What Needs To Be Done

As you know, I was not expecting a transfer. After it came, I began to think of all the things that still need attention. Of course, each parishioner needs attention along with all of the daily tasks within any given parish. However, this is a list of programs, activities, projects that are, I believe, needed for each parish. I will start the list today and probably update it in the days to come. These items are not listed in order of importance.

BOTH PARISHES

• Follow up on the great work done by the census takers during our parish census.
• Further exploration into what resources, especially people, can be shared by both parishes.
• Improved Faith Formation for our children.  One big problem is parents sending their children to faith formation only for First Confession, First Communion, and Confirmation.  Thus, we are creating a huge generation of children who are less-informed Catholics and whose knowledge of the faith is, at best, very weak.  Our current model of providing faith formation and the current level of parental support and participation are not adequate for the eventual full and active participation of current and future families if the fullness of our Catholic faith.
• An organized program of faith formation for those who home-school their children.  The pastor shoud require a defined curriculum of studies and texts especially in those years when children are prepared for Reconciliation, Eucharist, and Confirmation.
• An organized outreach to yound adults within the parishes.
• Youth Ministry that goes beyond faith formation classes.
• Campus Ministry participants who are willing to reach out and invite other university students to participate in the life of campus ministry.
• A more organized outreach to the homebound especially in bringing them Holy Communion.
• A Parish Nurse Porgram

ST. MARY'S

• Finish the handicapped lift
• A parish center
  • A separate building
  • Sell the rectory since the offices could be put in the parish center.  The rectory is much too big for just one priest to live there if the pastor were to live in Potsdam.
• Some roof repair.
• The bells in the bell tower ring for the Angelus, but they do not work properly when we want to ring them at funerals and other special events.
  
• The stairs to the vault at the cemetery need to be replaced or another form of access to the vault is required.

ST. PATRICK'S

• Cemetery Fence
• Drainage around the rectory and the church
• Some of the sliding door frames are rotted out and need repair.