Happy Holy First Communion

Sophia Bucci, Kelsey Cruz, Alison Medeiros Gomez, Antonio Pena, Emily Scarpati

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand & Eleven at Sacred Heart Church in Newton Centre

Deaf Apostolate 2011 Spring Newsletter From the Desk of Fr. Jeremy St. Martin We have had a great show of support from many people for the good work we are doing as a Community of people who are Deaf called to proclaim the Gospel. There have been many outreaches that have inspired our brothers and sisters who can't hear with their eyes. You can read some of their reports in this newsletter. This has resulted in many helping us to follow our Bishop's wish that we do a good job with WYD for our youth. Many of the family members and friends of the group have given a lot and the diocese outside of Boston have come through as well. There is a lot more money to raise but we are over the 50% mark.

Here is a list of the good people who have helped:

Holy Family Parish / St. Ann Church, Gloucester, MASt. Mary's Catholic Church, Holliston, MA

St. Mary's Church, Foxborough, MASt. Patrick Parish, Stoneham, MA St. Joseph Parish, Holbrook MA

St. Mary of the Anunciation Parish, Melrose, MAThe Church of the Holy Ghost, Whitman MA

St. Bonaventure Parish, Plymouth MASt. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Parish, North Attleborough MA

St. Joseph's Church, Quincy MASt. Bridget Parish, Abington, MA

Knights of Columbus: West Newton Crozier CouncilThe Watertown Charitable Council, Inc. (WCCI)

Irene and Butch LermondBishop John Dooher

Greg Gendron

Also, an individual Knight of Columbus who wished to remain anonymous gave a very generous gift

Happy Birthday to Momma Ida on her 97th Birthday! Congratulation to the parents and teachers involved in our 1st Communion Class this year! The Bucci Family made it happen and we are all giving glory to God for that. We also look forward to Ken Osborne taking the baton for next year’s class. Mexican lunch volunteers must be thanked. The Gomez family and the students from the confirmation class did a great job. It was good food too. There were so many people who came to help cook and clean up too. Mr. Gomez has inspired many with his generosity and love. God is good. The event gave the youth a chance to really shine as well. Many people from all over and many nations came too. We had people born in Italy, Brazil, South America, the Philippines, the Dominican Republic, Pureto Rico, the Congo, Jamaica, Ireland and probably more.A big groupcame from R.I. for the day as well. Catholics Come Home commercials did not have the captioning that we had expected and I thank all the people from the Deaf Catholic Community who reported this fact. Ken Osborn has been part of a group brainstorming on ways to help. The NCOD conference is all going to try to address the need for calling Deaf Catholics Back to Church. Home visits are the ultimate way to do this and Fr. Shawn and I together and separately are looking to keep this important part of the ministry to which we are called a priority. Monday Night Adult Religious Education Class is growing and going very well!. Also the word "Lord" you may notice is being signed in the liturgy in the more formal way from like the word for king. This is a step

toward the kind of formal translation that the Church looks for and is more clear. The other communities across the country sign it this way as well so Fr. Shawn and I are happy to make this improvement for you all.

Fr. Connolley’s arm is healing well. He is now 61 years a priest! Fr. Shawn and I are ever grateful to him for his advice and example of happiness in priesthood. Fr. Hugh is on his way to a new assignment as is typical for a newly ordained priest. He will be working in the Diocese of Camden, New Jersey and there is Deaf ministry in his area. We will miss him dearly. A local program on Cable Access occurred. It is a program dedicated to defending the children who are killed in the despair of abortion by the thousands every day in our country. These good people are naturally happy about a child and do not want to kill a child who is deaf. The program is called Vital Concerns and appears on many local cable access channels. We had another retreat for the 1st Communion Children and it was a time of grace as this picture shows.

