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News Help a Homeless Child for Christmas! Christmas Caravan for the Homeless Saturday, December 12 Will you help us help a homeless child this season? Once again, we are taking part in the Christmas Caravan for the Homeless on Saturday, December 12. Our focus is on helping children in homeless families in our city have a Merry Christmas by providing gifts of toys and clothing for them. These children are in shelters or treatment centers and will otherwise have little or nothing during the holiday season. Sarah Ball has a list with the names and ages of the children we are "adopting" as a community. If you are able to help one or more children this year, please contact Sarah. An alternative is to purchase winter clothing such as gloves, hats, and socks. Coats that are in good condition may be donated, as well as blankets and sleeping bags. Some general guidelines as you purchase Christmas gifts for the children: two or three gifts, plus some winter wear like hat, gloves, and scarf are about right. Most of the kids on the list this year are African-American, so people buying dolls should keep that in mind. The children and their families will gather at 501 Maple Street in North Little Rock for a party with Santa for distribution of gifts and refreshments on Saturday morning, December 12, at 9:00 AM. You are all invited to come for the fun! It is always a rewarding experience to watch the children receive their gifts, to meet their families, and to meet others who are working on behalf of our homeless neighbors. Following the party of the children, we will "caravan" to the Broadway Bridge in Little Rock to distribute winter clothing and blankets to homeless adults. 10th Annual Walk for CommUNITY Sunday, November 8, 2009 Ten people from San Damiano signed up with our team for the 10th annual Walk for CommUNITY sponsored by Just Communities of Central Arkansas (JCCA). JCC is a human relations organization which brings people together to achieve inclusion, equity and justice for all. The weather was wonderful, the spirit was strong, the participants diverse and enthusiastic. Below are a few photos from Sunday afternoon's walk. Thanks to those who supported this effort to promote justice in our community!  Sarah Ball, OEF; Fr. Jim Schratz; Guy Lancaster; Anna Lancaster; Tony Mendoza  Sarah Ball, OEF and Marty Harmon  Guy Lancaster, Tony Mendoza, Denise Brochetti 
The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe 2008Friday, December 12, 2008 We celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, with a joyful Mass and the enthronement of a new image of Our Lady, a gift to the community from Father Jim Schratz. Click here to see a photos from the evening. Photos from Homeless Outreach Event 2008 Saturday, September 13, 2008
Sister Sarah Maria makes life profession June 21, 2008 Sarah Ball became Sister Sarah Maria when she made her final profession as a Franciscan sister on June 21 of this year. The Order of Ecumenical Franciscans gathered at Our Lady of Fatima Retreat House in Indianapolis for the order's annual convocation and chapter. ("Chapter" is the gathering of the professed members for discernment and decision-making for the Order.) Below are two photographs made during the Saturday night Liturgy as Sarah made her vows.
