NEW YORK — The Province and its ministries are preparing for several major events in the coming months.
This month, Mt. Irenaeus Franciscan Mountain Retreat will celebrate its 25th anniversary on Oct. 17 and the Province will host its first Encuentro Franciscano at St. Camillus Church in Silver Spring, Md., on Oct. 24.
Other events scheduled for the fall and winter include:
• Nov. 14 — A Day for Sisters at San Damiano Hall at 129 West 31st Street, New York, sponsored by the Franciscan Center for Spirituality and Spiritual Direction at St. Francis of Assisi Church.
• Nov. 16-19 — HNP Guardians Meeting in St. Petersburg, Fla.
• Dec. 11 — First of four alumni Fr. Joseph Butler Lectures being offered by St. Bonaventure University.
• Jan. 4-8, 2010 — Inter-provincial retreat about “The Next Steps … Our Franciscan Journey” in Las Cruces, N.M.
• Jan. 17 — Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at the Catholic Center of University of Georgia in Athens, Ga.
• Feb. 8-10 — Preaching workshop sponsored by HNP’s Evangelization Directorate at the Franciscan Retreat Centerin Tampa, Fla.
• Feb. 14 — Celebration of 100th anniversary of Sacred Heart Church in Tampa. Provincial Minister John O’Connor, OFM, will celebrate the 9 a.m. Mass with Bishop Robert Lynch of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, Fla.
In addition, the Province’s former parish in Fair Lawn, N.J. — St. Anne’s Church — is commemorating its 100th anniversary in December.