Let me begin by telling you how pleased I am to have the opportunity to remain with you as your Pastor. The past months that I have spent at Our Lady of Sorrows have confirmed my knowledge of the faithfulness and vibrancy of this parish. I look forward to seeing what the Lord has in store for us as we continue to build up the Kingdom of God, strengthened by the Sacraments and propelled by our faithful witness to Christ amongst our brothers and sisters!
In recent weeks we have announced changes in our pastoral leadership, so in case you have been away from the parish, I wanted to provide everyone with an update. Father Manoj has been asked by Bishop Raica to become the Parish Administrator of Holy Spirit Parish in Winfield, as well as Holy Family in Fayette and Our Lady of Guadalupe in Haleyville. His assignment will be effective July I. As Father Manoj has been with us for almost 2 ½ years, we will miss his dedicated and joyful ministry among us as he moves to his new assignment.
Father Jacob, who came to us at the end of last year, will be assigned as Parochial Vicar of the Cathedral of Saint Paul and Chaplain of Birmingham Catholic Campus Ministry and Saint Stephen the Martyr Chapel, also effective July 1. In his short time among us, he has been devoted to his ministry at Our Lady of Sorrows while sharing his time already at Saint Paul's and Saint Stephen's.
When Father Manoj and Father Jacob take on their new assignments, our parish will be happy to welcome Father Andrew Vickery and Father Joby Thomas, CMI, as our new Parochial Vicars. Father Andrew is one the newest priests in our Diocese, having been ordained on May 30. Father Joby is a member of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate of their Saint Joseph Province in Kottayam, India. He has been assisting the northern part of our Diocese since December last year. Currently he is in residence at Saint Paul's in Athens. We will take time to give a fuller introduction of these priests when they arrive. In the meantime, we look forward to them arriving at the parish on July 1.
I also would like to inform you that, after 15 years of devoted service, Suzanne Corso has decided that it is time to retire as Director of our Parish School of Religion. Suzanne has ably and faithfully guided our program, and has assisted our children and their families to grow in their faith in and love of our Lord. While we will miss Suzanne's active role on our parish staff, she will certainly continue to be an active member of our parish. She looks forward to being able to devote more time to her husband John and their family. Her retirement will be effective July 31.
At the same time, Abbie Yow, the Administrative Assistant for our Parish School of Religion, will be taking on a teaching position at Prince of Peace Catholic School this fall. Abbie has been an indispensable part of the success of our PSR program for the past 2 years, and she and her family have been, and continue to be, involved in many aspects of our parish life. While we are sorry to lose her gifts for our PSR program, we join her in her gratitude that she has this opportunity to return to full-time classroom teaching, which she has desired to do. Abbie's last day will be June 30.
As we begin a search to fill both PSR positions, thank you for your prayers that the Lord will send us faithful laborers to continue the goodness of our Parish School of Religion. And please join me in thanking Father Manoj, Father Jacob, Suzanne, and Abbie for their gracious service to our parish family. We ask God's blessing upon them as they begin the next phase of their lives, loving and serving the Lord according to His call.
Those interested in applying for the PSR positions should submit the following:
a cover letter detailing interest in and qualifications for the position;