Deaf Catholics received ashes from Cardinal Sean O'Malley on Ash Wednesday at the Pastoral Center in Braintree, at the NEHD, Hopkinton, and Newton as well as other places I am sure. We sponsored a table at Northeaster University’s ASL Festival. This was a good opportunity to let other people and agencies know about the good work our office does. A special thank you to Celia Mojica, office staff interpreter/coordinator, for coming up with this great idea! There are so many other things and many of them are on our website and in the other articles of this newsletter. In Christ, Fr. St. Martin

From the Desk of Fr. Shawn Carey “God is good” is a very common response among us good Catholics when we notice His grace working in the midst of our lives. I recall many times when I said to a friend or family member or wrote in an e-mail, “God is good”, their immediate response is “Always!” or “All the time!” I encourage all of you readers to respond with joy, “Always!” or “All the time!” when someone says to you, “God is good.” This awesome response will help this person to be more aware of God’s grace always at work. There have been many moments of God’s grace since our Christmas Newsletter. A truly memorable moment of God’s grace occurred at the priesthood ordination of Deacon Christopher Klusman when I noticed the MC “Master of Ceremony” tapped on Christopher’s right shoulder to let him know that his prostration (when he lay down face-forward) at the Litany of Saints was completed. This tapping on Christopher’s right shoulder reminded me of my ordination when I was also tapped. This moment was unique in my perspective as a Deaf priest because it hit me that the Church has really come a long way making access possible for the spiritual needs of the Deaf Catholics. Another highlight of God’s grace happened when Deacon Christopher became Father Christopher. He walked with his priestly vestments for the first time to join the “Deaf Presbyterate” at the front row of the clergy section. In the “Deaf Presbyterate”, Fr. Mike Depcik OSFS, Fr. Paul Zirimenya, and myself watched the newly ordained Father Christopher walk towards our row and sit with us. At that time, with our smiles wide, we joyfully welcomed him to the priesthood! Indeed, it is another miracle in the Deaf Catholic History! Fran & Dale Noll wrote an article in this newsletter sharing their experience at Fr. Christopher’s ordination weekend in Milwaukee.

The grace of God was also seen during my conversation with Tedy Bruschi, a former New England Patriots linebacker at the Boston Marathon event in Hopkinton this past April. He suffered a stroke at the age of 31 in February 2005 just weeks after winning the Super Bowl and days after playing the Pro Bowl in Hawaii. After experiencing the stroke, he established “Tedy’s Team”, a group of runners dedicated to educate about stroke awareness and a premier fundraising campaign for the American Stroke Association’s Boston-based market. Through the invitation from a parishioner of St. John the Evangelist, Kay Barrios, Fr. Jeremy and I went to her home next door to the church to meet Tedy Bruschi and

his team of runners. Based on my conversation with Tedy, when I mentioned about overcoming obstacles as a Deaf person and priest, he completely understood the challenges as he shared his difficult journey in defeating obstacles from those ignorant of strokes. After the doctor cleared him to play football, he wanted to return to the field, but there were many serious doubts about his ability to play. He was so determined that he could do it. I then mentioned to him that my lifetime motto was “Always Persevere”, which means “keep going and never give up!” He responded that the title of his book is “Never Give Up”. Immediately we both completely understood each other and made a good connection like friends who know each other well. After our conversation, Tedy took us to meet his team outside as they were preparing and stretching for the 26-mile trek of the Boston Marathon. Then the team gathered for a blessing ceremony that I gave in American Sign Language with the voice-interpretation provided by Fr. Jeremy. Tedy donated his autographed jersey in support of our Deaf Catholic youth to World Youth Day 2011 Madrid. For those of you die-hard football fans, be on the lookout for the bidding of the Brucshi autographed jersey soon to be announced!

Presiding the Holy Thursday service for the first time was indeed one of the moments of God’s grace when I suddenly discovered that taking off my chasuble and putting on a dry towel around my cincture (white rope) for the washing of the feet was a humbling experience. It felt like I became a server for the people, like how Christ himself as a good server showed his act of unconditional love toward others. This act indicates the life of God’s Kingdom and the works of the Father through His Son, the Lamb of God. After the washing of the feet, I returned to the altar and I saw the chasuble on it. As I was starting to put it back on to continue the service, this moment made me realize that the importance and the richness of our Christian lives is for us to be open to serve and being served. This is an act of humility in which the grace of God always comes through. Now, there was another great moment of God’s grace that took place when two of our Deaf Catholic men, Bruce Bucci and Justin Simmons were initiated to the fraternity of the Knights of Columbus on May 2, 2011. This is indeed a remarkable stepping stone in the history of our Deaf Catholic Community in the Archdiocese of Boston as I witnessed two more Deaf men being installed as members of the Knights of Columbus. You may wonder what the Knights of Columbus is. The purpose of the Knights is to encourage social and intellectual fellowship among members and their families through educational, charitable, religious, social welfare, war relief and public relief works. In doing this, the Knights help to support the sick, the disabled, and the needy members. They have also helped families receive economic security and stability through its own life insurance, annuity and long-term care programs and give time and energy in community service all around the world. On a personal note, for those of you who love to read good books, I highly recommend getting the book called “Parish Priest” which is about Father Michael McGivney and American Catholicism. The Vatican is currently investigating the cause of possible sainthood for Father Michael McGivney. For Deaf Catholic men, if you happen to be interested in learning more about the Knights of Columbus, I would encourage you to ask Bruce Bucci, Justin Simmons, or myself for more information. They also have a website at www.kofc.org. As the Knights of Columbus indicate their desire and hope for more Deaf men to join, the future is bright and good for the potential of having more Deaf men to come aboard and be involved, like the good servants of Christ. Father Michael McGivney, pray for us. As you may know, the Catholic Church in the United States is undergoing a preparation for the New Roman Missal which will start in use for Masses on the First Week of Advent at the end of November. You may

