PARISH STRUCTURE FOR SAINT ANDRE BESSETTE PARISH 

Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth

Fall River - Enfield - Middle Musquodoboit

  

Named after St. Brother André of Montreal, who was canonized in 2010, our parish strives to follow the way of Jesus Christ, with an emphasis on the virtues present in the life of our parish patronal saint: hospitality, care of the sick and prayer. 

 

THREE CHURCHES:

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Our parish has three churches where we strive to fulfill this vision.                

• Holy Cross Church, Middle Musquodoboit

• St. Bernard Church, Enfield

• St. Rose of Lima Church, Fall River

 

PARISH LEADERSHIP TEAM

 

The Pastor has a team of parishioners with diverse gifts to assist in the day-to-day operation of the parish.  The Leadership Team is appointed by the Pastor following prayer/consultation with parishioners and following the direction of the Archbishop.  In collaboration with the Pastor, the team meets regularly (currently bi-weekly) to discuss the many and varied temporal and spiritual matters affecting the parish.  The Leadership Team may establish committees responsible for matters that affect the mission of the whole parish (e.g. Care and Companionship Ministry, Communication, etc.). The present Leadership Team is:

Shannon McDonald

Phil Francis

Elaine Morrow

John Prim

Deacon Dan Bowden

Father Gerald David

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FINANCE COUNCIL

 

The Finance Council assists the pastor with financial matters in the parish.  It is composed of members from all three of our churches. Members are:

Joe Wilkie, Chairperson  

Robin Feetham 

Jack Brown

Maxine Thibault

Sarah Prim

Paul Miller

This council follows the universal church law (Canon Law) and particular law (Archdiocesan policy) for financial matters in the parish.

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PASTORAL COUNCIL

 

The Pastoral Council is a group selected from parishioners to assist the pastor in visioning the life of the parish.  It assists the pastor in implementing the pastoral priorities of Archbishop Brian Dunn, who has asked for the following four areas to receive attention going forward:  

1. Evangelization: “What programs do we have in place? What should we work towards? Who are we trying to reach? “

2. Homelessness: “Are we close to the poor and the marginalized in our communities?  Is there an opportunity to coordinate with existing programs?”

3. Strengthen our Parish Identity: “What have we learned so far? What holds us together? How can we provide an opportunity to gather information from and listen to our three church communities?

4. Faith Formation: How are our liturgies being supported? "What opportunities are we providing for learning about our faith?"

 

The Pastoral Council ensures that the various committees, councils, organizations, teams, are working in consort with the vision for our parish, always keeping in mind the mandate of our mission statement. The council is presently engaged in formulating a mission statement as well as a parish logo, which will help describe the vision and the mission of St. André Bessette Parish. The Pastoral Council works in close association with the Parish Leadership Team and Financial Council. The membership of our Pastoral Council meets the third Tuesday of the month, unless otherwise noted. Members are:

Annette Lewis, Chairperson

Carol McAllister, Secretary

Susan Garden

Neil Daigle

John Tilley

Pat Clahane

Father Gerald David

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they work together/close association/

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PROPERTY MAINTENANCE COMMITTEE

 

Given our large parish territory (almost an hour’s drive from St. Rose to Holy Cross) it makes sense for our parish to have a group of people in each church to attend to local matters, particularly when it comes to ensuring the proper maintenance of our churches and other buildings.

St. Rose of Lima: Tony Chesal, Barry Irvine, Frank Carmichael, Coral?_____________

St. Bernard: Richard Sherman (formation of committee in progress)

Holy Cross: John Tilley and Hubert Collier

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WAYS & MEANS COMMITTEE

Sarah White, Co-chairperson

Paul Miller, Co-chairperson

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SPIRITUALITY AND LITURGY COMMITTEE

Each church has members responsible for the planning and execution of various liturgies, with a particular reference toward our Sunday celebrations. Therefore, the membership is made up of lead people from each church community. We are presently working on forming subcommittees who will assist each church in preparing for liturgies.

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CEMETERY COMMITTEE (St. Bernard and Holy Cross)

Two of our three churches have a cemetery. Lenny Gallant is the main contact for St. Bernard Cemetery. Contact __________________ for Holy Cross Cemetery.

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SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CHARITY

 

HOSPITALITY COMMITTEE

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FAMILY FAITH FORMATION

Under the direction of Maria McDonald, there are a number of people assisting in various areas of family faith formation and sacramental preparation.

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ORGANIZATIONS

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KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS

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CATHOLIC WOMEN'S LEAGUE

 

PARISH STAFF

 

Our parish has the following employed staff persons who serve the needs of the parish in accordance with their gifts and talents in the ministries entrusted to them.

 

Fr. Gerald David, Pastor

Deacon Daniel G. Bowden

Claire Guyette, Secretary, St. Bernard Office

Lynette McMullin, Secretary, St. Rose of Lima Office

Maria McDonald, Coordinator, Faith Formation

Susan Burke, Parish Bookkeeper

 

This is a brief synopsis of the structures we have in our new parish of Saint André Bessette.  All the groups mentioned above strive to work together to build the kingdom of God in this portion of the Lord’s vineyard. We will have at least one gathering per year of all groups in order to build relationships to help us work together better.  Pray for us that we may be faithful to what God asks of us as his beloved children in spreading the good news of Jesus Christ in our new Parish under the patronage of St. André Bessette.