Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I thank God for our wonderful country and the leaders who have worked tirelessly to protect its citizens during this Covid-19 pandemic. I thank God for our communion of communities and especially for you who have been prepared to make extraordinary sacrifices for the benefit of all. Whilst we still have a long way to go and I pray we don’t have a second wave of the disease, nevertheless, what at first appeared to be months in lockdown is now seemingly almost a return to the new normal.

At the Community Council last evening, the generosity of parents and even those without children at Mount Carmel, has been expressed in food, coffee and wine with countless expressions of gratitude via emails to our teachers. The Mercy Sisters and myself have had meals delivered and many phone calls from parishioners. I’m also extremely grateful to those who have continued to contribute financially, a few dropping envelopes with money at the presbytery obviously concerned for my welfare. Many thanks!

Before and after Mass this weekend we need a couple of volunteers to sanitize the places touched by worshippers and this will be our practice for a few months. We are now attending to a backlog of baptisms and myself and Di Carey will access at the end of June whether we can proceed with sacramental preparation.

Yesterday I attended a deanery meeting in Queanbeyan, listening to the response of other parishes to this time of lockdown. I think ours has been a standout due to a large extent by the contribution of Paul Trezise.

Last Sunday about thirty parishioners gathered to say farewell to Sister Macrena. A special thanks to those who prepared food and to Bob and Paul for setting up the barbeque and tables.

Unfortunately it has taken a week to deliver food to the desperate people in the mountains of Oesusse.

Yours fraternally,
Mick Burke