We are filled with joy and looking forward to having Bishop Hying celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation with 50 of our students from the pastorate. Please pray for them and their sponsors.

There will be an orientation meeting for all parents and students who will be celebrating their First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion at St. Clement Church on September 17 from 6:00 -7:30 p.m.

FAMILY PROMISE at ST. CLEMENT Our Host Week Is Coming Up! Our week to host families experiencing homelessness is coming up the week of September 7. While that may seem far off, it really is not, especially with Labor Day the week before. Volunteer Sign-Up Forms for the various areas of service are on a table in the back of church. You can volunteer for more than one area, or more than once. Please sign up early in order for us to be ready on the 7th. If you have any questions, or are interested in helping out but have not done so in the past, please give me a call at 723-4990, or Peg Jonas at 723-2051. Thanks!! ~ Bill

Musicians and singers are needed for a praise and worship team for Saint Joseph the Worker Pastorate. A workshop will be held on August 23. Time to be determined. If you are interested or want more info, please contact Leigh at: [email protected].

We are excited to participate in Clarity’s Baby Bottle for Life Campaign! Thank you to Belinda Lyght, Advancement Director Clarity Clinic of SW Wisconsin, for sharing information about Clarity Clinic and how we can help to change and save lives. Filling a bottle with change will truly change lives. Filling a baby bottle helps fund Clarity Clinic so that they can continue saving the lives of the unborn and supporting the pregnancy and parenting needs of women and men. There are extra baby bottles at each church if you were not Mass when Belinda gave her presentation. Please return your baby bottle to a parish office by August 31.

St. Clement Parish will be hosting a Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training workshop on Wednesday, August 13. Did you know that 1 in 5 adults in the US lives with some form of mental illness; and that 130 persons die by suicide every day? MHFA training teaches you how to recognize, understand and respond to signs of mental health and substance abuse challenges among adults. In our rural area, we face so many mental health challenges and barriers. The more people who receive MHFA training, the more that we can reach out to others, and whose lives can be supported, changed and even saved. Be the Difference! Sign up for the Mental Health First Aid Training on August 13 from 9 AM to 5 PM. To register, email [email protected], or call 608-821-3050. Two hours of online pre-course work must be completed before the training. ​Register ASAP

St. Mary’s Holy Name Fair Stand The Blake’s Prairie Fair on July 18-20 will soon be here. LOTS of workers are needed to make sure that the fair stand is successful. Men from other parishes can also volunteer to help! All workers will need to have a fair button. The fair stand provides delicious food from morning to evening all three days of the fair and has also been an important part of the fair experience in Bloomington. The income from the fair stand is used toward the parish insurance which was over $20,000 this year. The stand will also need LOTS of double-crusted apple and cherry pies from our wonderful bakers! Please contact Mike Patterson or St. Mary’s Parish office if you would like to help at the stand or to make a donation. All men are asked to contribute $20.00 to help defray expenses. Everyone is invited to attend the fair, enjoy the delicious food and to help make this event successful.

Everyone from our pastorate is invited to join us for a fabulous SUNSET CRUISE on Friday, August 1. The cruise will be from 8-10 p.m. and will depart from the Cassville Ferry Landing with loading to begin at 7:45 p.m. The cost is $12/person. Pay and Sign Up for the Cruise at the St. Clement Parish office. Please make checks out to Knights of Columbus and sign up ASAP! Bring your own chairs, drinks and snacks. Please Note: No Glass of any kind is allowed on the Ferry! We’ll be having live music too, for an enjoyable evening on the Mighty Mississippi! Invite your friends (and sign them up) and meet new friends from our pastorate! While everyone is invited, space is limited, so sign up soon. For more information, contact Bill & Judy Seyer at 608-988-6543.

SS. Andrew-Thomas School is seeking to hire a Music Teacher for the 2025/26 school year, please contact Beth at 608-763-2120 or [email protected].

We were overjoyed to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Fr. Sudhakar Reddy Devarapu's Ordination to the Sacred Priesthood of Jesus Christ yesterday with a beautiful Mass, delicious food and lots of wonderful people. We are very grateful that Bishop Donald Hying, many priests, and lots of father's friends and parish members were able to join us for the day. A huge & hearty THANK YOU to Gary Mumm and crew for preparing the delicious chicken and to Melanie Mergen and all of the fantastic volunteers from the parishes who helped to set up, serve the meal and cleaned up afterward. Thank you to everyone who brought desserts. The food was fabulous!!! A very special thank you to Jane Patterson and the choir members from our parishes for the amazing music for the Mass. We are very grateful to everyone who helped with the Mass especially Deacon Roger Scholbrock and Bill Manthe and the servers. Thank you to Donna Bark, Kim Vogt, Cathy Martin and helpers for the lovely flowers and making the church look stunning for the Mass. It was an incredible celebration and truly there aren't enough words to thank everyone who made it possible. God bless.

