Thursday, 31 January 2013 10:44

Blessed Sacrament Society of St. Vincent de Paul starts food program
The Blessed Sacrament Society of St. Vincent de Paul started a weekend food program at Blessed Sacrament School in December for children who would benefit from extra food over weekends or on extended schools breaks.
SVdP member Gina Adams is leading the effort with the help of Blessed Sacrament School administrators, teachers, clergy, and members of the parish’s St. Vincent de Paul Conference.
A similar public school program sends a back-pack of kid friendly snacks home with qualifying public school children every weekend during the school year. When researching options, Adams learned that students at private schools could not benefit from the public school program and decided to come up with a similar program to benefit the Blessed Sacrament School kids.
An anonymous donor is paying for the food initially, with the possibility of pursuing donations from Blessed Sacrament parishioners and grants from local businesses in the future. A publicity campaign was created to let prospective parents know of the new weekend food program.
Currently, the number of students and siblings participating in the new program is in the double digits. Adams said they hope to be able to reach out and help other Catholic schools distribute weekend food bags to their students.
For more information about the program or to help, contact Gina Adams at (316) 518-8444.

Basket Bingo Feb. 24 at St. Peter, Schulte
A Winter Blues Basket Bingo will be held Sunday, Feb. 24, in the St. Peter the Apostle Catholic School gym, 11010 Southwest Blvd, Schulte.
Doors open and lunch will be served at 11 a.m. On the menu will be chili, chicken noodle soup, hot dogs, and homemade pies.
Bingo begins at 1 p.m. The minimum prize basket value is $150.
The suggested donation is $10 for 20 games. The event is sponsored by the St. Peter the Apostle PTO.

St. Jude Valentine’s dinner, dance Feb. 9
WICHITA — The St. Jude Knights of Columbus will host their 11th annual Valentine’s Dinner and Dance Saturday, Feb. 9, in the parish hall, 3030 N. Amidon.
A social hour will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., with dinner and dance to follow.
The cost is $15 per person. For reservations or for more information, contact Dan at (316) 943-4906, Alex at (316) 841-3521, Tom at (316) 838-3793, or the parish office at 838-1963 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

St. Jude Scouts ham, bean dinner Feb. 23
WICHITA – Boy Scout Troop 420 will host its 32nd annual Ham and Bean Dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23, in St. Jude School Activity Center, 3130 N. Amidon.
In addition to ham and beans, the dinner will feature vegetable beef soup, corn bread, a dessert, and a beverage.
Tickets are $6 for adults and $3 for children ages 3 to 9. Younger children eat free.

SVdP Mardi Gras Saturday, Feb. 9
ANDOVER – St. Vincent de Paul Parish will host a Mardi Gras party at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 9, in the parish hall, the Ville.
Tickets are $30 and include chicken/sausage gumbo, muffletas, meatballs, shrimp, cornbread and “king” cake for dessert. A wine and beer tasting will also be held.
Cool Blue will entertain with music. Child care will be available.
For tickets contact Michele at (316) 733-1423 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

St. Margaret Mary Knights hosting breakfast Feb. 17
WICHITA – The St. Margaret Mary Parish Knights of Columbus Council 3677 will host a Pancake and German Sausage Breakfast from 9 a.m. to noon Sunday, Feb. 17, in the Community Room at 2635 S. Pattie.
The proceeds from the breakfast will go to the religious vocations education for St. Margaret Mary School and for parish seminarian Ryan McCandless. The cost is $4.50 for adults and $3 for children. Children under three years old eat free.
The council will also be collecting items for the Girard House. A crib will be set up to place needed baby items.

St. Thomas Aquinas School to host middle school retreat, Feb. 18
WICHITA – St. Thomas Aquinas School will host a middle school retreat on Monday, Feb. 18, from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
The retreat will feature Mass, skits, talks, adoration and confession for middle school-aged students.
Individuals participating in the retreat as asked to bring something to eat for breakfast after Mass, a sack lunch, and a drink.
To register, call the parish office at (316) 683-6569.