Mobile Outreach through Arkansas Homeless Coalition The Arkansas Homeless Coalition recently received a donation from Jericho Bingo Charity of $5,000 and a passenger van. The plan is to start a volunteer effort to reach out to the homeless on a nightly basis by providing aid for a few hours with volunteers and the van — a mobile service unit, if you will. The service done by volunteers would include medical aid, materials distribution, financial, legal, and medical consulting, as well as anything else that can and should be addressed. If you are able to help once a week, every other week, or on any schedule at all, please respond ASAP. Contact Jeffrey Rickman at JRickman@ashn.org or send a note to Fr. Fred Ball. Update from Sandra Wilson, April 3, 2008 The Mobile Homeless Outreach is active, and is giving out comfort items and compassion to our homeless in the city who are living in camps. I know that Jeffrey Rickman has contacted many of you regarding volunteering for van outreach, and that some of you have signed on. It is such a blessing to be able to get help out to the people who are not able to reach services, like the homeless living in camps outside the downtown corridor where most services are located. If you are not comfortable, or just cannot find the time to go out on the van, there are so many other ways that you and those you know can help. The ability to keep this volunteer ministry effective depends on donations from the community. Please review the list below for any items that you may be able to donate, or do a drive within your church to gather. We have been blessed with blankets from The Church at Rock Creek in West Little Rock and the House of Refuge and Prayer in Mayflower. These two churches have donated 300 blankets to the homeless, which we are now getting out to them. Jimmy Pritchett delivered 24 cases of water from the city of Little Rock for distribution on the van. Many are involved, please consider where you can also help. Needs for items to provide to the homeless through van ministry:
Arkansas Supportive Housing Network, Inc. Arkansas Homeless Coalition & Arkansas Management Information System 501 Maple Street North Little Rock, AR 72114 (501) 372-5543 phone (501) 372-5457 fax Midweek Mass, March 26, 6:30 PM There will be a Eucharist with unction for healing Wednesday, March 26, at 6:30 PM. We will meet in the side chapel. The liturgy will be a brief said Mass. If you wish, you may receive anointing and prayer for yourself or on behalf of another. Holy Week 2008 We will have joint services with St. Michael's Episcopal Church throughout Holy Week. Join us for Stations of the Cross, a Healing Mass, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil liturgies. Click here for a list of services and times. ECC 2008 Lenten Newsletter Click here to download the latest newsletter from the Ecumenical Catholic Communion. This edition includes an article by San Damiano's own Tony Mendoza. Documents related to Holy Synod available
UPDATED: September 24San Damiano Parish Launch Mass September 26, 2007, 6:30 PM Feast of Sts. Cosmas and Damian September 27, 2007, 7:00 PM Conversation with the Bishop Wednesday evening, September 26, the Feast of Sts. Cosmas and Damian, we will celebrate the birth of San Damiano Ecumenical Catholic Church with a formal "parish launch". We will gather at 6:30 PM for a special Mass at which we will invite those who are ready to make a commitment to this faith community to sign the Parish Register as inaugural members of the parish. Bishop Peter Hickman, Presiding Bishop of the ECC, and his wife, Mirella, will be with us for this event. We encourage you to invite friends, family, and supporters to come join in the celebration! Following Mass, we'll have a potluck dinner at the home of Sarah and Fr. Fred Ball, 7916 Harmon Drive. All are welcome! On Thursday evening, September 27, Bishop Peter will meet with us at 7:00 PM, to talk about the vision of the Ecumenical Catholic Communion and to have a time of dialog with the San Damiano community. This is an important opportunity to visit with our Bishop, to get to know him and let him get to know us as a parish. It's also a great chance to let him hear what is important to you and to answer any questions you may have, as this event will take place just four weeks before the 2007 Synod. It's also a great outreach opportunity for us! Be sure to invite anyone you know who may be interested in learning about San Damiano and the ECC. Parish Launch Documents Posted September 19, 2006 There are two documents here related to our Parish Launch service next Wednesday and the "Conversation with the Bishop" scheduled for next Thursday. Please feel free to distributed the flier, either electronically or in print form, as a way to advertise the gatherings. The news release contains some background information, which may be helpful to people interested in learning about San Damiano. It has been sent to both the Arkansas Times and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. If you know of another news outlet that would be a good target for this news, please forward the release to them. It is available below in both Word and PDF format.
