IMMACULATE CONCEPTION PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL

Minutes from the February 15, 2001 meeting

Attending: Fr. Hanley, Fr. Ouellette, Fr. Jim, Donna Rogers, ]an Sandberg, Susan Kay, Susan Hurton, lane Gilmore, Jim Loughran, Claire Couillard, Pat Vanderpot, Carolyn Gregoire

Church repairs: Repairs were finished today on Fayette St. (Thurs.). Fr. Hanley will meet with Mr. Guthrie on Friday to determine if the church can open for the weekend. (post note--the upstairs church was able to open) Work will start in the spring to reconstruct the pinnacles. Fr. Hanley signed a $340,000 promissory note as a first installment to pay for the work done. The Demoulas Foundation gave us a $25,000 grant to help pay for this specific work and also our share of the Archdiocese Capital Campaign will help to fund this project. While we were discussing the repairs, Susan Kay asked if when talking with the architects, could we see if there is a way to make our space more handicapped accessible?

Stewardship: Fr. Hanley, due to the repairs and other matters, has not had time to ask anyone specifically to be on the stewardship commission, so this is on hold for the moment.

Lenten Plans:

• Mass schedule for Ash Wednesday: 7:30 am, 9 am (school), 12 noon, 7 pm, all held at IC upper church. We may have stations of the cross in the afternoon as well as the usual evening.
• Palm Sunday morning: Family Catechesis--"Holy Week Lessons", weave palms, end with "jellybean prayer."
• April 11th, Wednesday of Holy Week, we would like to have a parish penance service, it was noted that for it to be well attended, perhaps the Liturgy committee could be asked to start planning and publicizing it. Fr. Ouellette asked about combining the penance service with a healing service to draw more people to it--everyone thought it was a wonderful idea.

Other Info:

• Jack McNamee Sr.'s family has made a memorial gift in his memory, which consists of a funeral set (chasible, stoll, and pall), all an Irish green color with the Celtic Cross.
• Fr. Hanley's knee replacement surgery is scheduled for Tuesday Feb. 20 at 1 pm. He expects to he at Sts. Memorial 4-5 days, than Salem Rehab 1-2 weeks, then Tewksbury, to continue his recovery.
• Bill Collins of the Greater Lowell Voke organizes a mass in memory of his wife honoring the patron saint of cancer Saint Peregrine. It will be held Wed. May 2 at the 12 noon mass.
• There will not be a meeting in March due to Fr. Hanley's surgery, and the April meeting has been changed to Monday April 2, 2001.