Join the St. Tom's Social Justice Ministry who is offering JustFaith Ministries' Faith & Racial Equity: Exploring Power & Privilege, a 10-week module that awakens groups to the economic systems, public policies, cultural norms, and hidden biases that empower some and oppress others. Participants will read three books: 40 Days of Prayer, I'm Still Here by Austin Channing Brown, and White Fragility by Robin D'Angelo. The cost of books and materials is approximately $50. Scholarships are available. The program will be offered virtually on Thursday evenings, 6:30 - 8:30 pm, via Zoom, beginning January 14, 2021. Participants will need internet access. Space is limited. To register, or for more information, contact: sttomssjm@gmail.com by December 15, 2020.

Attention Parishioners: If you have children that attend our area Catholic Schools (St. Augustine, St. Monica, Hackett Catholic Prep), would you please contact Marianne Verner (mverner@stcatherinesiena.org) with the child(ren)'s name(s), school name(s), and grade level(s) so we can ensure we have the most up-to-date information in our parish database? We appreciate your help in keeping our records straight. If you have questions, please contact Marianne (269-978-2340 or mverner@stcatherinesiena.org).

Our 2020 Christmas Giving Tree project began on November 1st! This year, our Giving Tree lists are digital; please visit the Giving Tree page of our website (https://www.stcatherinesiena.org/giving-trees) for a complete list of participating agencies and their needs. We also have a list of needed supplies in the vestibule of the church. In addition to the items on the lists, we are also collecting knit hats, gloves, and scarves for distribution to our local homeless population (please see the image on the right for some of the beautiful handmade items we've received so far!). Please LABEL the bag or item with the organization you wish to donate to and return your donations to the Narthex of the Church (after weekend Masses) or the boxes in the Church vestibule (open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week) between Sunday, November 22nd and Sunday, December 6th. *Please do NOT wrap the items.* Thank you in advance for your generous donations. If you have questions or would like to volunteer to help with sorting or delivery of the Giving Tree items, please contact Colette: gushursts@yahoo.com.

Our diocesan Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism has provided reflections and resources for you to explore each week of November to celebrate Black Catholic History Month. View these resources at https://diokzoo.org/racism.

Betzler Life Story Funeral Homes has once again graciously purchased our church calendars for the parish to share with our parishioners. Calendars are available in the vestibule for pick up. We also have a limited number of the Advent Little Blue Books available for pick up in the vestibule. Donations for the “Little Books” are appreciated. If the Little Blue Books are all gone, you can order one directly from https://www.littlebooks.org. They are also available in ebook formats; go to https://www.littlebooks.org/app, and for $10, you will receive access for Advent & Lent.

Due to the Thanksgiving holidays, there will NOT be Bible Study with Father Ben tonight, Friday, November 28th. Our virtual Bible Study on the Gospel of John will continue next Friday, December 4th, at 6 pm via Google Meet. If you would like to join our Bible Study, please register online (https://www.stcatherinesiena.org/biblestudyform) to receive the Google Calendar invitation with the Google Meet link and login information.

As we pause our work in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday, we at St. Catherine's wanted to extend our thanks to our entire parish for your support during this challenging year. We are truly grateful to each and every one of you! May God Bless all of you today and always! Happy Thanksgiving, and please stay well!

In response to the pandemic, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress and includes a provision that waives required minimum distributions (RMDs) for 2020. While RMDs are waived for 2020, Qualified Charitable Deduction, or QCDs, remain a viable tax strategy. Also, during the pandemic and reduced parish attendance, your QCD could be more valuable than ever to the Parish. We’ve compiled a few frequently asked questions about this program; please click on the article title to view these questions and answers.

As the season for unpredictable weather approaches, we want to remind our Parishioners of our Inclement Weather Policy for closing the Parish (with a few changes due to COVID-19). In the past, we followed the Portage Public School cancellation schedule. However, with most schools teaching virtually this year, we will use the Pastor’s discretion on the weather conditions and inform everyone via our Front Office Voicemail (327-5165), our Facebook page, our website (http://www.stcatherinesiena.org), and on WWMT-TV and WOOD-TV. If the Parish is closed, all activities are canceled and there will be no Daily Mass.

The Christmas Memorial / In honor of Flower Envelopes are due by December 9th in order to be recognized in the Christmas Bulletin. Please drop your envelope in the collection box in Church or the wooden box outside the Front Office door. If you have any questions or need an envelope, please contact the Front Office at 327-5165 or frontdesk@stcatherinesiena.org org. Thank you!

The Knights of Columbus is a Catholic Men’s Fraternal Organization. The key principles are Charity, Unity, Fraternity, and Patriotism. As is true of other Knights of Columbus councils, our council (St. Catherine of Siena Council #6980) has activities in six different areas: Church, Community, Council, Family, Pro-Life, and Youth. We are actively seeking men (at least 18 years of age) who would like to join our council. To join, either go online (12-month membership fee is waived) at https://www.kofc.org/secure/en/join/join-the-knights.html or contact Dan Dunn at 269-370-2433 or ddunnlucey@charter.net.

