SE7EN DAYS chronicles different activities and events at St. Vincent de Paul Parish for each day of the week, over the duration of one month, and specifically takes place from March 3 - 30, 2003. It's not intended to give you a general idea, but a specific look at the Parish. The heart of the Parish is revealed in SE7EN DAYS and shows that everything doesn't take place behind the scenes by one or two people, but in the forefront by many dedicated individuals, or more appropriately, volunteers, who bring a level of intensity, frequency, commitment, and professionalism in all that they do, every day, day after day. Different people volunteer for different reasons, but the one thing that they all have in common is that they want to be here.

And if you're saying something similar to, "In the forefront? I didn't even know the Parish did that or offered

that service," then you're answering the question as to why SE7EN DAYS was created. And even if you know about some or all of these activities, sit back and enjoy this little snapshot of the Parish, for it is something to admire.

Please keep in mind this is not a complete list of Parish activities and events, so please continuously check the bulletin and Web site for various activities and events, as some do not occur as often as others and some are seasonal.

Note: Use the bottom scrollbar or the arrow keys on your keyboard to navigate left to right. This Web feature can be viewed at 800 x 600 screen resolution but is optimized at 1027 x 768 screen resolution.


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SE7EN DAYS was designed & developed by the Communications Commission.
(Sunday, March 9) The Communications Commission meets monthly and is responsible for producing Vincent's People (the Parish newsletter), the Parish Web site (www.stvdep.org), and serving as a PR resource for all of the other commissions. The Commission is currently working on a Parish brochure, which will be a "walking tour" of the church, highlighting all of the stain glass windows in the Church.

The Communications Commission is one of seven commissions at the Parish; also included as one of the seven commissions is the General Council, tasked with serving the parishioners, pastor, and staff by providing a central point of interaction among all commissions and to advance the mission of the Parish.

The pictures were taken on Sunday, March 9, at their monthly meeting.

The Communications Commission is made up of the following people: Shayne Adamski, David Barber, Dave Baumann, Clint Cavada, Harry Hicks, Jeanne Holle, Karyn Holm, Doreen Johnson, Leslie Linke, John Porubsky, Marybeth Sprague, Barb Wujcik, and Pedro Velez.
(Sunday, March 16) The St. Vincent Singers meet every Sunday at 4 PM before the 5 o'clock Mass and is a contemporary ensemble of both singers and instrumentalists (piano, guitar, flute, violin, etc.). The musicians explore the Church's evolving repertoire of contemporary music in the folk tradition. If you attend the 5 o'clock mass and enjoy hearing them during mass, come early and listen to them practice, and you'll see why they sound as great as they do.

The pictures were taken on Sunday, March 16, at their weekly rehearsal.

St. Vincent Singers is comprised of: Tim Lenihan (Director), Ben Alba, Lindsay Ashworth, Todd Bernier, Eileen Cahill, Mark Elder, Margaret Jungels, Maureen Misener, Bridget Nelson, Sr. Marie Orf, Jeanne Padgett, Julie Pendell, Chris Preede, Paul Ramirez, Marie Steinneford, Rob Sullivan, Monica Thorson, and Jay Venzon.
(Sunday, March 30) The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, better known as RCIA, is the name of the process that people go through when they wish to become fully initiated into the Catholic Church. That means that in the RCIA, you will find people who were raised in another faith who now wish to join the Catholic Church. You will also find people who were baptized into the Catholic community as children but have not yet received the other two Sacraments of Initiation: Eucharist and Confirmation. It's a process that lasts several months - usually beginning in October and ending with a beautiful celebration at the Easter Vigil. It's a big commitment to ask people to attend session almost every Sunday for several months, but our hope is that through this process, they are brought closer to Christ and open the pages of the next chapter of their faith journey - becoming fully initiated members of the Catholic Church.

The pictures were taken on Sunday, March 30, at one of their sessions where Fr. Mark Pranaitis gave a presentation entitled "Ethics & Morality."

Candidates from this year's class: Andrea Baker, Amy Calvanese, Jennifer Cassidy, Matthew Coleman, Brian Conover, Karen D’Andrea, Kathleen Defever, Mike Demers, Tami DenOtter, Dominic DiMaggio, Michael Gentry, Erin Graham, Lisa Hall, Chris Harrison, Erica Helms, Alice Hoalst, Margaret Johnson, Sharyn Kauffman, Sarah Klett, Chip Neely, Danny Nicholas, Juan Pretorius, Christopher Rowney, Phillip Swigon, Melissa Wagner, Clare Whipple, Lucie White, Rebecca Wing, and Katie Wolfley.

