From the Future Pastor’s Desk
Greetings, St. Ignatius Parishioners!
As of this writing, it still hasn’t been a week since I heard the big news that I have been appointed to be your pastor. I am so excited about this! I hope that you are too! At the beginning of the summer, you were not expecting a new pastor, and I had no idea that I would have a new assignment this fall; but here we are, and I look forward to meeting all of you!
My assignment officially begins October 12, 2024, and I plan to celebrate (or at least make an appearance at) the Saturday Vigil Mass and all the Sunday Masses that weekend. Until I move in to assume my duties, I trust that Fr. Tom Bolte (whom I thank for his hard work and coming out of administrative retirement!), Fr. David Tran, the Deacons and all the parish staff, will keep the big St. Ignatius machine running strong as they have over the last few months. I look forward to working with them in leading our mission to announce and celebrate the Gospel of salvation as the Church of Jesus Christ!
I also look forward to working with Mrs. Angie Heisel, our school principal, and all the faculty and staff of the school, in their efforts to give a solid, faith-filled Catholic education to the nearly 1,200 students at St. Ignatius School! I love the privilege and the challenge of passing on the faith to children, and I believe a large, well-administrated Catholic school like St. Ignatius is one of the best places for this to happen (with the primary effort from parents and family, of course). Please pray for me and for the parish staff, for the school faculty and staff, and for the whole St. Ignatius Parish community during this time of transition. While I may meet some of you before then, I’ll see you in October!
Praised be to Jesus Christ, now and forever!
Sincerely yours in Christ, Fr. Andrew Umberg
From the Temporary
Administrator’s Desk
Greetings,
Speaking of clergy, we are very blessed with having 4 Permanent Deacons in service at St. Ignatius: Deacon Tim Helmick, Deacon Tony Gagliarducci, Deacon Mike Erb, and Deacon John (Butch) Homoelle. However, Deacon Mike will be having knee replacement surgery, so will not be assisting at Mass or helping with Baptisms until he is finished with recuperation. Recently parishioner Steve Hendy has expressed interest in becoming a Permanent Deacon, so he will be entering into a year of discernment.
Thank you to all, who helped with the Parish picnic on Sept. 6 at Stricker’s Grove. It was a great appreciation celebration for all, who helped with the festival, along with all parish members. The Festival profit will be larger than last year. We are still waiting for the final expenses and will include the net profit in the bulletin soon.
Next weekend Sept. 14/15 is our annual celebration of Catechetical Sunday throughout the United States. This is when we recognize and bless those, who teach the faith to children, teenagers and adults. We have so many great catechists in the parish, but volunteers to help at School, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and adult programs are always needed and welcome. Of course we are not just a parish community, but a world community of faith as shown by the parish members who visited our twinning parish in Kenya, Africa and are speaking at the Masses this weekend. It was a life changing experience for them. Now to continue our relationship of prayer and support between our parishes. Also, keep Pope Francis in prayer for good health and wisdom as he is on his 2 week trip to Asia, including a Prayer Service for Peace among world religious leaders in Singapore.
Speaking of world travelers, my relatives from Germany are visiting this weekend and plan to attend the Saturday, 4:30 pm Mass on Sept. 7. They are huge American football fans, so they got tickets months ago to attend the Bengals game on Sept. 8. Hopefully, it will be a winning day for the Bengals, but most importantly each of us can have a win on our journey to heaven by loving God and Neighbor this week. God Bless,
From the Future Pastor’s Desk 
From the Temporary