Though Ascension-Borgess encountered a delay with their shipment of the high dose flu vaccine for people 65 years and older, those vaccines have finally arrived, and they have now scheduled some additional flu clinics over the next couple of weeks. Please click on the article title to see the list of locations and dates/times for upcoming flu clinics. There will also be limited amounts of the following vaccines available: Quadrivalent Flu (6 months and older), Flu Mist Nasal Spray (2 through 17 years old), Pneumovax 23 (19 years and older), and Prevnar 13 (19 years and older). Interested persons can call 269-324-8466 to schedule an appointment or for more information. Walk-ins will also be accepted.

We're happy to announce our plans for the 2020 Christmas Masses. We appreciate everyone who completed our survey to help us determine the best times for everyone. Please read Father Mark's letter with more detailed information on the Christmas Masses and what things will look like for those attending in person.

We all know we are in the mists of a pandemic, but unfortunately, we can't forget about flu season. We've compiled a few reminders for Parishioners to use during this time of pandemic AND flu season. Please click on the article title to view these important reminders. Stay well!

Our 2020 Christmas Giving Tree project began on November 1st! This year, our Giving Tree lists are digital; please visit the Giving Tree page of our website (click on the title of this article) for a complete list of participating agencies and their needs. We also have a list of needed supplies in the vestibule of the church. Please LABEL the bag or item with the organization you wish to donate to and return your donations to the Narthex of the Church (after weekend Masses) or the boxes in the Church vestibule (open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week) between Sunday, November 22nd and Sunday, December 6th. *Please do NOT wrap the items.* Thank you in advance for your generous donations. If you have questions or would like to volunteer to help with sorting or delivery of the Giving Tree items, please contact Colette: gushursts@yahoo.com.

Betzler Life Story Funeral Homes has once again graciously purchased our church calendars for the parish to share with our parishioners. Calendars are available in the vestibule for pick up beginning this weekend, November 21-22. We also have our Advent Little Books available for pick up in the vestibule. Donations for the “Little Books” are appreciated.

Our annual poinsettia sale is underway! These beautiful flowers come in three color choices and three size options. Orders can be placed (and paid for!) on our website (https://www.stcatherinesiena.org/poinsettias2020) or you can pick up a paper order forms in the church entryway and either mail to the church (attention: Alana) or drop it off in the lock-box outside of the parish office door with your payment (cash or check made payable to St. Catherine of Siena Parish). The last day to order is November 20th and poinsettias will be available for pick up after each mass on December 5th and 6th. Proceeds from the sale will go towards improving the soundboard in the church, which will continue to give us the capability to live-stream our Masses. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED - We are in need of volunteers to help when the greenhouse delivers (Dec 4th) and volunteers to help fellow parishioners pick up their flowers (Dec 5th and 6th). If interested in helping, please sign up online: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D48AAA62DA5F8C52-poinsettia.

The live-stream for the Mass of Christian Burial for Maribel Tabanguil-May will begin at 10:55 am this morning here on our website (https://www.stcatherinesiena.org/mass), on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/stcatherinesiena), and on our YouTube channel (https://bit.ly/stcatherinesienaYouTube). The funeral will be recorded and the video will be available to view in all three locations following the Mass. To read Maribel's Obituary, please visit https://obits.mlive.com/obituaries/kalamazoo/obituary.aspx?n=maribel-tabanguil-may&pid=197044769&fhid=8372 or click on the article title. Please continue to keep Maribel's family, her friends, and all who loved Maribel in your thoughts and prayers!

We are looking for anyone who is interested in knitting prayer shawls, baby afghans, mittens, neck scarves, and knit caps. We have been asked to assist in helping the homeless stay warm as the cold weather approaches. If you can knit and have time to knit for the needy, we have yarn for you to use. We have also been asked to assist young mothers by providing baby blankets. Again, we can provide the yarn! If you are already a member of our prayer shawl weavers group, we could certainly use more prayer shawls. We will be supplying them for the sick, those in nursing homes, and those in need of comfort. Thank you in advance for considering this ministry. Please reach out to Marianne at mverner@stcatherinsienna.org with any questions.

The live-stream for the Mass of Christian Burial for Charles Massey will begin at 10:55 am this morning here on our website (https://www.stcatherinesiena.org/mass), on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/stcatherinesiena), and on our YouTube channel (https://bit.ly/stcatherinesienaYouTube). The funeral will be recorded and the video will be available to view in all three locations following the Mass. To read Charles's Obituary, please visit https://www.langelands.com/obituary/Charles-Massey or click on the article title. Please continue to keep Charles's family, his friends, and all who loved Charles in your thoughts and prayers!