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There will be a blessing of pets on Sunday, October 4, at 5 p.m. It will be in the front parking lot of St. Ann's. All animals and their human companions are welcome! Please bring your animal friend on a leash, in a cage or trailer, etc.

The next few weeks will present an opportunity for every parishioner to participate in a building needs survey. We would like to hear from everyone (beginning with your youth who have been confirmed as they are now fully initiated members of the Church). The survey will be available through a computer link to Survey Monkey, as well as a paper survey available in the narthex of the church the next two weekends (September 26 & 27 and October 3 & 4). Let us know what you think, not just personally, but also for the good of our parish family, for the next five, ten, twenty years and beyond.

After much deliberation and thought, our parish FallBack Committee has decided to cancel this year's FallBack Dinner and Dance due to the unpredictability of COVID and discouragement by health authorities from gathering indoors in large groups. The good news:  The faithful financial stewardship by our parishioners has made this year's  fundraiser less urgent for us to meet our budget and pay our bills. The better news:  We are planning a family-oriented "Trunk or Treat" on the originally scheduled FallBack date, Saturday, October 31. Details about this parish event will be forthcoming.

With the return of in-person ministry in October, the youth program needs adult volunteers to help teach and facilitate small groups classes for grades 6-8 on Wednesday nights, and grades 9-12 on Sunday nights. If you are interested please contact Joshua Dutchover at jdutchover@stannsofcanyon.org.

With more and more parishioners returning to Mass, we need your help to run the live video feed at each weekend Mass. If you are interested in being trained for this ministry, please contact Joshua Dutchover. at jdutchover@stannsofcanyon.org

Faith Formation Registration is open online on our parish website, stannsofcanyon.org, under the ECOMMUNITY tab. Forms will also be available for download on the parish website and a paper form will be available on the glass table in the narthex. In-person registration will be available after all Masses starting September 19 and 20. For questions, please contact our Director of Religious Education, Adrian Johnson, or our Youth Director, Joshua Dutchover in the parish office.

You should have received your 2020-2021 pledge cards for the United Catholic Appeal in your mailbox. This takes the place of the usual in-pew pledge process of previous years. Please complete it and send it back to the Diocese as soon as possible. Our UCA goal this year is around $61,000. Our parish has been successful in recent years in meeting and paying our goal. We're not just St. Ann's but also an important part of the family of the Diocese of Amarillo. Thank you for your sacrificial giving?

Many older adults experience concerns about falling and restrict their activities. A Matter of Balance is an award-winning program designed to manage falls and increase activity levels. Classes will be held once a week for eight weeks for 1 hour each. Classes are limited to 6 per class. This program is for 60+ adults and is free! For more information or to sign up, please contact Laurie Featherstone. Her contact information is in the August 30 bulletin. Classes will be held from September 10-October 29 on Thursdays from 10-11 a.m. or 1:30-2:30 p.m.

St. Ann's Parents' Day Out will begin next Wednesday, September 2. We are in the process of coming up with a procedure for a safe return. Those procedures will be handed out to parents before Parents' Day Out starts.

In times of great financial stress, our parish seeks to be of loving help to others. Every fifth Sunday of the month, then, we will have a second collection for our Caritas (Charity) fund. We are currently low on available funds to help those who ccantact us for assistance, most of whom are our fellow parishioners. Please keep in mind that we rarely give cash but instead assist people with direct payments to bill issuers or gift cards to the grocery store, etc. You may give at Mass or online to this important second collection. Thank you for loving your neighbor!

Praise be to God for Joe's Ordination to the Permanent Diaconate this weekend! Our St. Ann's family gives thanks to God for your willingness to play this special role in service to the people of God.

For some time, the Finance and Pastoral Councils have known that we have to address the condition of our parish hall. It is a pleasant building that has met amny needs but it needs some maintenance. Before we spend money on fixing up what we have, however, we have decided to form a committee to study how our current facility meets our needs now as well as into the near and distant future and what options we might want to consider. The committee will study the issue, consult experts and solicit the input of all our parishioners. The members are:  Glenn Backus, Matt Brandt, Cortni Hudspeth, Cruz Luna, Jr., Paty Martinez, Joshua Raef, and Mark Reinart. We appreciate their willingness to give of their time and talent.

There will be a Blessing of College Students and Young Adults Leaving Home at all the Masses on August 8 & 9 and August 15 & 16. There will also be a Blessing of Students and Teachings Beginning School at all the Masses on August 15 & 16.

The 15-members of the Permanent Diaconate Class of the Diocese of Amarillo, including St. Ann's parishioner Joe Roder, will be ordained by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek Saturday, August 15, during a 10:30 a.m. Mass at St. Mary's Cathedral. The Mass will be broadcast on St. Valentine Catholic Radio and livestreamed on the diocesan website.

Our high school discipleship groups will meet on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Youth Center. We will begin with small groups and and with ice cream and a game of "Quick Draw!"

Did you ever wish you knew more about your Catholic faith? The best way to learn is to teach! If you are interested in being a catechist or substitute catechist this coming school year, please contact Adrian Johnson, our Director of Religious Education.

St. Ann's Parents Day Out (PDO) will begin on Wednesday, September 2. We are in the process of coming up with a procedure for a safe return. Thos procedures will be handed out to parents before PDO starts.

St. Ann's is sponsoring a blood drive on Tuesday, August, from 2:30-7 p.m. in the parish hall. Please schedule an appointment to donate blood by calling 806-331-8833 or at yourbloodinstitute.org.

The feast day of our parish's namesake, St. Ann, is usually celebrated on July 26. This year, her feast day is trumped by the fact that it falls on a Sunday and therefore belongs to the Risen Lord. After consultation with parish leadership, we decided it was be imprudent this year to have our annual parish picnic. However, we will have a few goodies for each household to take home after Masses this weekend to celebrate St. Ann for her intercession for our parish and its people. For those unable to come to Mass, you can drive by and pick up your goodies on Sunday morning from 10:15-11:15 at the main entrance of the church. St. Ann, mother of Mary and grandmother of Jesus, pray for us!

A team of parish staff and catechists will be gathering this Tuesday evening to discuss plans for Christian Formation for children, teens and adults, including RCIA and youth ministry. Our diocese has already sent out a notice that classes are not to begin before October due to the COVID situation. Hopefully, we will come up with several options that will help us all grow in faith while staying safe. Stay tuned for more details.