Church guide

Reminder! Tonight is the first night of our new, 5:30 PM Wednesday Mass! Join us for Mass, with Adoration and Confessions to follow. The 7 AM Wednesday Mass is being suspended for the time being as the logistics with the new school traffic pattern are quite difficult due to all of the construction on campus. We hope that you will join us in the evening instead!

Have you heard of Alpha? Did you know that ChristLife is basically the fully Catholic version of Alpha? Now you do! Alpha has been shown to revitalize parish ministries and increase participation in parish life. Originally, Alpha was stated as a ministry of the evangelical wing of the Church of England, and though it has been modified over the years to appeal to a Catholic audience, it was never specifically written for Catholics. ChristLife was started to provide parishes with a Catholic course, similar to Alpha, written by Catholics for Catholics. It follows the same principles as Alpha - fellowship, faith and food all done in small groups. Join us this fall for ChristLife! This 7-week course begins Thursday, September 5 and meets once a week through October 17. All adults 18+ are invited to attend! We especially invite those who might not have any affiliation with religion or the Catholic Church. Bring your spouse, your friend, and your neighbor. This course has a wide appeal no matter where you are on your faith journey! Sign up at www.stbrendans.net/christlife

Once again, it's time for #FridayIntroductions! Let's get to know Fr Ed Shikina Tell us about yourself. I am of Japanese descent. Lived in Lafayette, Louisiana for the first 11 yrs of my life, then Columbus, Ohio. 2 older sisters, 1 younger brother. Home parish is Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal on the east side of Columbus. Played the trumpet in school, then in the OSU Marching Band. Worked at a paper company retail store, then outside sales at a lumber company, then drove a forklift in a warehouse, then at a helpdesk troubleshooting computers at Safelite Autoglass. Entered seminary at age 34, ordained a priest at age 42. I like to do a variety of things in my spare time – fish, golf, exercise, etc... “jack of all trades, master of none.” How did you come to work at St Brendan’s? When did you start working here? What made you want to apply here? This is my first priestly assignment. I started July 2018, after being ordained a priest on May 26th. What is the best part of your job here? Ministering to the people and seeing God working in their lives. What is your favorite thing to do on weekends? My weekends are busy with the Masses here. I enjoy talking to the parishioners. When not saying Mass on Saturday, I am usually working on my homily. After the Masses on Sunday afternoon, I usually am relaxing at the rectory and sometimes sharing in the cooking. On my actual day off on Thursday, my favorite thing to do is to visit my family. Favorite book: Silence by Shusako Endo, and The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene, and A Song for Nagasaki: The Story of Takashi Nagai by Fr. Paul Glynn Favorite Saint: St. Teresa of Calcutta. Go-to snack: Pistachios Tell us what you’re proud of. The people of St. Brendan’s trying to be holy. Tell us anything else you think we should know! Fun fact: I used to have a deep southern twang, coming from Louisiana after 11 yrs, and would say “Ya’ll”. Read more about Fr Ed here: http://ow.ly/1cdM50vyTDT

Do you feel like there should be more to life? Check out our ChristLife course this fall! You may just find what you’re looking for. http://www.stbrendans.net/christlife

And so it begins! Please pray for all those working on our expansion, for our parish families during the time of change, and for our continued fundraising for our ONE campaign!

It is beginning! Tomorrow several major construction events will take place as part of the Our Navigator Expansion project. These will include changes in traffic flow, parking, and door closures. Please take a look at the map and be aware of these changes for when you come to campus over the next few weeks. More details and a larger, zoomable version of the map are available on our website. https://www.stbrendans.net/one/construction-updates

Thanks Jeff Mauser for this awesome footage of the festival! Looking forward to filling the place again tonight!

It's time for #FridayIntroductions! Meet Dan McCallister, our Pastoral Associate for RCIA & Adult Catechesis and Evangelization Tell us a little about yourself. Columbus, Ohio, born & raised. I'm one of nine children and I love my big family! Prior to accepting this position, I worked as a youth minister in the diocese. I also just got engaged and will be married in 2020, so I can’t wait to start a family of my own! Tell us about your role here. My role encompasses all adult ministries here. I am here as a resource and guide for all our amazing adult ministry teams. I am responsible for coordinating RCIA, ChristLife, the parish mission, Adult Faith Bible studies, community events (Living Nativity, Trunk or Treat), among other things. How did you come to work at St Brendan’s? I started working here at the beginning of May 2019, so I am a newbie! While I was a youth minister, I came to know some of the staff here through shared ministry events. I always admired the work environment at St Brendan, so I jumped on the open opportunity. I’m so glad I did! What is the best part of your job here? The best part of my job is that every day, I get to witness God’s active pursuit of human hearts. God is relentlessly seeking each person’s heart, mind, soul & love. It’s extremely beautiful to behold as adults surrender to Him. Favorite movie: The Lord of the Rings Favorite Saint(s): Pope St John Paul II, St Francis of Assisi, St John Vianney, St Bernadette Tell us what you’re proud of. Not to sound cheesy, but I am incredibly proud of my fiancée, Hannah. I am proud of who she is, but also, I am proud of how I treat her. I’m proud that she said, “yes!” to marrying me! What is the first thing you do when you wake up? I usually sit on the edge of my bed and check my phone until my brain starts working properly. Anything else you think we should know? I spent 3 years discerning a vocation with a Franciscan religious community in Indiana!

