Saint Patrick Parish - Parnell

10/29/2026

10/27/2026

Cemetery Clean Up is happening this Saturday from 10AM-3PM. Many hands make light work, please see the sign up below!
Lunch being provided by our Knights of Columbus!

Cemetery Cleanup will be happening on Saturday, November 7 from 10-3. Many hands make light work! Please consider coming to help blow leaves and clean up sticks and branches. We are also in need of leaf blowers, gas powered leaf blowers work best. The Knights of Columbus will be providing lunch!

10/23/2026

From the desk of Dr. Andrea Wirgau:

Help Us Bring St. Patrick Parnell’s History to Life!

Do you have old photos or historic treasures from St. Patrick Parnell? We’d love to feature them! Dr. Andrea Wirgau is collecting "behind-the-scenes" memories to showcase in the Family Center hallway.

Whether it’s a snapshot from the Parnell Horseshow, throwbacks of classmates from the '70s, or pictures of other past events, we want to see them. Don't worry about parting with your originals—we will professionally scan and safely return every photo or document to you.

We are not only searching for artifacts, we are looking to fill in any gaps* in our school history in particular. If you have a relative who graduated from St. Patrick or you are a graduate yourself, please take a moment to complete this short form found on the school website stpatrickparnellschool.org under News & Events → Alumni Development. We would like to send out an alumni newsletter and invites to special events!

Have something to share or a question to ask? Reach out to Andrea at [email protected] (SPP Class of 1990.)

*We are hoping to locate a photo(s) of the graduating class of 1934. (Marian (Brooks) Coursan, Arlene (Byrne) Laughlin, Camilla (Coorigan) Wehan, Ken Downes, Francis Hefferan, Gertrude Hefferan, Kathleen (Joyce) McCarthy, Walter Miller, Kathleen (Nugent) Zock, Mona (O’Brien) Engemann, Bernard Skipper and Stanley Tereskiewicz.

St. Patrick School - Catholic Elementary School serving Preschool-8th grade for communities in Parnell, Lowell, Rockford, Ada and Belding.

10/16/2026

From the desk of Father Tom:

What a crazy morning! Being a pastor is filled with unpredictability. You really must have the right personality to enjoy this fact. My job as a Sysco sales rep was likewise very unpredictable - which proved to be the perfect training for what I now experience.

I usually try to write my article on my day off, Monday. However, I had my eyes dilated Monday as part of my yearly eye exam. I just couldn’t bring myself to sit and type on a computer after having that done. So now I am pushing up against my deadline for submitting my article to Darci and this morning has been full of surprises - most of which were unplanned.

When I finally sat down to write, I decided to give you all an update on things happening here and the phrase “Around the Horn” came to mind. So like any good ADHD kid, I dove deep into how that phrase came to be. Around the horn originally comes from maritime navigation. It referred to the long, difficult sea voyage around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America. I remember hearing this phrase as a kid from Ernie Harwell and Paul Carey. I loved listening to Tiger Baseball on the radio. Around the horn meant throwing the ball from the catcher to the third baseman to the second baseman to first and finally back to the pitcher. This usually happened after a strikeout.

Okay….where was I….Oh yeah… update about the happenings here at St. Patrick Parnell. We have had an excellent start to the school year. I am so blessed to be part of this amazing parish school. I just love the kids SO MUCH. I am the luckiest Father in the diocese. We are also making amazing progress in our family center renovation work. Removing the two storage closets, opening up that space and installing windows on the north side of the building has made a dramatic difference when you are in that room. You can now see the beauty of Parnell while in that meeting area. Please pray that we are able to complete this project soon.

We also have another robust group in our OCIA program (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults). The Holy Spirit is really active in our parish community. The Catholic faith is experiencing a revival that is being fueled by a desire for truth, beauty, goodness, and reverence. It is so exciting to see people respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit to come into our parish community and come to know our loving God through a sacramental life.

Your prayers mean so much to me. Please keep praying for me and know that I am praying for all of you. Oremus pro invicem.

10/15/2026

We offer our prayers and condolences to the family of Monica Richer, who passed away on October 12. May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the Mercy of God, rest in peace.

View Monica K. Richer's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

10/14/2026

Bunco is next week, Wednesday October 21, at 7pm.

10/13/2026

For 100 years, Catholics around the world have come together on World Mission Sunday to pray for missionaries and support the young and growing Churches they serve. This year, Pope Leo XIV is inviting us to carry that legacy forward.
Watch Pope Leo XIV's message and join Catholics everywhere on October 18 as we celebrate 100 years of World Mission Sunday.

For 100 years, Catholics around the world have come together on Wor...

10/09/2026

From the desk of Father Tom:

I was blessed to be able to con-celebrate a special Mass at the Cathedral this past Sunday in honor of St. Francis of Assisi. Bishop Walkowiak presided and offered a beautiful homily in recognition of the lasting gifts the Church continues to receive from the charism begun by St. Francis of Assisi in the year 1209.

On October 4th we celebrated the 800th anniversary of his death in 1226. My interest in St. Francis has flourished ever since I spent some time in Assisi. I was profoundly moved during my visit to San Damiano Church which sits just east of the old city of Assisi. There was something about the simplicity of the tiny prayer/chapel areas that stirred my heart. The day we visited was beautiful and sunny. Because we were there in February, there were no crowds. We could spend as much time as we wanted as we explored the twists and turns of the old church complex. I felt such a level of peace that I did not want to leave.

As I reflected more and more on his life, I came across a quote from St. Francis that he spoke just before his death. He said to the friars, “Let us begin again, brothers, for up until now, we have done little or nothing.” Francis was only 45 years old when he died. The order had only been operating for about 17 years. This quote wonderfully captures the charism of his order. Francis embraced the virtue of humility like none other and he did so with exuberant joy. He so perfectly reflected the light and love of Jesus Christ that thousands of men sacrificed everything to join him. His task was simple as recalled in the biography written by St. Bonaventure, “Francis, go and rebuild my church which, as you see, is falling into ruin.”

The work begun by St. Francis is relevant today and all of us have an important role to play in the rebuilding process. We should take to heart the message left to the friars just before his death. We should all jump wholeheartedly into the great work begun by Francis and embrace a level of humility that spurs us to begin again – to recognize that up until now we have done little or nothing. There is always more that we can do to help spread the light of Christ and, by praying through the intercession of St. Francis, we can all become a beacon of joy in a world that desperately needs us.

Oremus pro invicem.

10/06/2026

Tickets now on sale!
https://tinyurl.com/WGDTickets26