Centennial 2032 Update 1

This is a map that plots out the use of land in the city of Waynesboro VA.

The Demographic Analysis we received from the Office of Pastoral Planning did not originally include Rockbridge County, nor the parishes of Blessed Sacrament in Harrisonburg, and St. Patrick in Lexington. We were able to acquire information since on Rockbridge County, but not on the two parishes.

The graph on the left plots out the actual and projected population increases in the Diocese of Richmond. The top three lines in the graph on the right represent the actual and projected growth of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Charlottesville, Incarnation Parish in Charlottesville, and St. John the Evangelist Parish. The numbers in black running across the graph are census numbers for St. John the Evangelist Parish for those corresponding calendar years (actual & projected for 2020). And the blue numbers in between measure the rate of change between those same calendar years.

This slide and the next one are observations made by Fr. Rolo Castillo, pastor, in light of the data provided by the Diocesan Office of Pastoral Planning and the recommendations of the Diocesan Building & Renovation Commission.

Christmas 2011

25 December 2011 (Christmas)

My dear sisters and brothers,

A blessed Christmas season to you and those you love, filled with God’s peace and the assurance of his abundant and everlasting mercy.

This past year went by fast.  It took me a while to notice.  Maybe you’ve been telling me and I wasn’t paying attention.  But we went through a visioning and planning process for a greater part of it, and I thank you for your participation and your loving support for the good of our people.

I announced last weekend that I had requested the bishop (through the Priest Personnel Committee) to let me stay at St. John for another six year term.  I thank you for putting up with me these last five and a half years, patiently and lovingly.  I am encouraged by

1. your increased involvement in the life of the parish (our festival meals – Oktoberfest, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day, Mardi Gras, the Year-End Volunteer Appreciation banquet, our summer coffee and donut ministry on the front lawn of the office annex),
2. your support of our Christian formation programs (sending your children, teaching other people’s children, gathering to break open God’s Word, to study scripture and pray in groups),
3. your full, conscious, and active participation at mass (assembly, ministers of the Eucharist, lectors, ushers, altar servers, cantors, choir members and musicians, and especially with the implementation of the new English translation of the Roman Missal: AND WITH YOUR SPIRIT!),
4. your tremendous willingness to help feed the hungry, to clothe and shelter the poor, to welcome the stranger and the visitor, to visit the sick and those in prison,
5. … and you have energy to spare helping parish leadership hash out a vision for our future.

The year ahead will be time for greater clarity and definition with the help of our partners in ministry and community planning.  Parishioners who participated in our Vision 2032 poll indicated overwhelming support for purchasing land and building a new church (69%).  But there is much work yet to do.  And to squelch those pesky rumors, NO, we haven’t yet done anything I haven’t told you about.  But I will need the help of qualified parishioners to put a final plan together … in the new year.  Until then, pray that we are attentive to God’s voice.

May the New Year 2012 bring us all and abundance of God’s life and love.

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Rolo Castillo, Pastor

One Last Appeal

These past few days, the Task Force I brought together at the beginning of the summer conducted three town hall meetings to present their work to you of visioning and planning for the future, and to ask you to express your support for one of four options to meet the needs of our people. I am surprised by the contentious response I have been hearing recently from some, in particular, from those who have ignored or chosen not to participate in the process which has been from the start open and public. I have been saddened by comments mischaracterizing the process we have undertaken, even assigning hurtful and uncharitable motives to myself and the people who have worked hard with me to move this process along.

This weekend at all masses, I have instructed members of the Task Force to make one last appeal for people to respond with a vote. I am not asking for a blank check. I am asking for direction. I stated my case in a letter to the parish in September of last year, that many good things are happening at St. John’s and that I hope the people of the parish are willing to pursue greater faithfulness and excellence in living out our mission as a people.

To date we have spent no money to put together these preliminary plans. That is because I wasn’t sure I would have your support. Today I am asking for your support so that we can explore our options more realistically. If you think we should do nothing, vote for Option 1, and the matter is closed. If you think we should do something, consider the next 3 Options. But before anything is implemented, we will still have to do our homework and put together a more detailed plan with relevant data, and the help of experts, professionals, and representatives of the bishop.

I have always taken my stewardship as pastor at St. John’s seriously. I ask your support that I continue accompanying you on this great adventure here at St. John. There is a lot of work to do in the vineyard of the Lord. I wish to be helpful wherever the Lord sends me. So I ask you to consider what you think the Holy Spirit is trying to tell us … not what you want to do personally, but what the Holy Spirit is trying to tell us. In the end, whatever the people of St. John’s tells us by your vote will just be the starting point of the next step along the journey. All I ask is that you let me know in what direction you think God is calling us.

You can fill out your ballot today and drop it off on your way out, or you can get it to the parish office by Tuesday, 13 September, at 3:00 PM. If you’ve already voted, then you don’t have to do a thing. If you choose not to vote, that is also an option. Thank you for whatever help you can give.

