St. Mary Our Lady of the Rosary

 Dear Parishioners,

            Here is an update on a number of things in process within our three parishes. 

Furnace and air conditioning at Saints Thomas and Anne Parish in Voluntown.  We have narrowed the field to five proposals.  There are several things that we have learned in this process:

1. The present furnace burns three gallons of oil per minute when it is running. 
2. The present duct work was designed and installed for a heating system; it was never designed for use as an air conditioning system.  This helps explain why heating the Church has not been anywhere near as large an issue as cooling the Church has been.
3. The present duct work is no longer up to code – it is not wrapped or sealed.  In addition, it is full of dust and dirt through normal usage.  The cost of trying to clean and re-use the present ductwork will most likely be comparable to putting in new, clean, up-to-code ductwork. 
4. The present furnace is at the end of its useful life. 
5. The present furnace is located in a pit in the basement, which makes it prone to flooding.  

    Presently one option we are looking at is to have a separate heating system and a separate cooling system utilizing a furnace for heat and ductless cooling units or heat pumps for cooling.  The cooling units or heat pumps would be mounted on the inside walls of the Church. 

     In the very near-future, we will be presenting the approximate cost of this project.   If you have a question or suggestion or concern about any of this, please let me know as soon as possible. 

Director of Religious Education (DRE) at Saint Mary Parish in Jewett City.  After meeting with the catechists (teachers) and with Trisha Kamionka (our former DRE), we have decided to hire one or more coordinators for religious education for this year and not a full-fledged DRE.  One reason for this is that we will be taking a full-year to our evaluate religious programs in all three parishes, a decision and process that began before Trish left for her new ministry in North Carolina.  It does not seem fair or just to bring in a new DRE while the whole program is being evaluated.  The coordinator’s job description is almost finished and will be sent out to interested parties. 

If you have a question, suggestion, or concern about this, please let me know. 

Weekday Mass Schedule July 17 – August 8.  The weekday Mass schedule will be changing from Thursday, July 17 through Friday, August 8 because I will be on vacation.  I am still finalizing a schedule for priests to celebrate Masses in my absence.  Unfortunately, I am having a lot of trouble finding coverage for weekdays.  A full schedule will appear in next weekend’s tri-parish bulletin.

Tri-Parish Picnic.  A number of people have volunteered to serve on the committee planning the picnic.  The Committee will be meeting shortly to plan the picnic.  Please watch the bulletin for announcements regarding the picnic.  Everyone is invited to attend the picnic.

                                                                                    Sincerely,

                                                                                    Fr. Ted Tumicki