We Are Truly Blessed
Dear Parishioners,
God blessed Sacred Heart Parish in many ways over the past year. We had more baptisms last year than any year during the last ten. There were fifty people who became Christian during the year. This is only one example of how our parish is making disciples. We not only baptize people, but we also provide sound catechetical programs that educate people about their faith. There were more children in our religious education programs than we had in any year during my time as your pastor. We continue to offer other educational programs as well.
We had a wonderful year financially. There is a complete financial report in this Heartbeat. I feel strongly that transparency in financial matters is important. If you ever have questions, feel free to speak to any member of our Finance Committee and we will do our best to explain the data in the financial report.
As you can see, we had a great year with our offertory collections. This was partly due to our His Heart, Our Hands initiative. Our savings increased. Our endowment grew.
Factoring in donations from the three Capital Campaigns: the Centennial Campaign, combined with the Sacred Heart and Seton School TTT Campaigns, Sacred Heart friends and parishioners raised nearly $4.4 M for capital needs in the last eight years. That is amazing!
One area I would like to explain more fully is the debt we still have on the St. Damien Center. At the end of construction in the spring of 2023 the cost was $2.487 M for the building, which includes inflation and all the fixtures (tables, chairs, appliances, sound system, etc.). Our fundraising has provided $2.248 M. Currently, our remaining debt is just $239,000 without interest. It seems very possible that this debt could be retired in the next year. This is a wonderful accomplishment!
I thank you for your many sacrifices. We can all be proud of the improvements that were made to our campus. The physical improvements led to an increase in parish activities. We are good stewards. I am sure we all pray for the blessings to continue.
May St. Damien, Mother Seton and all the saints pray for us,
Fr. Mark