Questions Part 2

A Few More Questions …

A third Town Hall Meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, 7 September 2011, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in the Cafeteria. There is no need to sign up. Come a half hour early for light refreshments. Call the parish office if you need childcare.

Task Force Centennial 2032: Task Completed

A. TASK FORCE MISSION
Looking ahead to the year 2032 (100th year anniversary of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church), the task force was charged with:

✤  identifying areas of need within the parish

✤  projecting growth of the parish faith community

✤  developing viable options to meet the current and anticipated needs of St. John’s

✤  presenting these options to the parishioners for their opinion

✤  presenting the parishioners’ preferred option to the Bishop 

B. METHODOLOGY EMPLOYED

1. Incorporated prior parish member survey data into the assessment process.
2. Interviewed chairpersons of each parish ministry and also the office staff
3. Determined parish needs, both current and future
4. Gathered and evaluated data from public, diocesan and parish sources: on parish facilities and resources, local population trends, diocesan guidelines and recommendations
5. Developed and evaluated four (4) options to meet identified needs

C. TOWN HALL 2010 & SURVEY RESULTS 2011

1. Over 70% of parishioners who participated in the parish survey chose “Build an atmosphere where the parish and our Catholic Faith are the central focus, identity, & social network for all members of the parish” as our highest priority.
2. About two-thirds of parishioners who participated in the parish survey chose “Provide a worship space (church) that accommodates all who come to Mass” as our highest priority.

D. PARISH FACILITIES

1. Current church seating capacity is approximately 270. Our seating multiplied by our current 3 weekend masses means there are approximately 810 seats available. Current parish membership is more than 1600 people.
2. In the 1962-1963 school-year St. John the Evangelist church began educating the youth Christian Formation’s elementary grades simultaneously. Today in our Faith Formation efforts we educate grades pre-K through 12 and some adult groups during the same time period. Classroom space is at a premium.
3. Handicapped access throughout the facility is very poor, limiting participation by some of our parishioners.

E. AREA POPULATION GROWTH & PROJECTIONS

1. A growth rate of 1% is expected for our area, based on an average of the four following resources: Cooper Institute (UVA), US Census Bureau, Virginia Employment Commission, Real Estate Center (Texas A&M)
2. In the 20-year period 2012 to 2032, growth of 1% per year, compounded over 20 years, results in 22% growth over the period.
3. The local Catholic population has grown and is expected to continue growing at a faster rate than the general population.

All the above materials have been mailed to registered parishioners, including a number of ballots for eligible voters in each household. Please take time to consider the material, pray over them, listen to the Holy Spirit, and fill out a ballot. Please remember to include complete sender information to establish voter eligibility. We will not accept multiple votes nor improperly marked ballots (as in, if you indicate more than one choice). Place a stamp and return it to us in the mail, or drop it in the collection plate at Sunday Mass, or drop it by the parish office by Tuesday, 13 September 2011 at 3pm. We graciously thank you for your participation.

For Your Consideration, Reflection & Decision

1 September 2011

My dear sisters and brothers,

I hope that you had a refreshing and re-energizing summer with family and friends to give you the necessary focus and clarity for the responsibilities and duties of the coming year.  With the academic year 2011-2012 kicking off, our parish life is returning to its normal seasonal routine.

But even as many of us have taken time off from our usual routine, the work of visioning and planning for our immediate future has kept some of our parish leadership on their toes.  Earlier in the summer, I called together a Task Force of six from among our registered parishioners, “energetic, highly motivated, decisive, visionary [individuals], who have a genuine and unselfish love for our people and the mission of our parish, to interpret the survey data and other pertinent information from the Diocese of Richmond, the Commonwealth of Virginia, Augusta County, Waynesboro and surrounding communities, and propose several (3 or 4) creative, practical, well-reasoned and viable solutions for us to ponder and pray over.”[1]

The work of the Task Force is now complete.  At two town hall meetings (28 & 30 August 2011), they presented their proposal for us to consider, discuss, ponder and decide.  The materials provided here summarize that presentation.  Now we ask you to let us know in what direction you believe the Holy Spirit calls us.  If you are receiving this material in the mail, it is likely you were unable to attend the meetings that were scheduled.  But we want you still to participate in this process.  This packet also includes the number of ballots for all eligible voters in your household.  You can put a stamp on it and send it back to us by mail.  Or you can drop it in the collection plate at mass or at the parish office before 3:00 p.m. Wednesday, 13 September 2011.  At that point, we will collate your responses and prepare a presentation for Bishop DiLorenzo.

Once again, I call on you to help us forge a viable future for our people.  The Holy Spirit is alive and well in our midst.  I hope we will be willing to listen and follow where he leads.

Yours in Christ Jesus,

Rev. Rolo B. Castillo, Pastor

[1] Letter to the Parish, 11 May 2011. http://saintjohncentennial2032.wordpress.com/2011/05/20/set-up-a-task-force-to-interpret-data-and-propose-a-plan/

PS. The 13th of September is a Tuesday, not Wednesday. My apologies.