On the Weekend of November 5th and 6th, we will have a speaker from Woman’s New Life Center at all the Masses to present the Baby Bottle Campaign. The Center is a non-profit professional counseling center and medical clinic serving women and families struggling with unplanned pregnancies. Donations collected enable them to offer free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds and professional counseling for unplanned pregnancies and for those struggling with a past abortion. Thank you for your support.

Thanks to all who took a grocery bag to help our St. Vincent de Paul Society with the food baskets for Christmas. Please return your donations to Church or the Parish Office by Sunday, November 27th.

All Saints Day is a Holy Day of Obligation. Vigil Mass will be celebrated at 5:30pm on Monday, October 31st. Masses on Tuesday, November 1st will be at 7am, 8:15am (Children’s Mass – SBS),12 Noon, and 6:00pm. Please note that because of the Vigil Mass for All Saints Day on Monday, October 31st, there will be no Holy Hour or Confessions from 6:00-7:00pm. The Parish Office will be closed on Tuesday, November 1st in observance of All Saints Day.

On All Souls Day we honor all of our deceased loved ones in a special way. Here at St. Benilde Church we will be remembering your deceased loved ones both on this day with the celebration of Holy Mass (Wednesday, November 2nd) and at all of the Masses throughout the month of November. In that spirit, we invite you to inscribe the names of those you wish for us to remember and pray for on All Souls Day and during the Masses throughout the month of November on the special All Souls Remembrance Envelopes found in the vestibule of the Church. Please place your envelopes in the collection basket or bring them to the Parish Office before November 1st. The suggested donation is $5.00 per name recorded on your envelop. Mass remembrance envelopes will remain on the altar throughout the month of November and names will be printed in the Parish Bulletin.

The Foodie Fest runs from 6:00 - 11:00 PM on Friday, from Noon - 11:00 PM on Saturday, and from Noon - 8:00 PM on Sunday. Be sure to be there to close the Foodie Fest out at 8:00 PM when the last ten contestants for the raffle (or their designees) haggle it out on stage to see who wins or if they will cut a deal. It will be a ton of fun! Band Schedule: Friday Night: Groovy 7 from 7:30 - 10:30 PM; Saturday: Rummel Jazz Band from Noon - 2:00 PM; Saturday Afternoon: Rock Steady from 3:30 - 7:00 PM (Costume Contest at 5:30); Saturday Night: Category 6 from 8-11 PM; Sunday Evening: Burger and Fries from 5-8 PM. The St. Benilde Foodie Fest … Come for the Food … Stay for the Fun!

The St. Benilde Foodie Fest is October 28-30, 2016 on the St. Benilde School grounds! Proceeds from the Foodie Fest go to school improvement efforts, including updated learning resources, technology, classroom equipment, and school beautification. This year, the Foodie Fest is doing a $15,000 Reverse Raffle! Here is how it works ...

On the weekend of October 15th and 16th, the St. Benilde Home & School Association will be collecting donations for the annual Council of Catholic Schools Cooperative Clubs "Clothe A Child" campaign that provides gifts of newly purchased clothing for underprivileged children in the New Orleans area for Christmas. We sincerely appreciate your generosity in brightening the day of these children during the Christmas season.

Calling all egg lovers! The fair committee needs your rinsed, empty eggshells to make confetti eggs for what is going to be the best St. Benilde Parish Fair ever! Please drop of the rinsed, empty eggshells to the Parish Office at your convenience. Additionally, if you know of any bakery that would be willing to donate their eggshells, please let us know. We truly appreciate your help and are looking forward to a terrific Parish Fair!

On the weekend of October 1st and 2nd, Respect Life Sunday, the CYO will be selling 2017 Right to Life calendars after all the Masses. Calendars are $5 each. Proceeds help New Orleans Right to Life and the CYO. Thank you in advance for your support.

We need your help. Every year our St. Vincent de Paul Society works to provide Thanksgiving dinner for many of the less fortunate in our church parish. On the weekend of October 8th and 9th, grocery bags will be available in the Church foyer with a list of the most needed items attached. Please return food donations to either Church or the Parish Office. If you would like to make with a monetary donation of any amount instead, it would be greatly appreciated. The money may be left in the poor box, put into the regular collection marked “St. Vincent de Paul,” or brought to the Parish Office. Thank you very much for your continued generosity.

