Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church

* Celebrate our Parish Feast Day and Holy Day of Obligation: Immaculate Conception, December 8. Vigil Masses at 6pm on Wednesday evening and Masses throughout day on Thursday, December 8 at 6:30am, 9am,Noon, 6pm and 7:30pm (bilingual).

* There will be no Religious Education Classes on December 8 in observance of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Classes will resume on Monday, December 12 as regularly scheduled.

* Handcrafts from the Holy Land will be on sale after all Masses December 10 and 11. A perfect Christmas gift from Bethlehem will complete your shopping list for Christmas giving and help people in great need in the land where Jesus was born.

* Complete some of your holiday shopping by purchasing SCRIP gift cards! Set up an account today and earn rebates for HCA. Email Torie Baldwin at  scripcoordinator@holycrossweb.com for the school enrollment code.

* Subscribe to the Saint Mary website, stmaryfred.org and receive important updates via email. The subscription box is on the homepage. Enter your email address, click “subscribe.”

* The second collection this weekend is for the Parish Building Fund. To explain to newer parishioners, and as a reminder for all of us: this monthly collection is a commitment we made seven years ago when we began the renovation of our church and all buildings on the parish property. Rather than have a capital campaign with a five-year pledge, we decided to pay off the debt with a $48K monthly mortgage payment over the next ten years. So far we have paid about $900K thanks to this monthly collection. An easy way to remember to help with this is by giving electronically through Faith Direct. Thank you for your generosity.

* Please join us Tuesday evening, November 22 for our annual Ecumenical Thanksgiving Prayer Service this year being hosted at St. Mary. Pastor Larry Davies from Fredericksburg United Methodist Church will preside. All are welcome.

* Don’t forget we have one, very special  Thanksgiving Day Mass at 10am when we all gather and give thanks to God. As a sign of our gratitude we have a Food  Collection for the Fredericksburg Food Bank. Bring bags of nonperishable foods, keep them with you in the pews and at the Offertory everyone brings the food forward and it is placed all around the altar as our offering. There will be no 6:30-9am Masses on Thanksgiving.

* Our annual State LARCUM Conference will be held on Dec 2-3 in Ashland, Virginia on the campus of Randolph-Macon College. Dr. Joseph Small will speak on the the need for a proper response to the Reformation today. Registration is still open, forms are in the parish office.

* The CCW will hold its annual Mini Bazaar on Sunday December 4, 8am until Noon. Stop by and pick up a few last minute stocking stuffers!

* Parish directories have arrived! Please stop by the parish office after 2pm Monday–Friday to pick up your copy. The 2016 Parish Directories are available to those individuals and families who participated in the program.

* Saint Mary Preschool Open House is today in the Parish Life Center, 9:30am to Noon. Please stop by and say hello.

* Holy Cross Academy Open House is this coming Tuesday, November 15, from 9-10am in the school library.

* Please join us for our monthly Taizé Prayer Service this Monday, November 14, at 8:15pm. Now in our 9th year, we have met each month to pray for Christian unity in our community and in the world. All Christians are warmly invited; invite your friends!

* Second collection this weekend is for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. Our diocese retains 25% of the collection to fight poverty right here in the diocese. Please donate prayerfully and generously. More information is available at povertyusa.org.

* St. Mary Adult Choir will be offering a free organ concert, Friday, November 18 at 8pm in the Church. Please join us!

* Parish directories have arrived! Please stop by the parish office after 2pm Monday–Friday to pick up your copy. The 2016 Parish Directories are available to those individuals and families who participated in the program.

* Don’t forget we have one, very special Thanksgiving Day Mass at 10am when we all gather and give thanks to God. As a sign of our gratitude we have a Food Collection  for the Fredericksburg Food Bank. Bring bags of nonperishable foods, keep them with you in the pews and at the Offertory everyone brings the food forward and it is placed all around the altar as our offering. There will be no 6:30-9am Masses on Thanksgiving.

* The Health Ministry is working with Walgreen’s Pharmacy Department to provide flu shots for St. Mary Parish families. They will be here on November 6 in Room 100 of the Parish Life Center to provide the flu vaccine to adults, including the high dose for those over 65 and children 7 years and older.

* This year our Teaching Masses will be held on Wed, Nov. 9 at 5pm and on Thur, Nov. 10 at 6:30pm. All Religious Education students are expected to attend one of these Masses.

* An Emergency Preparedness Fair will be held in the Parish Life Center on Saturday, November 12, from 10am until 1pm. Come and meet local Emergency and First Responders. The event was organized as a Girl Scout Gold Award.

* St. Mary Preschool Open house will be held next weekend in the St. Mary Preschool, (Parish Life Center), next Sunday, November 13 from 9am until Noon, Please stop by and meet our wonderful teachers and learn more about our program.

* Please join us for our monthly Taizé Prayer Service this Monday, November 14, at 8:15pm. Now in our 9th year, we have met each month to pray for Christian unity in our  community and in the world. All Christians are warmly invited; invite your friends!

* St. Mary Adult Choir will be offering a free organ concert, Friday, November 18 at 8pm in the Church. Please join us!

* The second collection this weekend is for the Retirement Fund for Religious. We are asked to “Give to those who have given a lifetime.” Checks should be made payable to Saint Mary Catholic Church. To learn how your gift helps, visit retiredreligious.org

* Parish directories have arrived! Please stop by the parish office after 2pm Monday–Friday to pick up your copy. The 2016 Parish Directories are available to those individuals and families who participated in the program.