Happy Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross! I want to thank everyone for their patience during this time of recovery, especially as we gather outside for Holy Mass in less than optimal conditions. We have been offering the 7 am and 8 am Masses on Sunday these past two weeks to beat the heat, but if we still can't be inside the church for whatever reason this coming Sunday, we will change the English Mass to 8:30 am to avoid keeping anyone waiting.

Outdoor Masses are quite difficult to arrange primarily because of the wind. This past Sunday, I made the decision to move the altar into the narthex because of the chance of rain. Although it didn't rain, I was happy that we did move the altar because the wind was strong that morning. My plan is to continue to place the altar in the narthex to protect the Blessed Sacrament from any chance of being caught by a gust of wind. I realize that Mass set up this way makes it difficult to see. My encouragement to everyone seated outside is to imagine yourself at the Cross with Our Lady of Sorrows and St. John when I am at the altar. God gave us our faculty of imagination and we can use it in prayer to let God speak to us, even when our physical eyes can't see. With all that said, I am hopeful that we will be able to return to Holy Mass in the church soon.

Here is an update about our parish campus. Our mitigation is being coordinated by Servpro and they are doing a fantastic job. They are using a massive dehumidifier to dry out the church. Their team will wipe everything down and get the church ready so that when the power comes back on, we should be able to have Mass inside again. The Church Community Center sustained extensive water damage and will need to be almost completely gutted. The plan is to focus on redoing the Church Community Center first so that we can then use it for Holy Mass while we then restore our church. It will not be a short process but in the end, I truly believe our parish family will be better than ever in our restored campus. May God richly bless you and your families.

In Christ,