The Reverend Jessica RowleySeptember 7, 2007 On Friday, September 7, Sts. Clare and Francis Ecumenical Catholic Community, St. Louis, celebrated the ordination of Jessica Rowley by Bishop Peter Hickman, Presiding Bishop of the Ecumenical Catholic Communion. The ordination took place in the chapel at Eden Theological Seminary, where Jessica graduated earlier this year. She will now serve as full-time associate pastor at Sts. Clare and Francis. San Damiano was represented by Tony Mendoza, Sarah Ball, and Fr. Fred Ball, who attended both the ordination and Jessica's first Mass at the parish's regular service on Saturday evening. Darby BeDell's parents, Suzanne and Tom, also attended the ordination. Click here to see a few photos from the weekend events. ECC newsletter and Unity and Peace July 19, 2007 Two new documents have arrived from the ECC:
Pray for Elijah Update May 24, 2007 Our young friend, Elijah Talley,is faced with the return of neuroblastoma. We will want to encourage and support him and his family with renewed vigor in the days and weeks ahead. His blog is at www.prayforelijah.com. Here is Dawn's latest entry: I wish there was an easy way for me to put this on here, but there isn't. The scans today were not as good as we had hoped. The bone scan indicated that the neuroblastoma has returned. The area of his neck that is hurting lit up as did a few areas on his legs and one of his ribs. Thankfully the CT did not show any solid masses in the head or neck region. They will do a full body CT next week to make sure there isn't any new tumor growth in his abdomen. Dr. Stine said that we are far from done with this. He said there are tons of things that we didn't try and lots of options out there. He is going to sit down over the next couple of days and come up with a plan of treatment for Elijah. We won't know much of anything until the beginning of next week.Elijah, the San Damiano family and friends are with you! San Damiano and Friends Crawfish Boil May 5, 2007 · 2:00 PM 
It's a party!Fred and Sarah Ball invite you to join them for a crawfish boil at their house on Saturday, May 5. Join the San Damiano crowd, friends, and other interested parties at 7916 Harmon Drive, Little Rock, for good food and good fun. We'll have Cajun Chef John Landry serving up the bugs, along with corn, potatoes, and mushrooms. Bring another side or dessert, if you wish, along with your favorite beverages. If you know you'll be there, let us know, so we'll have a more accurate guess on how much crawfish to order. Call Fred and Sarah at home (501-219-3686) and leave a message. Ash Wednesday February 20, 2007 · 6:30 PM We will join our hosts at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in their 6:30 liturgy on Ash Wednesday. 
Lenten book studySundays, 4:45 - 5:45 PM Beginning Sunday, February 25, we will enter into our first joint work with St. Michael's - a small-group Lenten book study of Barbara Brown Taylor's work Speaking of Sin: The Lost Language of Salvation. (Click the title or the picture to read about the book on Amazon.com.) This is a great opportunity to
The group will be very informal, with no need to purchase the book or prepare ahead of time (unless you want to, of course). There will be plenty of time given to discussion by the group - it's not a designed with a lecture format. You'll have the opportunity to hear from others, and share your perspective, if you wish. This Lenten study is intended to give people options for when to participate, according to their schedules. The San Damiano community will host a group at the church on Sunday afternoons from 4:45 - 5:45 PM, ending just before Mass. St. Michael's parishioners will host small groups in their homes at various times throughout the week. As soon as the days and times for the other groups are determined, they will be posted on the news page. Ordination of Fred Ball, OEF On Saturday, January 27, we celebrated the ordination of our priest, Fr. Fred Ball, at St. Michael's Episcopal Church. The Most Rev. Bishop Peter Hickman, Presiding Bishop of the Ecumenical Catholic Communion, came to Little Rock to do the ordination. We had a great liturgy and a lot of fun with the San Damiano community and friends from around the city and around the country. Click here to see the photos. Update: Sr. Paula Clare, OEF, put together a Windows media presentation of some of the ordination pictures, using the song "Here I Am, Lord", by Dan Schutte, SJ, as the background. Click here for that download. It's a somewhat larger media file, so be patient! To see the liturgy itself (PDF format), click here. The document will open in a new browser window. If you prefer to download the file, right click here. and choose "Save link as" or "Save target as" to copy it to your computer. New worship location St. Michael's Episcopal Church has agreed to share space with us! We have had our first Mass at St. Mike's, and will continue to meet there on Sunday evenings for Mass at 6:00 PM. For those interested in helping to shape the future of this new faith community, there is meeting each week at 5:00 PM, before Mass, at St. Michael's. Click here to visit our location page if you need directions to the church. |
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