Catechumens (those who were baptized at the Easter Vigil) from this year's class: Josh Andersson, Ryan DeVore, Melissa McCowan, Ted Phillips, Chris Saam, Allison Skolnik, Chris Sleggs, Eddy Sookswat, Leandra Solomon, Lalita Turner, Camille Wilson, and Justin Webb.

(Monday, March 3) The Finance Commission meets monthly and is responsible for promoting stewardship through time, talent, and treasure, establishing and monitoring the Parish budget, and more recently, led the Capital Campaign for our Repair and Renovation Project.

The Finance Commission is one of seven commissions at the Parish; also included as one of the seven commissions is the General Council, tasked with serving the parishioners, pastor, and staff by providing a central point of interaction among all commissions and to advance the mission of the Parish.

The pictures were taken on Monday, March 3, at their monthly meeting.

The Finance Commission is made up of the following people: Diane Abbey, Ben Alba, Brian McGill, Scott Mygind, Kevin O'Hara, Fr. Don Ours, Christian Schiller, Patrick Unzicker, and Michael Yager.

(Tuesday, March 25) The Parish volunteers at Dignity Diner, a Methodist Church at 925 W. Diversey (next to the Diversey 'L' stop), on the 1st, 4th, & 5th Tuesdays of every month, preparing and serving a meal to about 45 homeless people. The Parish is always looking for additional people to volunteer from 5:30 - 7:45 PM to help set up, cook, provide hospitality, serve, and clean up. If you are interested in volunteering at Dignity Diner, please contact the Parish Center (773) 325-8610. The pictures were taken on Tuesday, March 25, the 4th Tuesday of the month, which is a specific Tuesday of the month when the Parish volunteers.
(Wednesday, March 12) The St. Vincent Chamber Chorale meets every Wednesday between Labor Day and Memorial Day from 7:00 - 8:30 PM and sings at the 10 o'clock Mass on Sunday mornings, as well as other principle Parish liturgies. Hymnody, responses, and choral works are drawn primarily from the Church's repertoire of sacred classics and twentieth-century works.  St. Vincent Chamber Chorale is made up of the following people: Robert Beatty (Director), David Barber, Ron Birch, Adam Burczyk, Marilyn Canna, C. Carroll Cole, Jeff Fizer, Fran Jacobs, Mara Karduck, Ray Kasman, Leslie Linke, Donna McGreal, Marjorie Schaffner, Tom Scuglik, Gena Shone, Mary Tatro, Steve Vazquez, Dean Vaeth, Linda Vaeth.

The pictures were taken on Wednesday, March 12, at their weekly rehearsal.

(Wednesday, March 19) Sacramental Marriage is a gift of witness for the church, as husband and wife are a gift to one another. Marriage Preparation is an ongoing process of honesty, relationship, prayer, and communication. In order to celebrate the sacrament of Marriage at St. Vincent’s, parish registration and participation are required for a period of four months. The sacrament of Marriage is scheduled and celebrated on Saturdays only at 1:00 PM or 3:00 PM. No Friday or Sunday celebrations for marriage are scheduled.

The pictures were taken on Wednesday, March 19, during a session given by Fr. Don.

(Wednesday, March 26) The Food Pantry and Sandwich Window began in 1980 in a small room in the Parish center. In June of 2002, a renovated space called the Seton Room became the storage, distribution, and hospitality center for St. Vincent's Food Pantry and Sandwich Window, serving the poor and homeless men, women, and children who come to our Parish. The renovation of this space was made possible through the many generous donations of money, time, and talent from the people of St. Vincent's.

Through the efforts of parishioner volunteers, more than 350 individuals in 250 households in our community will receive groceries from the Food Pantry, which are sorted and assembled in the Seton Room. The Food Pantry is open every Tuesday and Wednesday from 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM, every week of the year. If you would like more information and / or you're interested in volunteering at the Food Pantry, please contact the Parish Center (773) 327-1113.

The pictures were taken on Wednesday, March 26, during one of the twice weekly days of distributing food.

(Thursday, March 20) Baptism Preparation is an opportunity for parents to re-encounter the fundamentals of the Catholic Church, and as parents prepare for the baptism of their children, they are reminded that they are the first educators of their children, in the call of the Gospel and all the virtues. Parish registration is required in order to celebrate the sacrament of Baptism for infants at St. Vincent’s. Baptisms for infants are celebrated communally on the fourth Sunday of each month at 11:30 AM. A required preparation session for parents and

godparents is held each third Thursday of the month at 7:00 PM in the Parish Center. Please call Fr. Don at least six weeks prior to the desired month.

