st-rose-of-lima-bw.jpg Bishop George J. Lucas has given permission for St. Rose of Lima Church, Eighth and Chestnut, to be used as a chapel for regular celebration of the extraordinary form of the Mass in the Roman Rite.

A dream about spending 365 days in that many different Catholic parishes around the world, attending Mass with the people there in as many of those places as feasible, became a reality in 2007 for a Chicago man who grew up in Ss. Peter and Paul Parish in Collinsville.

tony-pics-new-1298.jpgOnly one church suffered damage due to flooding on the Mississippi River, and Catholic Charities in the Springfield diocese is prepared and doing all it can to assist flood victims in the diocese along the Mississippi and Wabash rivers.

dl-habitat-a.jpgWhen a friend suggested to Patty Redpath last year that she look into Habitat for Humanity as a possible way for the single mother of seven to move her family out of their double-wide mobile home into a house, Redpath's first thought was her income might make her ineligible. After all, with her master's degree and full-time employment as a county school social worker, the 48-year-old makes a decent living.

St. Francis Hospital Auxiliary Volunteers were honored June 23 at a recognition dinner at which volunteers by increments of 100 hours of service were given special recognition. In 2007 auxiliary volunteers logged 5,215 hours of service, and junior volunteers logged 771 hours.

2008mar29_3688.jpgTerry Farmer, owner of Terry Farmer Photography, Inc. in Springfield, spent nine days in Santa Cruz, Bolivia this spring, capturing life-changing transformations made possible through Operation Smile. Operation Smile is a worldwide medical charity dedicated to helping children and young adults born with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities.

Bishop George J. Lucas has approved a vision statement from St. Katharine Drexel Parish in Springfield that calls for increased collaboration with the community and a vital Catholic presence on Springfield's east side.

Honorees have each received a certificate signed by Bishop George J. Lucas. In addition to Bishop Lucas, certificates for teachers were signed by Jean Johnson, superintendent for schools.

The Franciscan friars of Sacred Heart Province, based in St. Louis, elected new major superiors during their chapter June 8-13.

Parish team training has been completed and regular sessions for Why Catholic?, a program that leads Catholics in adult faith formation and evangelization, will begin this fall, said Chris Malmevik, associate director for Catechesis for the diocese and the diocesan Why Catholic? coordinator.

Food and household supplies are much needed by Catholic Charities Holy Family Food Pantry in order to meet the increased summer time call for help from needy families in the Springfield area. With schools out for the summer, there are no regular school food drives to help stock the Holy Family Food Pantry shelves, plus school‑age children of needy families are home, and not getting meals at schools.

Daughters of Isabella, an organization for Catholic women age 16 or over, will hold their international convention Aug. 3-8 at the Millennium Hotel in St. Louis.

dyp-or-dl-cathedral-sweepstakes.jpgCathedral Grade School in Springfield won second place in the second annual Michigan Apple Sweepstakes. The school was recently presented with a check for $2,000. There were nearly 300 entries from all over Michigan and Illinois, and Cathedral was one of nine winners.

The Ursuline Sisters of the Central Province have named five Ursulines who will serve on their new leadership team.

On June 16, St. Joseph's Home broke ground for its new dementia center on the southeast side of the existing building at the intersection of Sixth Street and Stevenson Drive in Springfield.

dl-chaplain.jpgImagine being 18 to 22 years old, serving in the military, and being stationed nearly half-way around the world in harm's way. Now, imagine being in this situation (or having a child or a grandchild in this situation) without the support of a priest.

Attorney Tony DelGiorno was named 2008 Alumnus of the Year at the recent and final graduation festivities for Ursuline Academy in Springfield. DelGiorno, a 1996 UA graduate, was honored by the Ursuline Academy Alumni Association for his efforts to promptly organize the Ursuline Foundation following the announced closure of Ursuline in May 2007.

dl-qu-new-president-08.jpgWhen Robert Gervasi arrived on the Quincy University campus June 9, as the first lay person to serve as president of the liberal arts university, his plan was to learn as much as he could about the community, the people and the university.

Thirteen programs in nine communities throughout the Springfield diocese received grants totaling $20,000, as part of the local distribution of funds collected in the national Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

Women interested in learning about religious life can experience a week in a Benedictine monastery this summer. The Sisters of St. Benedict of Ferdinand, Ind., invite single Catholic women, ages 18 to 40, to attend a Benedictine Life Week June 27-July 3 at Monastery Immaculate Conception.

St. Jerome Parish is using a $500 grant from Operation Rice Bowl to purchase food for its ongoing food bus ministry.

The St. Vincent de Paul Outreach Food Pantry of St. Francis Solanus Church received a $1,000 Operation Rice Bowl grant from the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois.