Last Monday, our older students attended Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. They offered their prayers for the success of the March for Life that was taking place in Washington, DC.

Our second graders received the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time on Saturday, January 28^th.

We have been preparing for Catholic Schools Week, which begins today and continues for the week. This year’s theme is "Faith, Academics, and Service". You are welcome to visit school during the week and see firsthand why we are so proud of ICS.

We would like all our parishioners to become acquainted with the ICS web site: www.icschoolonline.org. It is a wonderful way to learn more about who we are and what we’re doing. Be sure to click on "Photo Gallery" to view pictures of our recent activities, and also check out "School Notes" to see what our students are learning in their various classes. Hopefully, you will be so impressed you’ll want to help us spread the word: ICS is the best!

Our 100th Year at ICS

We have started the 100^th year of Immaculate Conception School – September 2011 will mark our 100^th Anniversary. We hope to offer a lot of activities for alumni, but do not have current information for everyone. Are you a graduate of ICS? Do you have current addresses for family members or friends? If so please send them to us and join your fellow classmates in reconnecting with us.

Please be sure that your IRIS information is up-to-date so that you will always be notified in case of school closings, emergencies, or other important notifications.

ICS is participating in the Catholic Alumni Partnership.  Did you attend a Catholic elementary school?

View our 2011 Centennial Gala Journal

Learn About Our 2011 Centennial Gala Supporters

Learn About our Casino Night 2010 Supporters

Now that our classes are under way, we ask that parents who are picking up children who are in 4^th through 8^th grade to personally meet their children by the flagpole area at dismissal time.  Unescorted children, walking/running through the parking lot, could result in an injury.  We thank you for your cooperation in this important matter.

Catechist Assistants Needed

As we begin our program, we are looking for catechist assistants, especially for our younger grades which meet on Monday and Thursday afternoons.  If you have been hesitant to step forward to teach a class, but still would like to help, please consider being an assistant.  Call 961-1076, for more information.

Sister Cora will facilitate a 5 part series about Reconciliation using Bishop Morneau’s book, Reconciliation. The meetings will be 1:30-2:30 PM in Fr. Fata Hall on the following Tuesdays: February 7, 14, and 21. There is a cost of $15 to cover the book and materials. Please contact Sister Cora to reserve your place.

Due to the increased number of people in need of meals at the HOPE soup kitchen, we are reaching beyond our dedicated group of "Volunteer Angels" who currently cook and donate food once a month to anyone able to help whenever possible. The next scheduled days for our Parish are Wednesday, February 8 and Tuesday, February 21. The menu consists of beef stew (potatoes, carrots, etc. cut in small pieces), two large bags of frozen (uncooked) peas and carrots, two large bags of mixed salad greens, and a bottle of Italian dressing (donations of any of the above are appreciated).

Aluminum pans will be available on the back porch of the rectory for the cooked entree (enough for about 10-15 people). Food should be brought to the Immaculate Conception rectory back porch by 2:30 PM on the designated days. For information, call Kathy Doscher: 337-3356 or visit us online.

Viewing of Father Robert Barron’s Catholicism DVD will continue on Monday, February 27. The topic for session 4 will be Our Tainted Nature’s Solitary Boast: Mary, The Mother of God. Meetings are at 7:30 PM in the Lower Church. You need not attend every session. Please contact Sister Cora to make your reservation.

The Padre Pio Prayer Group gathers for Mass on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Church of the Assumption at 7:30 PM. The next Mass will be on Tuesday, February 28^th. Praying of the Rosary and Confessions begin at 7:00 PM.

• I have never been baptized and want to learn more about the Catholic faith.

• I was baptized in another Christian religion and now wish to become Catholic.

• I was baptized Catholic but have not received any other sacraments and little, if any, religious education.

• I am married to a Catholic and attend mass and would like to receive the sacraments.

• My kids are old enough to ask questions and I want to be able to practice what I preach and be a good role model.

If you recognize yourself in any of these statements, the RCIA journey could be for you. Call Sr. Cora: 914-961-3643 or 203-934-1357 (cell) to learn more. 

Many families who have donated to our Building Fund and who qualify for Memorial Naming Opportunities have not taken advantage of this option. If your pledge or donation is at the $10,000 or more level, please let us know if you are interested in one of these opportunities. Call the rectory and ask for Chris.