Our Youth Ministry will be selling Tiny Saints at the Parish Festival again this year! These adorable charms are $5 each and all proceeds go to support our Youth Ministry. They will have lots of saints to choose from, including Saint Brendan (shown below). To find them, look for the Youth Ministry booth! Come ready to shop!

We believe that Christlife will transform our parish community in a powerful way. As such, we will provide free childcare for children ages 6 months to 6 years from 6:45 PM – 9:15 PM each evening for those families attending the sessions. In order to do this, we need your help! We need 2 adults per night along with 2 teens to run the childcare. This will count for any 8th grade+ service hours for any of our teens who help. If you are interested in volunteering for a night, please check out our available slots! http://ow.ly/5EcG50vovWP

This fall, we are bringing ChristLife to our St Brendan community. We believe that this program will serve as both a wide-open door to new believers as well as a rekindling fire for the whole St Brendan community. In order to make this a reality, we need parishioners who are willing to serve as table leaders. The primary roles of a table leaders are hospitality, listening, and facilitating conversation among table members. This is a relational approach to the proclamation of the Gospel. This is not the same as being a catechist or a teacher; this is a role of accompaniment. Spouses are welcome to lead a table together. If you are interested in being a table leader, please sign up here: https://www.stbrendans.net/christlife/table-leader-registration

Our Parish Festival is coming up FAST on August 9 and 10, and we are still in great need of volunteers! We have a variety of opportunities for adults and children alike to get involved and help make our festival a success. Please take a moment to check them out and sign up: https://stbrendan.ivolunteer.com/festival_2019# Thanks for all of your help in making our parish a great community to gather, worship, and have fun!

Today's #FridayIntroductions features Jennifer Rice, our Pastoral Associate, care and consolation Tell us a little about yourself. I grew up the oldest of 2 in Toledo and remain loyal to my Detroit Tigers. I’ve been married to Grant for 16 years, a parishioner for 14 years, and mom to triplet boys who will soon be 13 and attend our school. I love to read, cook, garden, and craft (scrapbook, sewing, Cricut!). I have worked in social work from seriously mentally ill in prison to high school to counseling trauma survivors, hospice, and bereaved. Tell us about your role here. I lead the pastoral care ministry. I support the 80 volunteers who minister to homebound and the nursing facilities, visiting as well; provide counseling; consult and support staff and school care needs; coordinate and support outreach programs; coordinate all funerals and related ministries, and provide grief counseling and support. How did you come to work at St Brendan’s? I was a clinical social worker for hospice and wanted to know more to provide spiritual support to my patients and families, so I completed a master’s in theology. I felt called to work in a parish with a vision for what that role could be. It took 4 years of waiting, praying, then everything happened fast. I have known Father Bob 20 years now and he became pastor, Sister Pat (who brought me on to run grief support groups) was leaving, and it all just came together. I have been here over 5 years and love that I can drop my kids at school, walk across the parking lot to my office, and work in my own parish. Favorite movie: Mary Poppins Favorite Saints: St Teresa of Calcutta and St Damien of Molokai Go-to snack: lately I’m loving mini turkey sticks Anything else we should know? I double-majored in psychology and theatre, studying drama therapy extensively, but also acting—including a professional stint. Someday I’ll get back to it! Read more about Jennifer here: http://ow.ly/AiDN50vbKI5

St Brendan is looking for an individual to work 3 days a week at the parish office. We are looking for someone that loves people, friendly, and very organized. Some duties include answering the phones, greeting visitors, handling all postage and supply ordering, maintaining the safety and security records, and handling any miscellaneous office duties needed. Qualified candidates must have: - High school diploma or higher - 2 years experience with Microsoft Office Suite programs, primarily in Excel and Word - High level of accuracy and the ability to meet deadlines - Attention to detail and maintaining confidentiality a must! Interested individuals may mail resume with reference contact information to address below, or email to: [email protected] Kim Toth, Office Manger St Brendan the Navigator 4475 Dublin Road Hilliard, OH 43026

Due to Fr Bob being away and Fr Ed’s commitments at CYSC this week, the 7 AM morning mass and adoration is cancelled TOMORROW (Wednesday, July 24). There will still be evening adoration and confessions at 6 PM. Our regular schedule will resume next week. Thank you all for your understanding!

