Mission is getting religious education literally on the road

At St. Paul's mission church in Rock City Falls, catechists in the faith formation program are getting ready to purchase something they've waited a long time for: a mobile library unit.

According to Lori Fitzgerald, a teacher, the purchase will allow the growing catechetical program to expand its resources.

Even though it may sound like a simple purchase, for the staff in the mission of St. Joseph's parish in Greenfield Center, it is a "grant" accomplishment that holds special meaning.

Granted

The staff applied for a grant of $4,000 from the Albany diocesan Office of Evangelization and Catechesis (OEC) last year because, Mrs. Fitzgerald said, they were in dire need of the library unit.

Last year, the religious education program nearly tripled in attendance. The mission anticipates even more growth in the coming years as people from the nearby communities of Ballston Spa, Milton, Middle Grove, Galway, Broadalbin and Saratoga Springs join families from Rock City Falls and Greenfield in attending services and programs there.

Thanks to the success of the diocesan Capital Campaign, the OEC received grant money to dole out to parishes to enable them to supplement their faith formation programs.

Volunteer effort

"All of our staff members are volunteers," Mrs. Fitzgerald said, citing the faith formation director, Brian Merchant; the youth ministry leader, Marie Thorn; seven catechists; three regular class assistants; and a sacramental minister who assists in the high school program.

"People here are very involved in our program. I guess it has a lot to do with being a small parish and a rural one," she added, noting that parents volunteer for anything and everything.

"The mobile library will not only hold our resource material but also serve as a library for all of our parishioners," she continued. "There will be videos, books, tapes, CDs and magazines available for all parishioners to borrow.

More to come

The grant was awarded in two increments, half now and half next year. This year's grant will purchase the mobile unit; help to develop inventory, cataloguing and refurbishing of current materials (such as book repair); and establish a "loan-out" system of current materials.

If the parish qualifies next year, the final installment of the grant will provide for the purchase of audiovisual equipment, additional CDs, a cassette player, more books and periodicals.

According to the OEC, the grants were provided to parishes as seed money for "new initiatives and new positions" in faith formation programs throughout the Diocese.

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