Many companies sponsor matching gift programs to encourage employees to support charitable institutions. If your gift is eligible, simply request a matching gift form from your employer and send it, completed and signed along with your gift to:

If you need help completing the form, please call the rectory. Please note: some companies will match the Gym Campaign and not the Church projects. Please read your company’s policy carefully. Call the rectory and ask for Chris if you have any questions.

ICS is now accepting registration for the upcoming 2011-2012 school year. Our school is accredited by the Middle States Association, an academic accrediting institution. Not many elementary schools are accredited by Middle States. Our program covers Pre-K for 3-year olds through eighth grade. The tuition for our school is the most affordable in the area. All are welcome. If you need more information please call the school at 961-3785.

Hospitality is in need of parishioners to supply cakes or cookies (home baked or bought). Hospitality Sunday at Assumption is the first Sunday of the month. Not a baker? Perhaps you could consider making a donation to help defray our costs.

The Immaculate Conception Adult Choir is open to those who like to sing and are willing to commit to the choir’s schedule. We rehearse on Tuesday evenings and sing at the 10:30 AM Mass on Sunday. If you are interested in joining the choir and participating in this important ministry of our parish, please come to the choir loft and speak to Robert Harvey after Mass. All voice parts are needed!

Instrumentalists Wanted - The Music Director of Immaculate Conception is looking for instrumentalists to accompany the choir at the 10:30 AM Mass. To volunteer, come to the choir loft and speak to Robert Harvey after Mass.

If you would be interesting in being a lector at the Church of the Assumption, and are at least 16 years old, please contact Rita Boyer at 589-8850.

The Bible Study Program will continue on Wednesday evenings at 7:30 PM in the Lower Rectory.  Come learn about the early Church. Please bring your Bible.

Memory Stones are still available for the Prayer Garden at Assumption.  Leaves on the Memory Tree in the Church are also available.  For more information, please contact Michele Pinto for the Prayer Garden stones and Jim Celestino for the Memory Tree leaves.

Have you ever noticed the food collection bins at Immaculate Conception Church? They are there to collect non-perishable food items for the HOPE (Help Other People Eat) Ministry.

The H.O.P.E. ministry is in need of cooks, once a month, to prepare or donate unprepared foods for simple meals to feed 10. On the third Tuesday and second Wednesday of each month, we deliver meals to the H.O.P.E. soup kitchen in New Rochelle.

Volunteers are asked on the Tuesday or Wednesday, not both, to provide either unprepared foods such as a couple of bags of salad or frozen vegetables, or prepared foods such as meatloaf, sliced ham with sweet potatoes, hamburgers, chicken legs and thighs, etc. You just deliver the food to the back porch of the rectory by 3 PM of the assigned date. Again, your contribution is to feed only 10 people. Anyone interested please contact Kathy: 337-3356 or Camille: 961-7325.

No matter what the size of your estate, if you want to provide for relatives, friends and our Parish, you will need a Will. If you die without one, you lose the ability to control the disposition of your assets. New York State law, and not you, will tell your family where your money and property goes. Further, income tax and estate tax savings, which might be arranged through a careful review of your alternatives in the course of preparing your Will or estate plan, will be lost if no Will is prepared. Naming our parish as a charitable beneficiary in your Will is simple. For further information, you and/or your attorney may contact:

Director, Planned Gifts
The Archdiocese of New York
1011 First Avenue, Suite 1400
New York, New York 10022

(212) 371-1000 extension 3317

There are new stricter legal and ethical guidelines regarding the dissemination of patient information from hospitals to churches and clergy. In addition, today’s shorter hospital stays make timely pastoral visits difficult at best. If you have occasion to be hospitalized, you or your family members should do two things:

• Notify the rectory to let us know the hospital and dates.

• Upon admission to the hospital, you will be asked if you desire to have your religious affiliation as a part of your medical record and for permission to make your name available to clergy. Please indicate you are Catholic and note the parish.

Our ministry for the Hispanics of the community is thriving. We are regularly scheduling Convivencias on the second Monday of each month at 7:30 pm at Fr. Fata Hall. We are also offering Mass in Spanish at the Church of the Assumption at noon each Sunday. Other services include English classes, Faith Formation through R.C.I.A., and social outreach. For more information, visit our Hispanic Ministry web page:

If you believe that you have suffered sexual abuse by a member of the clergy or anyone acting in the name of the Church, recently or in the past, the Archdiocese would like to assist you in reporting the abuse and in getting you the help you might need. If you wish to report sexual abuse by a priest or a deacon, you may do so by telephoning Sister Eileen Clifford at 212-371-1011, ext. 2949 or Monsignor Desmond O’Connor at 212-371-1011, ext. 2931. Both can be reached via e-mail at victimsassistance@archny.org. In addition, visitors to the Archdiocesan website, http://www.ny-archdiocese.org will find information for making a complaint online, by e-mail or by U.S. mail. The website also has valuable information on the Archdiocesan Safe Environment Program as well as tips for parents. In keeping with the Archdiocesan policy regarding sexual abuse, we provide this information to assure that all, especially our children, are safe and secure.