be wondering and curious about what the new signing responses will be like and how priests will sign their parts during Mass. The changes may seem overwhelming and mysterious. However, from my awesome experience through participation in a 3-day ASL New Roman Missal Workshop with our dear friends, Fr. Michael Depcik of Detroit, Michigan; Msgr. Glenn Nelson of Rockford, Illinois; and Sr. Kathleen Schipiani of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, we all worked and studied so diligently from early morning to late evening on each day. Wow! With the good grace of God, we had done very well using the Latin verses, analyzing and understanding their meaning in depth and discussing the signing concepts based on the Latin verses. We now feel very confident that most of the signing concepts are much clearer and compatible with the Latin language in the old Mass. They even look very formal and rich. However, we still have some developments left over to work on especially the Creed and the Our Father prayer. Anyway, I ask all of you to please save the following dates in the fall for a one-hour workshop on the new signings of the New Roman Missal to be held at Sacred Heart after 10:30am ASL Mass: September 18th, October 16th & November 20th. I encourage all of you to make every effort to attend all of these workshops to help us, each other better prepare for the new changes in our ASL Masses. It will make the transition even more smooth. At last, from the bottom of my heart, I want to share with all of you that Fr. Jeremy and I have been visiting with our good dear friend, Mary Brooks at her home. Those visits are always filled with moments of God’s grace as Mary shares her experiences recognizing the presence of God in her life especially at the present time with cancer. She is indeed a very strong person when she always smiles, laughs, and enjoys all the precious moments with her family and friends. She does not let her cancer overcome her joyous spirit. That is amazing and it shows how much she has faith in God through this challenge and struggle. Faith always wins! I would like to ask all of us to continue our prayers and support for her and her family. She sends her best and love to all of you and always think of you.

Wow, as you may notice now that God’s grace can come at any moment and any time whether big or small, we need to keep our eyes open to them and not forget.

PAH! Another Newly Ordained Deaf Priest - Fr. Christopher KlusmanBy Fran and Dale Noll “The 5-Day Trip to the Ordination of Christopher Klusman on May 19th thru 23rd”Those people who gathered in a group to see him ordained to the priesthood in Milwaukee are Fr. Jeremy, Fr. Shawn and his parents Kathy and John, Fran and Dale. Day 1, Thursday: Upon arrival at the hotel near the airport in Milwaukee, Christopher came over to meet the group, and he invited them to Kopp’s for supper. Then the group returned to the hotel where four of them, Fr. Shawn, Fr. Jeremy, Fran and Dale spent about an hour of evening prayer known as Liturgy of the Hours. Deacon Christopher was among them, and also was in charge of this liturgy. He was awesome at it. Day 2, Friday: The group met Christopher at the Saint Francis de Sales Seminary where he resided, and they toured inside the building, and entered a small chapel in which they prayed the Liturgy of the Hours along with the Eucharist served by Fr. Shawn. The two deacons, Patrick Graybill from New York and Christopher were among them. What a beautiful, inspirational sight of the seminary! Then they returned to the hotel for a little while to get a rest, and then went to Saint Francis Brewery restaurant for supper. Fr. Mike Depcik from Chicago and his two former students were among them. Meanwhile, Christopher wasn’t with them as he was preparing for his ordination. That day was his last day of being deacon.

Day 3, Saturday: The group went to the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in the morning to attend the Mass of Ordination by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee with five newly priests dressed in alb including Deaf priest, Christopher Klusman. Family and friends gathered for this Mass along with interpreters. This church was crowded, mostly on all priests’ family sides. Watching the laying on of hands of priest was awesome. Also, watching Fr. Christopher’s first blessing to the Mass attendants in line awaiting their turn at a time was awesome. After that, the group went to Fr. Christopher’s parents’ house for refreshment and met his family. Then they returned to the hotel to have a rest. Then they went

to the Sacred Heart School of Theology for a social dinner in the evening, and all of Fr. Christopher’s Deaf friends only who came in from all around the United States socialized there to celebrate the aftermath of ordination. This school is where Fr. Christopher studied for priesthood. This social meeting all different people was awesome. Day 4, Sunday: The group went to Klemmer’s for breakfast banquet with 375 people (family, relatives and friends of Fr. Christopher’s) attending. Then they all went to St. Matthias Parish to attend Fr. Christopher’s celebration of his First Mass of Thanksgiving. Before closing this Mass, Fr. Christopher spoke from the bottom of his heart to give thanks to God and to all of those people who have supported him along the way. This Mass was really felt like goose bumps to all. The reception in the basement of this church was served, and in the meantime, Fr. Christopher was busy in giving his blessing to those attendants by laying his hands over their heads. It was a nice social. After that in the afternoon, the group went for a long ride to get the taste of Lake Michigan, which some of them had never been to. Access to this lake was from Milwaukee County Parks where lots of people were seen walking by, and they had a nice long walk along the lake shore. After that, they had supper at St. Francis Brewery and returned to the hotel.

Day 5, Monday: In the morning the group went to the airport to depart for Boston. It was a long day to get their home sweet home with a good feeling, completely exhausted.

Reflections on an Outreach Mass to St. Theresa's Parish in Sherborn,By Angela Furbush

Having mass said by Fr. Shawn Carey was a new experience for me. Since I have attended the small parish of Saint Theresa in Sherborn for about thirteen years, I have never had the opportunity to have the experience of a deaf priest saying mass before. When I first heard that a deaf priest would be saying mass that Saturday, I was unsure what the service would be like and if I would gain the same experience from this service that I was able to receive each week. When mass started I immediately realized that this experience would indeed be a positive experience at mass. The interpreter made everything very easy to understand and there was no lack of communication. The one thing about the mass that stood out to me the most was the fact that because Fr. Shawn cannot use his voice to show expression he had to show all expression through his body language, something

that many people do not often do. During the transubstantiation I noticed how reverent Fr. Shawn was towards the Eucharist. He really showed me how sacred this part of mass is, as well as the blessing of the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Fr. Shawn also showed me in a whole new way, just how special the act of receiving the Eucharist during mass is. This experience also made me realize how hard it is for the deaf community to communicate. Before attending this mass I never really thought about how deaf individuals would understand the mass. I am glad that the deaf apostolate works so hard to make sure that all people are able to understand the mass and the Eucharist. I liked how at the beginning of his homily Fr. Shawn began signing but the interpreter did not speak. This left me confused and feeling left out. I gained a deeper understanding of how the deaf community feels on a daily basis. This experience gave me a greater appreciation for those who are different than me and more empathy for disabled people. I hope that all Catholics are able to witness the same experience that I was lucky to be a part of.

Deacon Patrick Graybill proclaims the Good News at Sacred Heart parishBy Jenny Corbin, Interpreter/Coordinator Happy Easter and happy spring to you all! There have been so many wonderful and good things happening in the Deaf Catholic community in Boston that I wanted to highlight as many of them as I could. Thank you to all of you, who have been an inspiration to me by showing me your strong faith at Mass & elsewhere.

We were blessed on April 3rd to have Deacon Patrick Graybill visit Sacred Heart parish and serve as both a deacon and a homilist. The deacon proclaimed the Gospel story about Jesus healing the blind man. This story came alive as we could literally see the look of astonishment on the blind man's face in that story. Deacon Graybill said that when Deaf lector Cheryl Johnston proclaimed the first reading he really saw that story come alive, too. It was as though he was seeing it for the first time, even though he had read it before. This was a good opportunity for us to praise God together for Deaf lectors, priests and deacons who can proclaim the word of God in ASL. Deacon Graybill encouraged parishioners to recognize the good news of Jesus Christ and to proclaim it to others. He said that when we overlook the good news in the Bible, the Eucharist, in each other or in the natural world we are actually being blind ourselves. Thank you to Deacon Patrick Graybill for visiting!

