Houlton Council of Catholic Women
by Los Downing
Houlton Council of Catholic Women met in the parish center at St. Mary of the Visitation Church for its October 4 meeting. Deacon Albert Burleigh and 20 Council members were present.
Co-president Mary Grant was in attendance to conduct the meeting. Reports were given by secretary Jane Stile, treasurer Bernette Roach and Lois Downing read correspondence. Bernette will send the Seminarian Fund to the state Council and the financial report will be filed for audit.
Margaret Casey will research purchasing chafing dishes and will purchase them for future use. Co-president Mary will attend the October 23 Maine Diocesan Council of Catholic Women Woman’s Spirituality Morning in Augusta. Other members may attend, if they so desire. Lynnette Dobbs will place the information for the Year in Review into the booklets.
Persons of the Amish group picked up rummge sale items for their missions Saturday, October 2. The rummage ale was a huge success. Southern Aroostook School District has a project called Sharing the Warmth and much of the clothing was given to this project.
Rummage sale volunteers acknowledged were Rev. David Raymond, Shirley Reardon, Marie McAfee, Pam Cowperthwaite, Linda Schools, Julie Quint, Bud Reid, Judy Reid’s two sons-in-law, Judy’s daughter Angel, Shirley Barker, Alice Fann, David Grant, Sally Fitzpatrick, Agnes Banas, Julie Peters, Cory Ardell, Barbara Spellman, Steve DiMarco, and the Youth Ministry and their parents. Food was provided by Bunny Tidd, Jane Stile, Ethel Schools, David Grant and Margaret Casey. Council extends a heartfelt thanks to everyone who played a role in the success of the sale.
Co-president Mary has been receiving e-mail from the state and national groups. Those interested please let Mary know and she will forward the mail.
A community and parish harvest dinner will be offered Sunday, November 7, following the 11 o’clock Mass. On the menu is chicken pot pie, prepared by the local Knights of Columbus with help and guidance from Margaret Casey. HCCW ladies are asked to provide pies for dessert and a sign-up sheet was distributed for this purpose.
For those who wanted Cruz-Cruz’s address, it is: 159 North Davis, El Paso, Texas 79007.
A monetary gift will be sent to Houlton ACAP Head Start for Christmas gifts, since we are not sponsoring the Giving Tree. The gift will be directed to Bethany Callnan, an employee of Head Start, familiar with the needs of the children. Another gift will be sent to the Youth Ministry to be used for Journey Retreat Nov. 5-7.
Nov. 13 is the date for the Christmas Craft Fair. Molly Bailey with a few other ladies from Council will be organizing the fair. Members are expected to receive a phone call regarding the fair.
Betty Ann Childers gave a review on the pilgrimage sponsored by Parish Life Commission. Betty told us that 49 men and women including Father Dave and Deacon Al; the group boarded a Cyr Bros. bus, and rode to Northern Maine and toured six churches with Father Dave as tour guide. Lunch was in one of the church halls and dinner was in a Presque Isle restaurant. Another tour is being considered for 2011.
Birthdays and anniversaries were recognized. Favorable comments were made on the article of Rita McDade and her mother, Monique Beaulieu who celebrated her 100th birthday this year.
October is the month of the Rosary. Lynnette Dobbs crafted many types of rosaries and some were displayed at the hall. Lynnette gave us a presentation with help from Bernette about the rosary and it was very interesting.
Deacon Al spoke on the funeral Mass for Rev. Brian Blanchette, a Houlton native who died recently. Twenty-five priests from various churches attended his funeral Mass, celebrated by the Most Rev. Richard Malone, bishop of the diocese of Maine. Deacon Al also gave the blessing before we partook of the lovely meal prepared by the October committee..
The door prize was won by Betty Ann Childers; she also won a vase including a gladioli, grown and donated by Jane Mitchell.
The date for the next meeting is uncertain, so members are to please watch the church bulletin.
Ricker Rumblings
By Lois Downing
Another Sunday and at 6 p.m. it’s totally dark outside. With the change in time coming up soon, it will be darker outside and earlier. Sign of winter, snow, ice, wind, and hazards. Get ready, folks.
Martin Thibodeau has another week in Maine, so he advised me. Martin is enjoying his visit, seeing friends, working with Mike and Charlene and doing other activities. He will visit with his son and family in Blue Hill and then they will drive him to the airport for Florida. Muriel is getting lonesome, he says. Martin lives in the popular “The Villages,” where there are a total of 52 swimming pools, various greens for golfing and other things to do.
Lavina Byron has a collection of family pictures and snapshots on her door. Nice to see old photos. Congratulations to Marina DiMarco, a good student who was commended by the faculty at Houlton High School recently. Her father, Steve DiMarco, is our custodian at St. Mary of the Visitation Church.
Yvonne Blake of Lee Apartments had a recent accident causing stitches on her leg, I believe. She is okay but Yvonne has had a series of accidents. Good luck, Yvonne.
I attended the funeral of my sister-in-law, Mavis Phelan, at Holy Rosary Church in Caribou Tuesday of last week. Her brother, Paul Phelan, accompanied me and spent two nights at Ricker Plaza. He returned to Westbrook on Thursday.
