Ambassadors for Growth leadership seminar

The 'Ambassadors for Growth' leadership seminar Saturday was great!  We've received so many compliments about our feature presenter, Thom Singer, from the many ministry leaders who attended.  He's such a dynamic speaker, and SJN is blessed to have him as our own parishioner!

Read Thom's reaction to the seminar on his own blog here.

Thom Singer, Ambassadors for Growth seminar, Sept. 18, 2010

Ministry leaders, Ambassadors for Growth seminar, Sept. 18, 2010

Thom Singer, Ambassadors for Growth seminar, Sept. 18, 2010

As you'll read on Thom's blog, the key idea that was taken from the seminar was the idea of our current ministry leaders going up to someone new at Mass, or any church event, every week and meeting someone they'd never before met.  With the 35 leaders who attended the seminar, if they did that every Sunday and then encouraged everyone in their ministries to do the same, our parish community would be so engaged and connected!  The leaders were all so enthusiastic about the idea, how simple it is to do.  The seminar had such great energy!

Thanks to everyone who came and, most especially, to Thom for putting on the workshop.  We hope to feature more similar workshops for our leaders in the future!  

Go forth and 'build the Kingdom!'

Thank you to Fr. Mark Hamlet's reception volunteers

A big thank you goes out to the many volunteers who helped out at Fr. Mark Hamlet's reception on May 30! They came through on short notice and made sure the event went beautifully.

• Dee McKenzie
• Nancy Biehler
• Hilary Olson
• Jon Olson
• Mary Ann Condon
• Maria Cuevas
• Alan Graham
• Tricia Graham
• Chris Hamilton
• Dorinda Hickey
• Nikki James-Werkman
• Lance Kappel
• Kathleen Luedke
• Julie Martin
• Mike May
• Brent Palin
• DeeAnn Paul
• Carol Ramberg
• Barbie Schaefer
• Fran Sonstein
• Carol Staha
• Jamie Trahan

If you're interested in helping out at parish events (setup, greeting, kitchen, cleanup, food, etc.), let us know!  We have several events throughout the year that could use your service.

Ministry Appreciation Mass, Party a success!

Just a quick note to thank everyone who helped put on last weekend's Ministry Appreciation Mass and Reception!

Appreciation Committee
Nancy Biehler
Millie Brady
Pat Flathouse
Patty Floyd
Cari Henry
Carrie Hooper
Sue Rampick

Event volunteers
Mary Lou Ancira
David Baker
Darlene Burke
Rachel Cooper and her friend Jessica
Donia Crouch
Anastasia Curtis
Virgil Flathouse
Mike Floyd
Clarence Griggs
Bob Karasch
Mary and Kevin Killebrew
Gregg Kronenberger
Chuck Malburg
Mary Martin
Dee McKenzie
Doug Murrell
Sharon and Ed Neusel
Wanda Neuvar
Catherine Ochoa
Ethel and David Richard
Scott Schaefer
Brian and Joanne Senn
Lincoln Valdez
and others!

The event was a success, even with the rain!  A good time was had by all.  Look for pictures to post soon!  Thanks to everyone who came out and helped us recognize and appreciate the many contributions to our parish and community by so many ministry members and volunteers.

Upcoming seminar on service based on pope's third encyclical

The Texas Catholic Conference Charity and Justice Department is sponsoring an upcoming seminar based on Pope Benedict's third encyclical, Caritas in Veritate.  The event, Charity and Truth in Ministry: Our Call to Service, will be April 30 - May 1 at the Hilton Austin Airport Hotel.

Caritas in Veritate links charity and truth in the pursuit of justice, the common good and authentic human development.  In doing so, the pope calls all men and women to think and act anew.  This seminar is an opportunity for volunteers in church ministry to gather and reflect on our common call to service.  Participants are also offered workshop choices to hone skills in specific areas relevant to their ministries, including fund raising, volunteer retention, Hispanic outreach, legislative advocacy, re-entry services and wrap-around services for families of the incarcerated, and more.

For more information, call (512) 339-9882 or visit www.TXCatholic.org.

SXSW: Events where volunteerism is the headliner

Sure, SXSW Conferences & Festivals offer the unique convergence of original music, independent films and emerging technologies, but something you may not realize is that they also offer a few events touching on the topic of social change and volunteerism.  If you know about a SXSW-related event that touches on this topic, let me know, either by leaving a comment below or contacting me.

Saturday, March 13


A Conversation About Social Change Through Social Media / 12:30 p.m.at Austin Convention Center

A few words, a few pictures, a transformative experience. Good stories are three-way -- they include the storyteller and the audience both in the experience and transport to a third place, a shared experience, together. Learn how social media can affect real social change!

Sunday, March 14


Crowd Sourcing Innovative Social Change / 3:30 p.m. at Austin Convention Center

Social media builds buzz and raises money, but what about real, on-the-ground change? The Social Change Challenge will crowdsource innovative ideas from nonprofits to change the world. We'll share big ideas for using social media for nonprofit program delivery and some good tips for crowdsourcing for social change.


Tuesday, March 16


Change the World, Lives, With Bikes / 11 a.m. at Austin Convention Center

This core conversation will talk about how cycling, the bike and social media are changing the world and lives. You'll learn about Livestrong's community and Bike Hugger's blog, events like the Mobile Social, and the millions who follow Lance Armstrong on Twitter. It's a discussion of bike and pop culture and socializing the good with these Interweb tools.