Thank you to all of the individuals and parish organizations who made the Interfaith Thanksgiving Worship Service such a beautiful event! The parish’s welcoming spirit shone through as it hosted four other north Durham congregations and community visitors, giving thanks to God for all our many blessings, and praising God with a truly Joyful Noise!! It is clear that Everyone Leads at St. Matthew’s. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

The weekly Wednesday Women group visited the Diaper Bank of NC helping to repackage baby wipes. In just a few short hours we plowed through quite a few cases of donated wipes. Thanks ladies for being living examples of the Gospel.

Thank you to all who came out this past weekend to vote on our "saint" pumpkins. The winner was St. Cecilia #16 created by Katie Provost. Second place was Mother Teresa #19 made by the children in the 5th grade class.

It’s that time of year again for St. Mathew’s Troop 405’s annual Christmas Poinsettia Fundraiser. We will be selling Poinsettias after Mass on November 3rd-4th & 10th-11th. We will be accepting cash or checks when you order (made payable to “Boy Scout Troop 405”) or if you would prefer to pay by Credit Card or PayPal, use the order form above. We currently expect to deliver the poinsettias after Mass on December 1st & 2nd. We appreciate your support of Troop 405! These funds are used for a variety of troop expenses including equipment purchases, trailer maintenance, and camp scholarships.

The children and youth have decorated pumpkins to represent their favorite saints. Please stop by the parish hall and cast your vote for your favorite! Prizes will be awarded.

Join the Knights of Columbus on Sunday, October 28 for a Pancake Breakfast from 9:30-11:00 am and again from 4PM-7PM for the 3rd Annual Trunk & Treat! The proceeds from the pancake breakfast go to support local Special Olympics events.

The service day at the NC Diaper Bank was a huge success. We not only helped wrap diapers for local agencies but helped prepare a shipment of diapers being sent to the Wilmington area.

In the upcoming weeks opportunities will be presented to you to increase your involvement in the parish. This weekend we are highlighting a Welcome Committee Re-boot as well as our Name Tag Weekend and Change Pew weekend. Click the title for the full article or find it in the bulletin.

We are off to a great start with our Everyone Leads initiative. We invite you to join the movement by attending our planning session on Wednesday, September 26 from 7:00-8:30pm in the parish hall. You don't have to have completed the book to join us! We hope to see many of you there.

Thirty-nine youth and eight adults went on retreat to the Trinity Center in Salter Path, NC the weekend of August 24-26, 2018. The experience included witness talks, dancing, games, Adoration, mass and much more. All the youth had the chance to experience God's Timeless love first hand. Thank you to all those who helped make this weekend a terrific success through their financial and spiritual support.

Calling all 10th, 11th and 12th grade youth! SEARCH is a peer-led weekend where youth get the opportunity to connect with other Catholic Youth and experience God's unconditional love. The first weekend of the 2018/19 year is November 16-19. To register for this weekend, see Mrs. Clifton.

Calling all youth in grades 6-8! We will be holding a middle school retreat called "Inside Out" at Camp Chestnut Ridge on September 29-20. Register TODAY by going to https://www.stmchapelhill.org/piedmont-deanery-middle-school-retreat

All adults working with youth as a catechist, mentor, scout leader, chaperone, or in any ministry with direct contact of youth, are required to attend Safe Environment Training classes once every five years. If you need to renew your certification or will be taking on a new role within the church, the next class will be Saturday, August 11 at 10AM in the parish hall. For new people, please print off the Application C and Reference forms and bring the completed forms to the session on August 11.

Our high school graduates were honored on Saturday, June 2 at the baccalaureate mass. Ten of the thirteen graduates were in attendance. Each graduate received a gift from the parish and the Knights of Columbus. This year the parish established a college scholarship for a graduating senior. Seniors had to submit an application in February which were reviewed by a scholarship committee. This year's recipient is Jeric Lalo. Jeric will be graduating from Riverside High School and attending UNC Chapel Hill with plans to major in Pharmacy.

Schools are winding down and families are looking for a little R&R. Here are some Summer Activity Calendars to help children stay connected to their faith even on summer vacation! It is a great way to remind the entire family to give thanks to God for all our blessings!

Wishing all the mothers a very blessed day.

Each year the local Boy Scout organization recognizes excellence in leadership. This year, St. Matthew's is proud to announce that three of our own were recognized. James Davis was awarded Cub Master of the Year, Matthew Jenks was awarded Scout Master of the Year and Nic Martinez was awarded Scout of the Year. All three have made major contributions in growing Pack 405 and Troop 405 at St. Matthew. Congratulations to James, Matt, and Nic. New members are always welcome - scouts and volunteers! See the front of the bulletin for contact information.

A committee is working on developing a weekend Women's Retreat at the beach the weekend of February 1-3, 2019. The retreat center requires a minimum of 30 to reserve the space. We invite all women of St. Matthew to complete the attached survey to see if there is enough interest to proceed. Please complete this by May 31, 2018. We hope you will join us! Click on the title above to go directly to the survey.

Each Lent, Catholic Relief Services sponsors the Rice Bowl Project. Families are asked to give up something during Lent and put the money that would have been used into the Rice Bowl. All donations go to help feed those around the world who face hunger each day. Instead of ordering pizza for dinner consider making pizza at home and put the money saved into the Rice Bowl. Please return all Rice Bowls beginning on Palm Sunday, the start of Holy Week. Thank you for your generous donations.

Please bring any old palms to mass this weekend. These are burned and used at Ash Wednesday masses. There is a basket in the commons.