FRONT ROW SHOWDOWN: Fr. Jeremy Vs. Fr Shawn!By Kathy Carey, Fr. Shawn’s mother Several years ago while vacationing in New Hampshire, our family met a wonderful couple. It was a typical fall evening and we were sitting by the fire in the small, quaint living room of the old farm house. We started chatting with this couple and soon realized they were a very special couple. They have spent years quietly volunteering for the blind. Jean and Bill Holen shared their beautiful story with us. Bill is a member of the Telephone Pioneers. He has been involved with volunteering for the blind for many years. He volunteers his time repairing reading machines, making wooden checker boards and together Bill and Jean spend many hours making playing cards for the blind. They have a template and take each playing card one at a time to appropriately mark them in the corner for the blind to identify. One of the very special things that Bill works on is the checker board. The board is wooden and the squares are alternate wood and felt. The playing pieces are round and square, so that each player knows which piece is his or hers. While talking with Bill and Jean, I told them about my son Shawn who is deaf. We talked for a long time that night and we shared many stories. I told Bill how Shawn worked with the deaf and blind and that he was now a priest. We continued to share our stories that weekend and now we look forward to seeing them every fall. We took our annual trip again last fall with our family and Bill and Jean were there at the farm house. To our surprise Bill had made a checker board for Shawn to use for the deaf and blind. We know this project took Bill many hours of hard work and his generosity was overwhelming. Father Jeremy and Father Shawn arrived on Saturday afternoon to spend the day. We showed them the checker board and immediately their competitive nature took over. They decided to try playing checkers. So, Father Shawn and Father Jeremy closed their eyes and they did not use voice, only signing into each other’s hands. Bill sat down with us and for the first time actually saw how the game was used for the blind. This was a great moment for Bill, after all the years of his quiet, generous dedication to the blind he was able to enjoy the game with Father Shawn and Father Jeremy. The game lasted almost two hours and we enjoyed every minute of the game. Father Shawn was on a roll and ready to win but in the end Father Jeremy rallied and won the game. We are all so grateful to this extraordinary couple for all their work and dedication to the blind. We are especially grateful for their beautiful gift to the blind and deaf community. God Bless this very special couple!

Fr. Shawn and the Parable of the Sower (Lk. 8: 4 – 15)

By Fr. John Grimes (Vicar Forane of West Region of Boston who celebrated Confirmation Mass at St John the Evangelist in Hopkinton on Saturday, May 14, 2011. The following article summarizes his homily points.) In the Parable of the Sower and the Seed Jesus tells his disciples how they are like fertile soil in which God wants to plant the seed that is the word of God. The parable also speaks of various challenges that can come into each person’s heart. These challenges can prevent the seed of God’s word from growing within us or we can choose to allow the Word of God to grow and help us to overcome any challenge that may come our way. When Jesus first told this parable, His audience was made up of a large number of people. They were eager to learn more about Him and to become His followers. Jesus understood their desire and wanted to encourage their spiritual growth especially when they felt challenged by

various situations in life. In the parable there are four challenges that can prevent our spiritual growth. The good news is that these challenges can be overcome and need not prevent our spiritual growth. What are these four challenges and how can we overcome them?

