Submitted by Patricia Barnett
On Dec. 3, the Embracing Families of St. Joseph and St. Stephen the King in Oswego celebrated their first Intergenerational Advent Event at St. Joseph’s Parish Center. The Faith Formation Office of the linked parishes has identified bringing families together as one of its primary goals and has planned a minimum of two intergenerational events for the year.
When Bishop Robert J. Cunningham announced his plan to amplify the role of the family in our diocese, event planners felt confident their initial event would be successful. Anyone who wanted to participate was warmly encouraged to attend.
After the celebration of Mass, students from the Oswego High School Orchestra greeted people with music of the season. Interesting, informative, and fun-filled stations offered families the opportunity to make cards for local shut-ins, to decorate cookies to share with others, to discover how the candy cane came to be, and to learn how to make an Advent wreath. One volunteer brought over twenty Nativities for display!
The next event will be a Winter Carnival where new and gently-used warm clothing will be collected for distribution at local schools. The teens of the parish will give up their school holiday on Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 15, 2018, to organize and run the carnival which promises to be another successful intergeneration event. Another event is being planned for Lent. The general public is cordially invited to attend both events.
Patricia Barnett is director of faith formation and RCIA coordinator for St. Joseph-St. Stephen the King Parish in Oswego.