Si usted cree que recientemente o en el pasado ha sufrido abuso deshonesto por parte de un miembro de la clerecía o otros cometidos en la actuación en el nombre de la Iglesia, la Arquidiócesis ansía ayudarlo a denunciar el abuso y a obtener la asistencia que usted pueda necesitar. Si usted desea denunciar abuso deshonesto por parte de un sacerdote o un diácono, puede hacerlo telefoneando a la Hna. Eileen Clifford, al 212-371-1011, ext. 2949, o a Monseñor Desmond O´Connor, al 212-371-1011, ext. 2931. Ambos pueden ser contactados por correo electrónico en victimsassistance@archny.org. Además, quienes visitan la página Web de la Arquidiócesis, http://www.ny-archdiocese.org, encontrarán información para hacer una denuncia online, por medio de un correo electrónico o por el correo de los Estados Unidos. La página Web también tiene información valiosa sobre el Programa arquidiocesano por un Ambiente Seguro, así como también avisos confidenciales para los padres. Al compartir la política de la Arquidiócesis respecto al abuso deshonesto, proporcionamos esta información para asegurar que todos, en especial nuestros niños, están a salvo y seguros.

If you don’t own a cookbook yet, you can call the rectory to reserve a copy. They will be ready for pickup the next weekend - and they make great gifts for Christmas, bridal showers, and for the college student!

Please do:

1. Write separate checks for second collections (those donations that are not for Assumption or Immaculate Conception Churches.) Writing one check for several different purposes makes our bookkeeping tasks difficult and causes extra work.

2. Please put your envelope number on your check. If you are not using envelopes, consider using them.

3. Prepare your envelope and have your check written before coming to Church.

4. Combine regular weekly Sunday offerings that were missed/forgotten with the present Sunday offering, and place it in the current envelope. One check is sufficient.

5. Remember to sign your check.

We thank you for your generosity and your support. It will help us to be more efficient and accurate in recording your contributions.

The members of the Rosary Society, Our Lady’s Cenacles, and the Legion of Mary, will join together to honor Mary’s request at Fatima, which is to practice the Devotion of First Saturdays of each month.  The Devotion of First Saturdays includes Confession, Communion, the recitation of five decades of the Rosary, plus twenty minutes of meditation on the twenty mysteries for five consecutive months.  Members meet at 9:00am Mass, followed by the recitation of the Holy Rosary.  For more information, call Ana Nunes.  All are invited.

Throughout church history, the Blessed Sacrament and the Rosary have brought about victories in hopeless times. One example is the Battle of Lepanto in 1571. When forces sought to destroy Christianity in Europe, Pope Pius, V instructed all Churches to hold 40 hours devotions (Eucharistic Adoration) and recite the Rosary. The Catholic faith was saved by people praying before Our Lord in the Holy Eucharist and offering the Holy Rosary.

How blessed we are at Immaculate Conception to have Eucharistic Adoration every Monday and on First Fridays. To be able to continue with this wonderful gift, we are in need of committed adorers from 1pm to 7:15pm on Mondays and 1pm to 7pm on First Fridays.

Ministry Heads who want to have notices placed in the bulletin should submit the notice by Thursday, a week and a half before the bulletin will be distributed. The submittal should include all pertinent information including dates, times and places. Contact information should also be included, particularly daytime phone numbers, so that we can get back to you with questions. When using a parish facility, that facility needs to be booked ahead of time.

Due to space constraints, we cannot guarantee your notice will be included in the bulletin, although we will make every effort to include all parish items submitted by the target date. It may be necessary to edit a notice in order to have the space to accommodate it. We trust you understand.

When submitting a notice for a bulletin that coincides with major church celebrations, such as Christmas, Palm Sunday, or Easter, our deadlines for completing the bulletin are moved up, typically a week, to allow for the printing of larger quantities and vacation time for the printer’s employees.

Personal advertisements are not included in our bulletin.  Items from community groups may only be included if there is space after accommodating all parish items.