Hillary May Thompson – Aug.13
Cory James Kuehn and Kristyn Lynn Wiehl – Sept. 3
Nicholas Grant Linke and Baily Jo Pink – Sept. 9
Ben James Peterson and Malinda Maureen Floersch – Sept. 10
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Fall Festival (continued from page one) . . .
lights included the new Toxic Meltdown inflatable,
water wars, and two local food trucks joined in for the
first time.
There was also live entrainment all afternoon
including the Dowd’s Irish Dancers, Prairie Lane fa-
vorite, Tim Sanwick and the unforgettable Hurtado
Experience.
One family spoke for many: “We had so much
fun at the festival this year! My kids had fun playing
the games and we left tired with our bellies full.”
Thanks to all those for your continued support
of the festival! It takes the Mary Our Queen family
coming together for the festival to be a success. See
you on the street again next year. Save the date, Sept.
10, 2017.
-- Angie Mills
__________________________________________________________________________________________