The Canadians observed their Thanksgiving last week. The stores on this side were reportedly busy.
Jeff Thibodeau is home from Paris—France that is. I haven’t seen him yet to pick up my souvenir! Carolyn Carmichael came through fine from her surgery in Bangor. Word has it that she will be home soon and that is good news. She is missed, especially by Paul!
Rita McDade notified me of Sister Edward Mary Kelleher’s retirement. Sister Edward Mary was principal at Houlton’s St. Mary’s School, now defunct. Many of us will remember her. Sister Edward Mary has served as Principal of Catherine McAuley High School (in the Portland area). Rita was a graduate of this Catholic school.
The Bible verse is taken from Galatians 3:27.28: “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
On a funnier note, there is the man who wanted to give his wife a special gift for her birthday and asked her what she wanted—she told him, “Oh just something with diamonds.” She got a pack of cards!!
Have a wonderful week—keep warm and healthy.
Island Falls Happenings
Now that cooler weather is here many are closing up their summer cottages and leaving for the winter. Martin and Doris Pankratz have returned to their home in Manhattan, Kan., with a few stops along the way to visit with friends and relatives.
I will miss her during the winter, as we were swimming partners during the summer. Mation and Don Burton, former residents of the area who spend each summer at their cottage on Mattawamkeag Lake, have returned to their home in Rancho Cordova, Calif. and always look forward to returning in June. And Jane and Dean Fitzgerald are now at their home in Millinoket after spending a busy summer at their cottage on Pleasant Pond. Have been busy working on clearing my flower beds of the now frostbitten marigolds and digging up my glads to store for the winter. Haven’t seen any red squirrels around my feeders yet and no gray squirrels, either.
Last year had quite a collection of the two species eating all the sunflower seeds and probably storing them away, too. Have been leaf-collecting for my neighbors while the weather has been fairly good. Use my lawn mower with the leaf-collecting attachment and in no time the leaves are on the mulch pile. Been keeping an eye out for any deer to show up but no luck so far—-been about two weeks since they last appeared.
TOPS ME 0233, HOULTON
by Lois Downing
Take Off Pounds Sensibly Chapter 0233 of Houlton met at the Aldergate building on High Street for its Friday, October 14 meeting.
Eighteen ladies including five KOPS (Keep Off Pounds Sensibly) were weighed.
We recited the Halo story and then the traditional pledges were given by members.
Leader Joyce Estey was present and Elinor Harvey greeted the women and signed us in. Reports were given by Joanne Scott and Lois Downing.
Loser of the week was Linda Bartlett with Lois Downing as runner-up. Donna Parent, in charge of the skinny dish, collected money for the fund raiser and Linda Bartlett’s number was the winner.
Linda Bartlett led us in several minutes of exercises, always a favorite.For the walking contest, Charlotte Marley, captain, reported 446 miles and Barbara Grant’s group was 229, with not all the walkers’ miles counted. The contest is not at an end as yet.
Joyce presented secretary Lois Downing with a packet of notes containing complimentary statements members wrote about Lois. Lois thanked her—the notes were written for a recent contest.
One of the members brought in many pictures containing snapshots of TOPS chapters, including 0233 and they were distributed to the members for identification and review. Some were “before and after’’ shots.
Melva Folsom presented the weekly program, taken from the October 2010 issue of TOPS magazine and written by TOPS’ medical spokesperson, Nicholas (“Dr. Nick”) Yphgantides, M.D., M.P.H. The topic was “What the heath is going on…with all these weight-loss gimmicks and potions?” “Dr. Nick’s” excess weight and poor fitness led him to discover and now teaches meaningful and lasting weight loss. It was very “enlightening” with his views: you will have to change your eating habits; you will have to find ways to exert yourself and burn calories; you will have to learn to eat for the right reasons; you will have to plan on committing six to 18 months to reaching your weight goals and you’ll have to devote a lifetime to maintain them. All this can be accomplished by making the right changes and sticking to them. Learn and accomplish your goals. You can do it by making a plan today.
Some of the program was left for remarks about the recent rally in Presque Isle.
For more information about TOPS 0233 of Houlton, you can call Betty Ivey at 532-9653 or Charlotte Ivey at 757-8483 or any of the other members.
Weigh-in time is 8-8:45; the meeting starts at 9 o’clock (every Friday unless otherwise specified) and usually ends an hour later. See you at TOPS—it is a friendly group.
Sherman Seniors gather
On Monday, Oct. 11, the Sherman Senior Citizens Club went on a special outing to view the colorful fall foliage along the way from Sherman as far as Bar Harbor. What a beautiful day we had chosen to make such a trip by van, driven by Mary Atkinson.
The first stop was to eat lunch at the Brewer Weathervane Restaurant, after which we motored on to Bar Harbor where we were driven to the top of Mount Cadillac to view the magnificent panorama, driving home as darkness set in.
Thank you, Mary, for your expert maneuvering of that conveyance!
Present were Fred and Annie Atkinson, Esther Greenier, Bonita Staples, Linniea Perry, June Gagnon, Donna Grass, Joan O’Roak, Sylvia Lilley and our driver, Mary Atkinson. Our next regular meeting will be Oct. 20.