The pictures were taken on Thursday, March 20, during a session given by Fr. Don.

And as a special treat, check out these two, rare pictures of Fr. Don, taking a moment's pause during the session to give some attention to a very important individual.
(Friday, March 28) On specific Fridays during Lent, the Stations of the Cross were available for parishioners to take part in. On Friday, March 28, there was a special Stations of the Cross, which was presented by the 7th & 8th grade students in the Jr. National Honor Society from St. Philomena School.  For their presentation, two students took turns narrating while other students silently acted out the Stations of the Cross, in the dark, behind a white cloth, illuminated by a single light. The pictures were taken on Friday, March 28, during a special presentation of the Stations of the Cross.
(Saturday, March 29) The Sandwich Window and Food Pantry began in 1980 in a small room in the Parish center.  In June of 2002, a renovated space called the Seton Room became the storage, distribution, and hospitality center for St. Vincent's Sandwich Window and Food Pantry, serving the poor and homeless men, women, and children who come to our Parish. The renovation of this space was made possible through the many generous donations of money, time, and talent from the people of St. Vincent's.

During the year, parishioner volunteers will serve over 28,000 sandwiches, about 1,000 special holiday meals, and 31,000 cups of coffee from the Sandwich Window in the Seton room. During the month of April, we served 2,371 sandwiches and 255 1/2 gallons of coffee.

The Sandwich Window is open daily, Sunday through Saturday (every day of the year), from 8:30 - 10:00 AM and serves meals, consisting of sandwiches, fruit, milk, muffins, soup, and coffee, to the poor and homeless who come to our Parish each day. Every month, we prepare a special meal for our customers and they usually tie into a holiday during the month or relate to the time of year. Some of the monthly meals have included: corn beef sandwiches and shamrock cookies for St. Patrick's Day in March, BBQ pork sandwiches and chips for the 4th of July, and Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and all of the fixings for Thanksgiving. If you would like more information and / or you're interested in
volunteering at the Sandwich Window, please contact the Parish Center (773) 327-1113.

The pictures were taken on Saturday, March 29, during the daily serving of meals through the Sandwich Window.

(Saturday, March 29) On Saturday mornings from 8:30 - 9:30 AM, volunteers make sandwiches for the entire week. They will be served each morning through the Sandwich Window. The volunteers make approximately 550 sandwiches, compared to 400 a year ago. If you would like more information and / or you're interested in helping make sandwiches, please contact the Parish Center (773) 327-1113.

The pictures were taken on Saturday, March 29, during the weekly sandwich making.

(Saturday, March 29) On Saturday mornings from 9:00 - 10:00 AM, the Parish runs the One-on-One Foundation, which is group support program for people in transition to regular employment and housing. The One-on-One Foundation is an excellent program for people in transition and has been running since March, 1999, with approximately 6 participants each month. Volunteers give sessions on self-esteem, positive thinking, goals, objectives and budgeting. Upon completion of the sessions, monetary assistance is given for their security deposit once they have secured full time employment. If you would like more information and / or you're interested in volunteering for the One-On-One Foundation, please contact the Parish Center (773) 327-1113.

The pictures were taken on Saturday, March 29, during the weekly One-on-One session.

(Saturday, March 22 & 29) Interviewing People in Need - On Saturday mornings from 10:00 AM - 12 Noon, volunteers help people who need financial assistance (money for rent, utilities, medicine, etc.), clothing, information about employment, transportation, other various services, and assistance with emergencies. The program is a great resource for people in need who are getting by but need a little assistance from time-to-time; it has been running since April, 1998, with 5 - 8 participants each week coming for help. If you would like more information and / or you're interested in helping us interview people in need, please contact the Parish Center (773) 327-1113.

The pictures were taken on Saturday, March 22 & 29, during the weekly interviewing session.

Although not listed here individually, a special thank you to all of the volunteers, hundreds and hundreds of you, who give your time, talent, and treasure to the Parish. If you're interested in volunteering, please call the Parish Center (312) 327-1113. We're always looking for new faces to join us in the trenches.

A special thank you to the customers of St. Vincent's who allowed their pictures to be taken; when requested, anonymity was protected and was of the utmost importance in the production of this Web feature.

Thank you for visiting SE7EN DAYS. If you enjoyed SE7EN DAYS, please spread the work and tell your friends and family so others may see the hard work and compassion that exists at St. Vincent's, because it's a great example of the human heart at it's best.

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