St. Mary School is looking to hire a Middle School teacher (grades 5-8) for the 2025-2026 school year. Please contact Kelly Copsey if you are interested in being a part of our St. Mary's family. [email protected] / (608)994-2435.

We are very grateful to the parents for following through with the promises they made at their child’s Baptism, to bring them up in the practice of the faith. May God continue to bless them as they teach their child about Christ’s love and presence in the Eucharist. Our First Communicants: Kinsley Breuer Madilyn Cooper Everett Guthrie Jensen Hampton Clay Mezera Case Mulrooney Liam Needham Everett Patterson Owen Price Reid Raisbeck Bennett Redman Scarlett Udelhoven

St. Mary in Glen Haven’s Drive Thru Pork Chop Dinner on June 22 is approaching fast! Anyone with a raffle prize, please contact Joe or Cindi Breuer.

Ss. Andrew-Thomas School Spaghetti Supper on May 13 from 5-6:30 p.m.

After looking over St. Mary's Rectory roof and windows, St. Mary's Parish Council has decided to have the remaining 30 original 1949 rectory windows replaced this year. This project will cost approximately $51,000.00 and should be completed sometime later this summer or early fall. While there are some restricted maintenance funds that can be used toward the cost, St. Mary's Parish Council is hoping that generous people in our parish and pastorate will be able to help with this expense by making donations to ST. MARY'S RECTORY WINDOW PROJECT. Please contact St. Mary's Parish office at 608-994-2526 for more information.

St. Mary School Bike/Walk-a-thon Saturday, April 26 9am to 11am Additional information: 3k - 7th grade may participate Participants please see the forms

A HUGE thank you to Steve Bernhardt for donating and installing the new amp and speakers at St. Mary's Church. Thank you to Pat Casey for generously donating copies of the Lenten Magnificat for St. Mary's families. Thank you to everyone who helped with the repairs and organizing St. Mary's Church Kitchen.

St. Mary’s Fish Fry Thank You’s We had a fantastic Fish Fry & Raffle with over 775 meals served! We deeply appreciate everyone who supported our Fish Fry and made it a fun and successful night! A huge THANK YOU to St. Mary's Parish Council and everyone who prepared the delicious meal especially the crew who prepared the fish. We have received a lot of compliments! Thank you to everyone who donated bars and cookies and the great people who helped during the evening. A special thank you to Mary & Kurt Adrian, Ma's Bakery for donating the delicious coleslaw and rolls. Thank you to all who gave donations toward our raffle prizes. Thank you to Dennis and Annette Knapp for donating part of their winnings back to St. Mary’s. Thank you to Catholic Financial Life Branch #34 for co-sponsoring the raffle and donating napkins. The following are the total amounts received during the Fish Fry before expenses have been paid: Raffle: $6,225.00 Raffle Prize Donations: $800.00 Meals: $11,527.00 Sale of Extra Food: $824.00 Refreshments: $109.00 Fish Fry Donation$250.00 Total to date: $19,735.00

Children are a great gift to us. One way families can find support for the moral and academic formation of their children is in a Catholic school. Below are just few of the reasons why we value our Catholic school: *There is weekly Mass and special feast days where the children are more involved in the liturgy and regular prayer is a part of the school day. *There is a regular religion class several times each week so the children can come to understand the rich tradition and teachings of the Catholic faith. *Our Catholic School has a strong family feel and students are welcomed, and feel safe and comfortable while being challenged to grow and mature according to God’s plan for each of them. *Teachers help the children connect the Catholic faith with all other learning and work with parents for the good of children. Thank you to all of our wonderful parishioners, benefactors, and volunteers who make Catholic education in our area possible. Thank you to all of our dedicated teachers and staff who share their knowledge and faith each day with our students. Thank you to our parents and families who made the decision to entrust St. Mary’s School with the education of their children. May God continue to bless our students, families, and schools as we give thanks for the great blessing of Catholic school. Please contact the school or parish offices to learn more about enrolling your child(ren) in our excellent school.