Congratulations to Father Alex who celebrated the 12th anniversary of his Ordination to the Priesthood on June 3, 2018. We are blessed to have you and grateful for all you do!

St. William and IHM are hosting our Annual Ladies High Tea on Saturday, July 14th from 1PM to 3:30PM in the Sr. Terry Martin Fellowship Hall at IHM. Click heading for full details.

Fr. Lesak will be conducting a Day of Recollection on Saturday, June 2nd at IHM. The Day begins with Mass at 8AM and is open to all members of St. William and IHM. There are sign up sheets in the Commons at St. William and in the Narthex at IHM. Refreshments after Mass and a lunch are included at no charge.

The following parishioners are running for 3 vacancies on the Pastoral Council: Bob Adams, Donnine Kubicek, Marie Keffer, Tim (Tiny) Thompson. Please take a moment to review their bio’s on the easel board in the commons. Elections will take place the weekend of June 2 and June 3 at Mass. Congratulations and good luck to each of the candidates, and thank you for sharing your time, talent and treasure. Absentee ballots are available in the Parish Office.

Bishop Peter Jugis will be at St. William on Friday, June 8th at 4PM to celebrate the sacrament of Confirmation. Please keep our Confirmandi's, their sponsors and their families in your prayers: Vina Bui, Daniel Garcia, Leyla Hall, Miranda Hall, Catherine Nieves and Angelo Scionti. A special thank you to their teachers who guided our students through the discernment process for the past 2 years: Ferris and Gail Maloof, Chris Hall and Sandy Hoffer.

Do you know members of our parish family? Our Parish Directory for 2018 and 2019 will be a pictorial directory. This directory is at no cost to the Church and photographed families will receive a free 8 X 10. Sign up for your photo dates on Sundays June 24, July 1, or July 8. Photography dates are Thursday, July 19, Friday, July 20 and Saturday, July 21. IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO HAVE YOUR PICTURE TAKEN ON July 19 to the 21st, please text or call Tina or John at the numbers listed below. This is very important because we can’t schedule a make-up photo date unless we have a minimum of 20 people. If you have any further questions, please contact Tina Poltrock at 910-476-3081 or John Shatraw at 315-783-2800. Click heading for more details.

We welcome Fr. William P. Lesak to St. William and Immaculate Heart of Mary the weekend of June 2 and 3. Fr. Lesak is a retired US Navy Chaplain and is the District Friar for the North Carolina Knights of Columbus. Fr. Lesak will be celebrating Mass that weekend as well as conducting a Parish Day of Recollection for members of both Parishes. Click heading for more details.

Retrouvaille has helped tens of thousands of couples at all stages of disillusionment or misery in their marriage. This program can help you too. For confidential information or to apply to attend the program beginning with a weekend on October 12, 2018, please call 800-470-2230 or email: retrouvaillenc@msn.com. Click heading to email Retrouvaille.

Join us honoring the Mothers our Parish for brunch after Mass. There will be a free will offering, proceeds to benefit the Ladies Guild.

Our Men’s Club will host their annual Mother’s Day Brunch immediately after the 11AM Mass Sunday, May 13th. Please stay after Mass and join us in celebrating that special mother, grandmother, great-grandmother or godmother who has inspired us throughout our lives. A free will offering will be taken.

Join us Saturday, April 28th at 7PM in the Commons at St. William as we venture out to the cuisine of the Middle East for an authentic Lebanese dinner! Tickets for this event are $15 and you may bring your own wine or beer only! Tickets will be available after Mass this weekend, and in the parish office this week. The event was sold out last year so please get your tickets EARLY.

Join the celebration on Saturday, May 5th from 5:30-7:30PM in the Fellowship Hall at IHM. Tickets are $10 per person and $5 for children and you will feast on Authentic homemade Mexican food and enjoy traditional entertainment. Tickets are available at the Church until May 4th. If you have any questions please call the Parish Office.

We warmly Welcome Back our seasonal Parishioners and hope that you have a wonderful summer in the mountains! This is just a reminder that if you do not contribute on line or already have your envelopes, please visit the table in the Commons area of both Churches to pick up your envelope box. If they are not there and you desire to have them, please contact the Office at 837-2000.

First Communion will take place Sunday May 6, 2018 at the 11AM Mass. A special thanks to Maria Seiglie and Katie Lott for preparing our little ones to receive our Lord. Please keep our First Communicants and their teachers in your prayers: Jayden Rivera Garcia, Sarah-Kaylee Rivera Garcia, Yasmin Rivera Garcia, David Llovera, Ed Garcia Vasquez, Edhy Garcia Vasquez, Estrella (Star) Garcia Vasquez and Alexa Ceberek.

This is a special thank you to those who support the Divine Mercy Ministry. Gail Maloof has been with me on this since its inception. Without her I would not have had the backup needed to begin this ministry in the first place, the beautiful articles in the bulletin and her help with the altar arrangement. To Joan Taylor who allows us to "rearrange" her Easter flowers to suit our needs for Divine Mercy Sunday. To Annalyn Van Buskirk who every year has a beautiful cake made for our Mercy Sunday celebration. I cannot forget all of you who have developed a devotion to The Divine Mercy. You ALL make it what it is....thanking Him and having a childlike trust in His never ending Love and Mercy. In His Name, Katie Lott

The Columbarium Committee is looking for volunteers to help with seasonal planting and assistance with inurnments. We plant in the spring and fall, and maintain the beauty of the Columbarium area throughout the year. Inurnment consists of opening and closing of the niche as well as tolling the final resting bell. This is not a tough job. This is a special ministry allowing us to assist families at a very difficult time while bringing the beauty of Fr. Alex's inurnment rite and our love and support to them as they say good-bye to their loved one. Please call the office if you are interested. It is truly a loving ministry.

Save The Date! Our Charlotte Diocese Eucharistic Congress will take place on Friday and Saturday, September 7 and 8. This spiritually unifying event brings together thousands of Catholics from across the Diocese and Southeast for spiritual talks, music, prayer and fellowship—all centered around the Most Blessed Sacrament. Well know speakers will share their wisdom and knowledge during the event. All ages are welcome!

Are we like Thomas and doubt the power of God in our marriage? Learn the tools to put God in your Sacrament of Marriage. The next Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekends are Aug.3-5, 2018 in Chapel Hill, NC and Nov. 9-11 in Atlantic Beach, NC. Early sign up is recommended. For more information visit the website at: https://NCMarriageDiscovery.org or contact via phone at 704-315-2144 or via e-mail at applications@NCMarrigeDiscovery.org. Click heading to visit the website.

Catholic Charities 32nd Annual Spring Fling for Seniors, is Wednesday, May 9th in Hickory and May 22nd in Charlotte. Many fun and informative activities to select from at both locations. For more detailed information, see the flyers on the bulletin board.

The St. John Paul II Foundation, in collaboration with the Diocese of Charlotte and Belmont Abbey College, present the 1st Converging Roads health care ethics conference on Saturday, April 14, 2018, from 8:45AM to 6:15PM at Belmont Abbey College. The conference theme will focus on human dignity at the end of life and continuing education credits for healthcare professionals will be offered. For more information, visit convergingroads.com