St. Patrick's Altar Society
March 2015 Meeting Minutes Attendance: 29 members
March's St. Patrick's Altar Society meeting in the gym opened with the members singing the Prayer to St. Patrick. The minutes from February were read and approved. The Treasurer's February report was distributed to the members and approved. Fr. Schweiger was absent, so Mary Jo L. provided updates on the construction of the new church.
For the International Commission, Pat W. requested that we have a box to collect used eyeglasses. It was recommended by the members that we wait until we are in our new church building since space is limited while we are having Mass in the gym. For the Legislative Commission, Debbie W. provided publications from the Legislature with a roster, phone numbers, committees, etc... for those interested. She also reviewed a couple of bills that are currently being discussed in the Legislature.
A count of approximately 1,400 Best Choice labels was shared with the group. The small, ornate cross that had been in the sacristy for years was taken to a shop in Omaha by Betty Z. and restored. The cost for the restoration was $335. If Father thinks the cross will be used in the new church, the society will vote on whether to fund this restoration. A couple of the ladies that had volunteered for the fundraising opportunity at the Lancaster Event Center monitoring bid sheets shared their experiences. The society had 9 volunteers and received $100 per volunteer, which was a great opportunity. The Society is hoping the opportunity will be available again next year. It was suggested that the church cleaning be assigned to families, not just the women of the households. The members approved of the idea of listing the families in the bulletin for the weekly church cleaning assignments. Due to the lack of meeting space, the members approved of holding a regular meeting in May instead of the normal Mother's Banquet during the May meeting. Carnations will be sold after Masses on Mother's Day. A sign-up sheet will be routed at the April meeting.
The members were notified that Fr. Schweiger will be celebrating his 20th anniversary in the priesthood later this Spring. A motion was made and approved to purchase a new Alb for Father as a gift. Another motion was made and approved to have a Mass said for Monsignor Hintz and to purchase a memorial brick for him for his years of the service to the parish. The brick will contain his name and the years that he served as pastor of St. Patrick's. The members then wrapped silverware for the up-coming St. Patrick's Day festival.