It's time for #fridayintroductions! Get to know Melissa Zuk, our Marketing & Communications Coordinator. Tell us about yourself. I grew up in Minford and Chillicothe, Ohio, and I went to OSU for Marketing & Graphic Design. My husband and I met through Saint Paul’s Outreach at OSU. Andrew and I got married in June 2015 and moved out to L.A. where he was working in the film industry. We soon discerned that God was calling us to be closer to family, and we landed in Cincinnati where I got a job at Dynamic Catholic as their Social Media Coordinator. Our son, Jude, was born while we were there. Then my husband got a job offer in Columbus which was even closer to family and the vision we felt God was calling us to. Our daughter, Rosie, was just born April 10! Tell us about your role here. My responsibilities include the weekly bulletin and Flocknote, the website, parish social media accounts, and any print design or marketing for the parish, its ministries, or parish-related events. How did you come to work at St Brendan’s? Before even moving back to Columbus, my husband and I had talked about living in this area because we heard that St Brendan’s had a great parish community. I really loved working to build up the Church, so I figured the Diocese website was a good first stop to job search. The very first listing there was for this position! It was definitely led by the Holy Spirit. I started here at the end of September, 2017. Favorite movie: Either “The Fellowship of the Ring” or “It’s a Wonderful Life” Go-to snack: “Energy balls” made with oats, peanut butter, nuts, seeds, honey, and chocolate chips Anything else you think we should know? I was on the Ohio State University Women’s Rugby Club team! I really like “grandma” crafts, such as knitting, sewing, and baking. I am an introvert, an INFJ, and phlegmatic. I play piano and flute, and my favorite forms of exercise are swimming and distance running. More at www.stbrendans.net/blog/get-to-know-melissa-zuk

For today's #fridayintroductions, get to know our Bookkeeper, Mary Brown! Tell us a little about yourself. Originally from Massillon, Ohio, I’m the youngest of five. I currently live in Plain City. I have two daughters ages 20 and 15. I’ve worked in Corporate America, non-profits, and small family-owned businesses throughout my career. I have two degrees: Associates in Criminal Justice and Bachelors in Psychology. I’ve spent most of my career working in Finance, Office Management and Bookkeeping Tell us about your role here. I am responsible for maintaining and reconciling the books, financials, and all reports; while diligently taking in daily monies, and posting all entries to the proper accounts. I help to establish budget numbers for each fiscal year, produce offertory numbers for the bulletin weekly, work with Bishop’s Annual Appeal, ONE Campaign, Fish Fry, Auction, Festival, School, Athletics, etc. Clara Herr, Accounting Clerk, is my number one accomplice :) lol. How did you come to work at St Brendan’s? By the Grace of God—I had been recently laid off from an attorney’s office after nine years. I started at St Brendan’s on December 5, 2016, (a little over two years ago now). After working for attorneys, I felt working for the Church would be a breath of fresh air and good fellowship. What is the best part of your job here? The gratitude, the staff, the parishioners. Favorite book: Of Mice and Men Favorite movie: Gone With The Wind What is the first thing you do when you wake up? DRINK COFFEEEEEE! Tell us anything else you think we should know! I lived in the Outer Banks of North Carolina for 7 years on an island called Ocracoke, NC, prior to moving back to Ohio (and yes, I’ve endured some hurricanes while there). My In-laws still live there and that is where we vacation each year. Read more at

This week our Youth & Young Adult Minister, David Mesina, gives us tips to finding balance in prayer & how he uses journaling & the Scriptures to engage in conversation with God. Keep giving 1%, 15 minutes, of your day to the Lord in prayer!

Father Ed is talking to us today about he incorporates formal & informal prayer to keep a conversation with God running all day! It's not too late to join us for our Prayer Challenge! Spend 1% of your day, 15 minutes, with the Lord. Commit to do this today, and each day, until Pentecost Sunday and see what God can do in, and through, you!

Jennifer Rice shares how she hears God speak through the Scriptures and through her daily commitment to make time with Him a priority!

What a wonderful priest we, and the children of St. Brendan school, have in Father Bob! #Catholiceducation #weloveCatholicschools

How do we take the good things we hear about God, at a mission, in a homily, on Catholic Radio and have those truths that strike us become not just something nice we hear but something life-changing? We take it to prayer, to conversation with the God who can change our lives. Join us weekly as we learn about starting, growing, or deepening our prayer life through the personal experience of our parish staff. Make a commitment, for the next 60 days, until Pentecost Sunday, June 9th, to give God 1% of your day (15 minutes!) and see what life-changing work He can do in and through you.

EveryONE will benefit from our ONE Campaign! Listen as Shari Ratz talks the importance of making sure we can continue meeting our faith family’s needs through this expansion.

Parishioner Natalie Chilicki shares why she’s excited for our building expansion. What excites YOU most about this project?

Parishioners Donna & Ed Olenhouse share their excitement about our campus expansion and invite you to support our growing “village of faith.” Please take advantage our of Matching Gift Challenge and get your pledge in today! www.stbrendans.net/one

Vanessa and Ryan Foster explain why they are supporting Our Navigator Expansion. Join them to help support our many ministries that make our community amazing!

The Rice family explains why they are supporting Our Navigator Expansion!