As most of you may already be aware, with the closing of the Metairie abortion facility, this year's 40 Days for Life Campaign's vigil will be held outside the Planned Parenthood facility located at 4636 S. Claiborne Avenue in New Orleans, from Sep. 28 through Nov. 6th. While our parish will not be adopting an entire day this year to pray outside the facility, we invite each of you and your families and friends to join another parish or group during these 40 days to spend at least one hour in prayer on any day(s) of the campaign. You can sign up at "40daysforlifenola.com" or contact the campaign office at 504-835-6520. Prayer cards will be available in the vestibule of the church; please join us in praying and/or performing some type of fasting each day to end the brutal deaths of God's precious creations.

Mark your calendar for the CYO Car Wash on Sunday, September 25. Drop off your car between 8 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and the CYO will wash your car while you are attending Mass. Donations gratefully accepted.

Don’t miss our Annual Parish Bingo that the Home & School Association/Grandparents’ Club are sponsoring next Sunday, Sept. 18, from 12:30 until 2:30 p.m., in the cafeteria. Doors open at 12 noon. An entry fee of $10 includes four interchangeable bingo cards for adults and children age five and up. Children under five are admitted free and receive one card. There will be food, fun, and wonderful game prizes for all ages. Donations are still being accepted from prize sponsors. To donate or for more information, please contact Cherisse Heidingsfelder at 504-261-1529 or via email at cherisseann2002@gmail.com

Archbishop Aymond is asking all churches in the Archdiocese of New Orleans to have a light on in the confessional on Wednesday, September 14th as a sign that Christ is not only the light of the world but one who is eager to forgive and to heal us. St. Benilde Catholic Church will offer the Sacrament of Reconciliation on September 14th from 5:00pm-6:30p.m. If you have been away from the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we invite you to come back to God’s loving mercy and forgiveness.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is sponsoring a “Friends of the Poor Walk” on Saturday, Sept. 24, at Laketown Park & Walking Path, Kenner. Onsite registration begins at 8 a.m. The one-mile walk will start at 9 a.m. Music and refreshments will be provided from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Overflow parking is available in the Treasure Chest Casino parking lot. Walkers are to solicit and collect pledges. Donations appreciated. This weekend (September 10th and 11th) SVDP members will be at all the Masses with more information, registration forms, and accepting donations. Forms for preregistration are also available in the Parish Office or online at www.FOPWALK.ORG. This is an important fundraiser for our SVDP because all money raised at St. Benilde stays in this Parish. Thank you for your generous support of our efforts to help the less fortunate in our Parish.

The Young Adult Group will meet Wednesday, September 7th, at 7 p.m., in the Teen Center. All young adults, aged 18 to 39 years old, are invited to join the group. Its purpose is to build relationships and grow in faith with other young adults in our parish and throughout the archdiocese.

Please join us for an eight part bible study featuring Dr. Edward Sri. Filmed on location in the Holy Land, Mary: A Biblical Walk with the Blessed Mother will place you in the midst of the powerful drama of her earthly life, taking you through her joys...and her sorrows. You will learn how she works in our lives today, drawing us ever closer to her Divine Son. Seeing Mary in this way will change you forever. Mary will become a part of your daily life, and in your daily life, you will become more like Christ. Class begins on Thursday, September 8—the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It will continue each Thursday through October 27. Sessions will be from 6:15 to 8 p.m. (following 5:30 p.m. Mass) in the Teen Center. Registration forms are available on the parish website and in the Parish Office. The fee of $25 covers the workbook for the class. Make checks payable to “St. Benilde Church Bible Study.” For more information please visit www.stbenilde.org/Mary-in-the-bible, or contact Judy Zeringue at jzeringue@nds.edu.

Attention High School Sophomores and any Juniors who did not register last year and are interested in receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. Anyone who is currently a sophomore or older, and their parents, should attend an informational meeting on Sunday, September 11th, at 12 noon, in the cafeteria. Registrations forms may be found on the parish website and in the Parish Office. They may be returned to either the School or Parish Office. Please note, the Archdiocese of New Orleans requires two consecutive years of religious instruction before Confirmation. For more information, please contact Cecilia Wilson at 504-782-8943 or by email at cwilson@stbenilde.com

St. Benilde’s CCD Program is offered to pre-K3 through 12th grade students not currently attending Catholic school. Classes begin on Sunday, September 11, in the main school building. We teach religion from 9:45 a.m. until 10:45 a.m. Registration forms are available on the parish website and in the Parish Office. The usual fee/tuition is $50 per student. For more information, please visit www.stbenilde.org/ccd or call Mary Kelly at 504-834-4980, ext. 113.

Next weekend (August 27th and 28th) Fr. Philip Parent, a missionary with the Marist Fathers and Brothers, will speak at all the Masses. He will share information about their efforts establishing the Church among poor and oppressed communities around the world. Thank you in advance for your generosity in the second collection to help them with their work.