LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR

Transcription

1 DOROTHY DAY OUTREACH CENTER NEWSLETTER SAINT FRANCIS Saint UNIVERSIT Francis University Summer 2016 Index Letter from the Director 1 Letter from the Director cont. DDOC New Operating Hours DDOC New Operating Hours Letter Carriers Drive 4 Trivia Night 4 Summer TAG Sale 4 Shamus Bike Ride 5 Shamus Shuffle 5 Saint Anthony s Bread 6 A Special Thank You 6 Gallitzin American Legion Helps Highmark Donation 7 Farewell to Br. Marty LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR Dear Friends of the DDOC: Peace and greetings in the Lord! For those of you who are new to the Center, my name is Br. Gabriel M. Amato, T.O.R. I am returning as Director of the DDOC. Previously I worked here as Director from January 2003 to June At that time I was asked to work in the Formation Program of our Community which I am still involved in. I will resume being at the Center with Mrs. Mary Adams who was named as A s s i s t a n t Director. Together with our wonderful volunteer staff and SFU students, we will continue the good deeds done by Brother Martin Zatsick, T.O.R., to ensure continued assistance to our brothers and sisters who may be experiencing financial difficulties. I am excited to be back as this affords me the opportunity to reconnect with all of you who have been so kind and generous in supporting the Center. Your time, gifts and donations enable us to fulfill the mission of the DDOC. As our patron Dorothy Day wrote, We live from day to day, and by the little miracles God performs in His bounty. (continue on page 2)

2 Summer 2016 LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR (cont.) If we ask our Father for bread, will He give us a stone? But ours is happiness, ours is joy, for Christ comes to us each day, not only Christmas, but each time we look into the face of our brother who is poor. Know that all of you are being kept in our prayers and we ask the Lord to bless you and your families and intentions. We sincerely thank you for all the good ways you assist us. In Christ and Saint Francis, Brother Gabriel M. Amato T.O.R. DDOC NEW OPERATING HOURS Page 2 To better serve our clients we have decided to adjust the hours of operation at the DDOC. Mondays are dedicated to administrative responsibilities so it will be closed to clients.. Paperwork, reports, answering phone messages, preparing for events, fundraisers, cleaning, etc. will be the schedule of that day. We now distribute our food on Tuesday mornings and Thursday afternoons only. An opportunity has arisen enabling us to give out fresh breads, vegetables, and fruits to our clients but they need to be distributed immediately to prevent spoilage. As a result we decided to funnel the clients to specific days and times. This allow us to be able to give them more food and without waste. On Wednesdays and Fridays clients can shop for clothing throughout our regular working day. Financial assistance, which operates from October 1 through April 1 is by appointment only. The furniture requests are given by appointment and availability only. Our mission here is very important and by adjusting our schedule we hope to better serve our clients.

3 Summer 2016 Page 3 Monday Closed all day DDOC NEW OPERATING HOURS DOROTHY DAY OUTREACH CENTER NEW HOURS OF OPERATION EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2016 Food Pantry Tuesday 9:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. To schedule call and leave a message on Monday that you will be coming on your scheduled day. Thursday 1:00 p.m. 3:30 p.m. To schedule call and leave a message on Wednesday that you will be coming on your scheduled day. Clothing Pantry Wednesday -9:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. 1:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Friday - 9:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. 1:00 p.m. 3:30 p.m. Weekends Closed Financial Assistance By appointment only Furniture By appointment only

4 Summer 2016 Page 4 LETTER CARRIERS FOOD DRIVE The postal service in Johnstown (Cambria Co.) held it s annual Letter Carriers Food Drive on Saturday, May 14, Food banks throughout the County participated and were assigned different areas of the city to pick up food left by the residents of those areas. The DDOC s designated The DDOC held it s first Trivia Night fundraiser on Saturday, April 16th at Frankies. This event was held for the students as a thank you for their help at the DDOC. The fee was $1.00 which included a area was the Westmont district. Students went door-to-door collecting food. This year was not as successful as last year due to changes in the program. Rumor has it this may our last. TRIVIA NIGHT drink and a walking taco. Each student playin received a prize. We were informed it was the largest response for a Trivia Night. Fun was had by all! We raised $ SUMMER TAG SALE Our annual summer TAG sale will be held on Saturday, July 30th from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. It will again be on the DDOC s parking lot. There will be a lot of treasures for everyone. Come one Come all!!!