Halstead hosting Italian dinner Feb. 9
Sacred Heart Parish of Halstead will host its 23rd annual Italian dinner Saturday, Feb. 9, at the Parish Center, located at 414 Locust.
The event is an adults-only Valentine’s Day celebration with the theme of “Le Dolce Vita,” the good life.
The dinner includes lasagna, a tossed salad, garlic bread, wine, and strawberry or chocolate trifle.
The cost for the 5 p.m. “early bird special” seating is $12.50 per person. The 6 and 7 p.m. seatings are $15 per person and the 8 p.m. seating is $20 per person.
Reservations are required and can be made by calling (316) 830-2397 or 835-2816. Childcare will be available for a nominal fee.
A raffle will also be held at the dinner. Tickets will be available at the dinner. Individuals need not be present to win.
The event is sponsored by the Sacred Heart Altar Society and supports the needs of the altar, as well as the many charities the society supports.

Winfield dinner will help with loans so women will be able to become IHM sisters
A dinner to raise money for women interested in becoming an Immaculate Heart of Mary Sister in Wichita will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, March 10, at Holy Name Parish Hall, located at Sixth and Andrews in Winfield.
Only 200 tickets will be sold to establish an IHM Fund to help pay off school loans accrued by women seeking to enter the order.
Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for children 5 to 12, and free for younger children. For tickets call Tim Toon at (620) 221-4699 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
On the menu are chicken fried steaks, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, a roll and butter, beverages, and dessert.
Toon, a member of Holy Name Parish, said the parish’s Knights of Columbus Council is hosting the event and has received support from the McPherson Knights. He added that he hopes to involve other councils in the Diocese of Wichita to build the fund.
To contact the IHMs, call (316) 722-9316.

Open house for Leo Benoit on Feb. 10
An open house is planned for Leo Benoit’s 80th birthday.
Friends and family are invited to attend the event from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 10, in the Senior Center, 1006 N. Main, in Garden Plain. The family requests no gifts.

Sacred Heart to show Catholicism series during Lent
Sacred Heart Church in Colwich will show Father Robert Barron’s Catholicism series during Lent.
The free video and a small group discussion will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. beginning on Sunday, Feb. 17, in the Religious Education Center. Babysitting will be available at no cost.
Catholicism is an epic TV and DVD series that follows Fr. Robert Barron around the world to explain the faith founded by Jesus Christ.
To sign up or for more information, visit sacredheartcolwich.org/catholicism.

Hutch’s Holy Cross Catholic School celebrating 50 years
HUTCHINSON – Holy Cross Catholic School, located at 2633 Independence Rd., will be celebrating its 50th anniversary with an open house from noon to 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 3.
The school started in the early 1960s when a decision was made to add a third parish to the growing community of Hutchinson. In 1962, Holy Cross Catholic School was officially opened with 131 students in grades 1 through 6. Its pastor was Father Vincent Brown and the principal was Sister Mary Clotilda Werner of the Dominican Sisters of Great Bend.
Holy Cross maintained an enrollment of 120 to 180 students for its first 25 years, but in 1993 with Fr. Victor Bieberle as pastor, the school began to grow. Pre-school was added in 1995, and an addition to the school was completed. Enrollment reached 290 in 2004.
In 2010, the decision was made to merge St. Teresa’s Grade School with Holy Cross at the Holy Cross site. At that time, enrollment was 369. Today, the pastor is Father Joseph Eckberg and the principal is Kevin Hedrick.

St. Joe parishioner wins Adopt-A-School car
Sharon Stump, a member of St. Joseph Parish in Wichita, was picked as the winner of the annual Rusty Eck Ford Adopt-A-School car giveaway on Dec. 19. She was eligible to choose a vehicle in the car lot up to $25,000 in value.
The Adopt-A-School Car Giveaway was a huge success with over $400,000 being given to area schools, churches, and various organizations through the effort organized by Rusty Eck, Midwest Kia, and the Midwest Superstore.
Three of the five winners of the cars have purchased tickets on behalf of Catholic schools.
Tickets for the 2013 Adopt-A-School car giveaway are already underway. All proceeds return to the organization selling the tickets. Those interested may contact Kaysue Hall at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or at (316) 689-4403.