Dear Parishioners, Some of you may have seen a few of the photos from the Permanent Diaconate ordinations that were held at the Cathedral on April 13th. You may have noticed a familiar face in the photos: Fr. Bill Jacobs! Yes, Fr. Bill made a special trip from Green Bay to be with us, especially with Deacon Doran on his ordination day. It was good to see Fr. Bill and talk with him for a while. He certainly misses seeing all his St. Catherine friends and parishioners. He keeps all of us in his prayers and he asks that we do the same for him. Fr. Bill continues to live in the same senior living complex as his older sister and tries to keep busy as much as his health allows. He doesn’t know how many more times he is going to be able to make the long trip back to Portage from Green Bay, but he certainly did enjoy seeing us again. Thanks for visiting us Fr. Bill! We now are a few weeks into our 2024 Bishop’s Annual Appeal. Thank you to everyone who has pledged and helped to move us closer to making our goal of $280,100 for this year. If you haven’t had a chance to pledge yet, please prayerfully consider making a pledge to support the work and ministry of the Church in Western Michigan. By now, all registered parishioners should have received your personal pledge cards in the mail. If somehow this did not arrive, we have extra envelopes at the entrances of the church, or you can go online to www.diokzoo.org and click on the BAA link to make a pledge. If you are not in a position to make a pledge or a gift to the Bishop’s Appeal this year, please put a note on your pledge card and return it to our office so that we know that you considered a pledge this year. Thanks for your support! Our 2024 First Communion class is getting ready to receive the Sacrament over the next few weeks. Please keep our students in your prayers as they receive the Lord into their hearts. Thanks for reading! Fr. Mark