The first challenge is to not believe that God is with us in times of difficulty. An example of this challenge came from a youth whose own faith was challenged when he learned that his grandfather had cancer. However, the youth saw how his grandfather’s belief in God gave him assurance that God was with him and that he was not alone in facing the difficulty of his sickness. This belief helped the grandfather become calmer during his illness. Seeing this the youth’s own faith deepened and he expressed that God has reasons that we human beings can not always understand. The second challenge occurs when our faith is tested by some personal trial. Different kinds of trials occur in everyone’s life. When trials come we can either turn away from the Lord or we can turn to the Lord and have our faith grow stronger. A good example of someone who faced a difficult trial and turned to the Lord is Fr. Shawn Carey. Not being able to hear can be a real challenge for any deaf person. It was even more challenging for Fr. Shawn, who as a young man wanted to become a priest. At that time there were no seminaries that had a program for deaf persons. Since there was neither a program for the deaf nor professors who could teach in sign language, Fr. Shawn was refused admission to the seminary. What a major disappointment for him to want to become a priest and refused only because there was no program for the deaf! This disappointing refusal was a real trial for Fr. Shawn. Yet he trusted that his calling to be a priest came from God, who planted this vocation in his heart. To be sure this refusal was a real trial for Fr. Shawn and his faith was truly being tested. The third challenge involves the emotional issues like anxiety and discouragement.What did Fr. Shawn do when he was anxious and discouraged about his future? Rather than give in to discouragement, he trusted that the Lord, who wanted him to become a priest, would also find a way for this to happen. With the encouragement that Fr. Shawn received from God through prayer and the guidance he got from others, a seminary was found in California that accepted him and adapted a program to suit his learning needs as a deaf person. Through his prayerful relationship with Our Lord, Fr. Shawn received the strength to face the emotional challenges that often accompany deafness. The fourth challenge is perseverance. All of us who want to follow Jesus and become his disciples in our daily life, like Fr. Shawn, will have to face life’s trials and emotional challenges. To be sure Fr. Shawn faced many obstacles along the path of his vocation in life. These obstacles challenged his faith in God and in himself. Although his faith was tested by these trials, it only grew stronger. He never gave up hope. As a result, today we have a wonderful priest who is deaf and leading a very effective pastoral ministry. God wants to give us that same hope filled faith as well. Let us pray for one another that we may persevere in hope and faith through whatever challenges come our way.

Fr. Shawn The Guest Speaker of St Vincent de Paul SocietyBy Paul Hodge, President District Council of the Greater Attleboro Area St. Vincent de Paul Society.

The afternoon and early evening of Saturday, May 7, 2011 brought with it the sounds of thunder and rain to North Attleboro, MA and St. Mary's Church. However, nothing spoke louder than the witness of Fr. Shawn. For the 130 members and guests of the Greater Attleboro St. Vincent de Paul Society, a lesson was given in

Perseverance. I have been invited to pen my thoughts and observations as one who sat in sheer amazement as Fr. Shawn and Fr. Jeremy shared with us Vincentians. But first a couple of tidbits that further showed to me just what a small world it truly is and how our lives are interconnected. I have, perhaps, a unique perspective and somewhat parallel and shared experiences with Fr. Shawn. You see, I am the father of a hearing impaired child. Our daughter, Ashley, was born with a neuro-sensory hearing loss from birth and my sister, Dorothy, for the past 30 years, has worked with and in the deaf community. Dorothy is a sign interpreter and has signed for, amongst others, students at Providence College. Fr. Shawn and I are both graduates of Providence College though I way before Fr. Shawn :) (Go Friars!) While both of these experiences have sensitized me to the hearing impaired / deaf community, I was truly moved by the witness of Fr. Shawn. We were blessed with Fr. Shawn serving as a Con celebrant for our Mass with Fr. Dave Costa. With Fr. Shawn and Fr. Dave celebrating and Fr. Jeremy serving as a translator, the setting was almost Trinitarian with 3 moving as 1. It was clear from my second row pew that I was witnessing and participating in something truly special … a Mass like no other I had ever attended. It was absolutely beautiful seeing the interaction of the Fathers. Our Liturgy was followed by a social hour and dinner. All the while, I saw the good Fathers talking with the guests at their table. Stories and jokes were shared as they would be at any family dinner table, with all extremely at ease. After dinner, our speaking program commenced. Fr. Shawn and Fr. Jeremy began the program conversing in sign, with everyone wondering just what was being said. Fr. Shawn, with Fr. Jeremy serving as interpreter, inquired of the assembly just what thoughts and feelings we were experiencing. The vast majority stated that they did not feel a part of the conversation and, in fact, left out. Fr. Shawn shared with us how he has been experiencing those exact same feelings all of his life. Fr. Shawn was most open in sharing his trials and tribulations and successes in navigating in a hearing world, including being elected to leadership positions in student government, both in high school and college, through perseverance. Successes, but not ultimate happiness. This would be found, Fr. Shawn told us; when, after a period of encouragement from family and friends and personal discernment, a decision was made to pursue his desire to become a Priest.

