BEREAVEMENT
Most people begin to deal with the reality of life without their loved one after the funeral when everyone else seems to have resumed their normal life. Grief is expressed differently in everyone. There may be feelings of sadness, guilt or anger at the person, at the medical profession, or God. These are normal emotions. The goal of our bereavement ministry is to help each individual deal with his or her grief in a positive manner for healthy healing. Private visits or phone calls with a professional grief counselor are provided by a parish volunteer. Contact: Joanne Archer, 422-6145.
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CONSOLATION CARE MINISTRY
It is our goal to help families through the task of planning a loved one’s funeral Mass. We assist the family in choosing the readings as well as the music they would like at the Mass. We also ask about the deceased so that the celebrant can speak of the family’s loved one in a touching and consoling manner to help the family feel God’s presence to them during this time of sorrow. Though certain parishioners have been trained in this ministry, we are not formally ministering in the parish because there is a need for at least 20 individual participants so that no one person has to be called upon more than once every six weeks. The training is very simple, requiring l or 2 meetings. Two ministers go together to the funeral home as consolation ministers to the family. Area funeral directors are aware of our ministry and welcome it. Contact: Parish Office, 643-7568
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PRO-LIFE
We are a not-for-profit organization located at 1767 Deer Park Avenue, Deer Park, New York 11729 PH. 243-2373, or web site: www.lifecenterli.org. The Organization gives free pregnancy tests, counseling, and so much more, to people experiencing a crisis pregnancy. We rely greatly on donations of money, baby items, baby furniture, and baby clothes sizes new born to 3T. Contact: Mary Ann & John Lando, 586-5981
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OLMM ROUNDTABLE FOR
THE COMMON GOOD:
Did you ever ask what was wrong with the Jericho Road? Why was the man set upon by thieves" Why did the Samaritan have to help him? The Roundtable For the Common Good tries to fix the Jericho Road. Our focus is on injustice: the root causes of poverty, racism and the other social sins that require "Good Samaritans" to help people in need.
Help us to educate and advocate, to bring the Catholic moral voice into politics so that someday, justice will reign and there will be no need for Samaritans. The Committee sponsors 2 to 3 programs a year. In addition, there is an occasional request for advocacy in the form of letter writing, phoning officials, etc.
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The most recent, and some might say the "greatest leap forward" for the Roundtable has been the decision (at the end of 2018) to double the size of this social ministry by including and joining hands with members of Melville's Temple Beth-Torah. In keeping with our beliefs in "the power of numbers" and the strength of diversity, and fostering inclusion / building consensus on issues of social justice - it was a unanimous decision to invite our Jewish brothers and sisters and friends to join us in working towards new goals together!
Contact: Sandy Thomas 491-3214
THE OPENING WORD PROGRAM
A ministry of the Sisters of St,. Dominic, Amityville, is a literacy and job-training program for underemployed and undereducated women. It strives to empower them by improving their academic and/or English language skills, thus enabling them to provide for their families and assume membership in the work force. The program consists of two areas: Adult Basic Education/ GED preparation and English for Speakers of Other Languages. Classes are held weekdays from September to June, 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM. We follow the local school district calendar. Registration is ongoing. Call Sister Fran Gorman at (631)643-0541 for more information.
THE RYAN OUTREACH CENTER
The Gerald J. Ryan Outreach Center is a not-for-profit organization serving Wyandanch and its surrounding communities. Our dedicated staff, volunteers, and donors believe that we must follow God’s call to meet the needs of others, one individual at a time.
It is our challenge and commitment to live out the words of Bishop Gerald Ryan for whom our center is named. Bishop Ryan’s first assignment as a priest was to the tiny parish of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal on Straight Path in Wyandanch. To this day, Gerald Ryan Outreach remains a core member of the ministry of this parish while its mission of service to poor people draws interfaith support from other religious denominations. For more information, please contact Noelle Campbell, Director, @ 631.643.7591