5 Summer 2016 Page 5 BROTHER SHAMUS BIKE RIDE This is the fifth year for Brother Shamus s Bike Ride!! Can you believe it? What an amazing and inspirational person he is. This year the theme of his ride will be Cycling the Atlantic Coast for the Dorothy Day Outreach Center. The cycle trip will start September 9th from the Catholic Workers St. Joseph House in lower Manhattan. He hopes to finish in Sarasota, Florida approximately November 2. It is at least 1500 miles from the start. The goal this year is $45,000. We all wish him well and God Bless. Through the miles, and through the sweat and the cycling and the pedaling, at the end of the day I m doing something that the Lord is asking me to do and that is to administer to those less fortunate and that s what feeds me, Brother Shamus McGrenra, T.O.R.. SHAMUS SHUFFLE Our fourth annual Shamus Shuffle will be held on Saturday, August 27th. It will start at the Memorial Field Pavilion in Ebensburg on the Ghost Trail. The cost will be $20.00 (includes a T-shirt). You can either walk, run, or ride your bike. Hot dogs and beverages will be served at the end of the trail. Please join us for a worthy cause benefiting the Dorothy Day Outreach Center s food and financial assistance program.

6 Summer 2016 Page 2 Thank you to S & T Bank for their donation. The employees sponsored a Jeans Day and raised $ Thank you so much. God Bless you all! THANK YOU S GALLITZIN AMERICAN LEGION The Gallitzin Legion held a benefit spearheaded by Donny McAnallen and Shawn McManhon is having a food & hygiene drive for the Dorothy Day Outreach Center. It was held the entire month of June. Saint Anthony s Bread Monday, June 13th was the feast day of Saint Anthony. On this day, the DDOC distributed blessed bread to faculty, staff, and administration at SFU as well as the Fatima devotions held at Mount Assisi. This bread represents gifts given for the poor in thanksgiving to God for the blessings received through Saint Anthony s intercession. The bread was placed inside bags with medals and holy cards. Donations received amounted to $540 which will be used for our clients. Thank you to the 2016 Confirmation classes from St. Nicholas, St. Aloysius, St. Francis Xavier, St. Benedict, St. Demetrius, St. Bernard, and Queen of Peace Parishes for their contribution of $ towards our food and financial assistance programs. Thank you so much and God Bless you all! We are very grateful to them for all their efforts and the products they collected for our clients. We were certainly in need of these items.

7 Summer 2016 PAGE 7 Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield is a great supporter of the Dorothy Day Outreach Center. We are so grateful to them for caring. This year they donated $5, to the Center. It will certainly help our financial assistance HIGHMARK BLUE CROSS DONATION FAREWELL TO BROTHER MARTY program. We will be able to help less fortunate families in need of food, clothing, furniture, utilities, rent, etc. Thank you so much and God Bless You All. To all who knew our friend and Director of the DDOC we want to inform you that he has accepted a transfer to Queen of Peace Friary in Pittsburgh. His last day at the DDOC was May 13th and he started his new position on June 1st. Many of you had the opportunity to say farewell but for those of you who did not his new address is, Br. Martin Zatsick T.O.R., Queen of Peace Friary, 5324 Carnegie Street, Pittsburgh PA, We wish him all the best and thank him for his kind heart, wonderful dinners, luncheons, and fellowship. May the Lord bless him in his new ministry. Br. Martin Zatsick T.O.R.

8 Summer 2016 Page 8 DONATION FORM Dorothy Day Outreach Center Form Name Address City Zip Code Phone Number Address Donation Amount: Other $1000 $500 $250 $100 $50 Other Please make checks payable to: Dorothy Day Outreach Center Mail this form with your check to: PO Box 600 Loretto PA Dorothy Day Outreach Center