News - October 2018

You are invited to gather at St. James Cathedral (910 Marion St., Seattle) on Thursday, November 8 at 5:30pm for a special Mass in memory of the men and women who died on the streets, in shelters or hospitals, or by violence in our community this past year. Please join to honor their memory, to celebrate their lives, and to pray for them. A Simple reception will follow. All are welcome to bring winter hats, gloves, and scarves to be distributed to those in need.

Highlighting the sacredness of human life, the Catholic Bishops of Washington State issued a statement today endorsing Initiative 1639 on gun violence prevention.  The Bishops acknowledged the importance of individual liberties such as gun ownership, while pointing out that the U.S. Catholic Church has long supported reasonable measures to ensure a higher level of public safety.  Click above for more details.

Right now, your members of Congress are evaluating the funding levels for critical accounts in the FY19 budget that support migrants and refugees around the world. The U.S. Catholic Bishops oppose cuts to foreign aid and want to ensure that Congress is funding these lifesaving programs at the highest levels possible.  Your voice makes a difference. Raise it today!  Click above for a pre-written, editable message.

One of OLG’s RSVP groups has been working with the non-profit ‘Communities in School’ on site at Denny International Middle School over the past 4 years. The program is starting a new initiative to provide workshops for parents and students.  Do you have a special skill or interest you could share with a diverse group of parents?  This onetime, 2 hour-commitment will be held sometime in the coming months on a date that works for your schedule. Click above for more details.  

As part of our recent Youth Migrant Project trip, OLG teens collected donations for migrant families in the Skagit Valley.  One recipient, Catholic Community Services’ Farmworker Center asked us to thank the OLG community, saying, “Please give our warmest appreciation to the entire community; especially the youth…[T]hank you for your generous support of the work that the CCS Farmworker Center is doing here in Skagit Valley.  We could not do the work we are doing without the support of parishes around the Archdiocese.  May God continue to bless abundantly the faith community at Our Lady of Guadalupe.” 

Each Lent, parishes across the Archdiocese participate in Catholic Relief Services’ Rice Bowl program.  This year, through the generosity of parishioners like you, the Archdiocese collected over $550,000!  This is the highest donation total ever for our Archdiocese and one of the largest in the country!  75% goes to CRS’ life-saving programs overseas while 25% (over $137,500) will be distributed to hunger-alleviation programs in our area.  Over 280 grants were given out locally in 2018, including two for our parish garden and meal program. Click above to learn more.

This Sunday, October 14, Blessed Oscar Romero will be canonized a saint alongside Pope Paul VI.  He is the first saint from El Salvador.  Learn more about his life and the current reality in El Salvador by clicking above.

In 2016, Fr. Jack and a delegation of OLG parishioners volunteered at the Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, TX.  This Center, run by Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, ministers to asylum seekers from Central America.  They are currently 1 of 4 sites receiving immigrant refugee families that are being reunified after separation at the border.  They have received hundreds of families and are in need of assistance for expenses to bring loving care to these children and parents. Click above for more details.

Franco was born in the Congo and acted as the middleman for people selling gold. Franco's manager and others broke into his home and used a machete to cut his left hand and scrape the right side of his face. They told Franco to give them all his belongings and then burned his house to the ground. Franco and his family fled to a refugee camp in Uganda where he applied for refugee status. He now works at the Nashville Zoo to support his daughters. Click above to learn more.