Fr. Shawn was most candid in sharing his disappointment in not, initially, being accepted into the seminary. Again, Fr. Shawn persevered and found and was admitted into a California seminary. Time after time, when most of us would have "thrown in the towel", Fr. Shawn remained faithful and true to his calling, persevering in and being led by the Holy Spirit. To quote one of our Vincentians," We often wonder how the fates put people in a certain place as they do. We of faith know that God works in mysterious ways. Listening to Fr. Shawn's journey as to how he became involved in this ministry proves that what we think we want and what God wants is not always the same thing. When we are tapped on the shoulder we do not always recognize the hand. Speaking from experience I received an email yesterday reminding me that when we were looking for a speaker for the dinner, I must have been tapped on my shoulder I responded “I know someone who would be ideal as the speaker”. My first thoughts were would he really come? But the “tapping” persisted, so I decided I must make the request. We are all so pleased that you accepted. You have stirred many thoughts as to where God will lead us if we allow it." I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to speak about our Society. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a Catholic lay organization, that, inspired by Gospel values leads women and men to join together to grow spiritually by offering person-to-person service to those who are needy and suffering in the tradition of our founder, Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, and patron, St. Vincent de Paul. As a reflection of the whole family of God, Members, who are known as Vincentians, are drawn from every ethnic and cultural background, age group, and economic level. Organized locally, Vincentians are united in an international society of charity by their spirit of poverty, humility and sharing, which is nourished by prayer and reflection. Some 12 million persons are helped annually by Vincentians in the United States through list of services that is endless. Our motto is: "No work of charity is foreign to the Society." To quote our patron, St. Vincent de Paul: "Charity is infinitely inventive." We would ask for your prayerful support and encourage you to join us in our mission to "Seek and find the lost, the lonely and the forgotten and to bring them the love of God." Our Society is always looking for good women and men, regardless of age, to join us in our mission. Won't you consider joining us? We were so blessed to have the faith-filled witnesses of both Fr. Shawn and Fr. Jeremy. Thank you for giving us a glimpse into the world of the hearing impaired. You both achieved the dual mission of education and evangelization. Ears, eyes and hearts were opened on that rainy Saturday evening in North Attleboro. Peace and God Bless. Another highlight of the Mother's Day eve gathering was the presence, introduction and witness of Fr. Shawn's Mom and Dad. Both candidly shared personal insights of "Life with Fr. Shawn" ... the highs and the lows. For every "bad" time, there were so many more wonderful, glorious ones. Mrs. Carey movingly described how she felt when asked if, upon learning prior to Fr. Shawn's birth that he would be hearing impaired, if she was going to have an abortion. Mrs. Carey's tremendous witness to "Life" and the obvious love between Mom and Dad and Son was truly inspirational.

Making RoomBy Fr. Paul Clifford, Pastor of St John the Evangelist Parish, www.stjohnshopkinton.com

“Making room” means adjusting a plan or a pattern so that other needs can be accommodated. It is part of the hospitality all of us as Catholics are to practice in imitation of God’s overwhelming generosity toward us. We should always be ready to make room for others in various parts of our lives from time to time. In “making room” how we make adjustments is almost as important as whether we do. What is our attitude when we’re asked to make room for others? During the Easter Season we had a need here at St. John’s to baptize a baby on a Saturday at the 5PM Mass. Did I remember that we already had 9 First Communion children receiving at that Mass? Nope. Oh well, time to “make room!” Luckily we had a few days to prepare, and the First Communicants had not had their rehearsal. We shifted the seating to open up a spot for the baptism

family. Then I invited the children to so something special. At the opening of the Rite of Baptism the presiding minister welcomes the baby by tracing the sign of the cross on the baby’s forehead. He is joined in this action by the parents and godparents. We did that, but then Dylan really got welcomed because we then had our 9 “honorary godparents” make the sign of the cross on him too! They were so happy and proud that they could have a part in welcoming the baby. They were excited to make room for him in their big day and in their community. This past May 23rd marked Fr. Shawn’s 2nd Anniversary as a priest. When we were preparing for his ordination 2 years ago, one of the aspects obvious to all was that the Deaf Catholic Community would be more present here at St. John’s Parish. Would people here “make room”? And, if so, I worried whether they would do so with an open spirit (like our 9 “honorary godparents”). I think it has been successful overall. This past Holy Week was a good example. There were so many preparations to make: Which services to focus on? Fr. Shawn’s 1st time presiding at Holy Thursday. How many (and which) interpreters here and at Sacred Heart? Seating. Lighting. The Passion. Foot Washing. Easter Vigil darkness. Whew! And yet, everyone prayed so well! PAH! As First Communions and Confirmation approached this Spring, the two directors came to me on their own. Each one wanted to be sure that in arranging the seating for and the conduct of the ceremonies they made room for whatever needs the Deaf Catholic Community may have had. “Where would the interpreter(s) be? Any extra benches need to be reserved? Any other ways we can help with access or accommodations for the deaf?” I was so happy that they were focused on “making room” on their own; without Fr. Shawn or I having to bring it up. The presence of so many deaf Catholics at St. John’s (and not only when Fr. Shawn has Mass!) is a sign that we’re doing a good job “making room,” and that the Holy Spirit is blessing us not just with begrudging access but with true community. Thank you for the life and hospitality you’ve brought to the St. John’s Community. Who else can we all make room for in our Church and in our hearts? In His service and yours,Fr. Paul Clifford, PastorSt. John the Evangelist Parish, Hopkinton

Teaching the Lord's PrayerBy Jill Morizini, CCD teacher at St. Cecilia's in Ashland,

On January 20th St. Cecilia Parish was fortunate enough to welcome Fr. Shawn Carey and Fr. Jeremy St. Martin as they taught our 8th graders how to sign “The Lord’s Prayer” in American Sign Language (ASL). Prior to the ASL lesson the teenagers were given a presentation explaining the seven petitions within “The Lord’s Prayer”. They were then asked to divide into two groups and come up with gestures for each half of “The Lord’s Prayer”. They gathered in a circle to show Fr. St. Martin and Fr.Carey their interpretation of the words in the prayer. Marveled by the youth’s ingeniousinterpretations, Fr. Carey and Fr. .St. Martin complimented the teens. The teens were eager and quite talented as they learned the ASL way of signing the words of “The Lord’s

Prayer". The concept of the demonstration was not only to evoke different learning techniques, but also to evoke possible inspiration to a student learning ASL for the benefit of the deaf community. Thank you Fr. Carey and Fr. St. Martin for your sincere efforts in this class.

CATHOLIC RELIGIOUS EDUCATION FOR DEAF YOUTH

Classes are now continuing for religious education for the Deaf youth from First Communion through Confirmation age.

Classes for First Communion now continues on every 1st and 3rd Sundays of the

month at 9:30am before the 10:30am ASL Mass.

Classes for those who already received First Communion now continues on every 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month at 9:30am before the 10:30am ASL Mass.

Classes for Confirmation now continues on every 1st Sunday of the month at 11:30am

after the 10:30am ASL Mass. Class time will run from 11:30am to 1:30pm.

Stay tuned for the announcement of the class start day of Fall 2010

All classes will be at Sacred Heart Parish, 1317 Centre StreetNewton, Massachusetts 02459

WWW.DEAFCATHOLIC.ORG

ATTENTION DEAF CATHOLIC YOUTH

We have a great group going and have made some progress in fundraising. We have more to go but we have not been disappointed by the support of many good people of faith. All details are on the website. We have a great video intro to some of the groups joining the Boston group. Canada really did a great job with there video! www.deafcatholic.org/wyd will give you a few of that and more. We thank Dube Travel for helping to coordinate the flights for everyone and we are happy to say that Fr. Shawn has contracted for the time in Boston prior to WYD. If you are looking to help with that time of welcoming our pilgrims to Boston please email us at office@deafcatholic.org . We need youth who are not going to be involved with this mini retreat before flying to Madrid. Here again is some of our group. Please continue to send money for the trip directly to:

DEAF WYD BOSTONDube Travel

250 Center StreetAuburn, Maine 0421

May the patron saints of World Youth Day pray for us:

St. John of the Cross

St. Ignatius of Loyola St. Francis Xavier

St. Isidore the FarmerSt. Maria of the Head

St. Rafael ArnaizSt. John of Avila

St. Teresa of AvilaSt. Rose of Lima

Blessed John Paul IIHere are some of the friends looking forward to drawing closer to Christ:

Notice a certain arm raised in triumph in the back right. In Christ, Fr. St. Martin

WWW.DEAFCATHOLIC.ORG

Office of the Deaf Apostolate of the Archdiocese of Boston66 Brooks DriveBraintree, Massachusetts 02184