It is hard to believe that one year ago this week, our County of Santa Clara was the first county in the nation to “Shelter in Place.” With no precedent for this action, we were all in shock and afraid to even leave our homes. We were told it would be for 3 weeks and we all wondered how could we survive for 3 weeks of SIP. The lines for food grew, we ran out of toilet paper, paper towels, then hand sanitizer and then flour! Those were strange days, but we managed.
 
Then, the Shelter in Place order got extended, then modified and again modified. As the medical experts figured things out, the restrictions became very targeted and exact. After a full year of some form of shelter in place, we have all grown tired of the restrictions and want to get back to normal life—whatever that will look like again. The vaccinations are here and many of us are already vaccinated. Frs. Thuc and Mike are already double vaccinated and Fr. Chris and I will receive our second shot this week. Again, I encourage everyone to get their vaccinations when you are eligible.
 
I was delighted to see so many “new” people back at Church last weekend. I finally got to meet some of you face-to-face and put your face to your name, or at least half a face with the face masks! I can tell that it has been very emotional for many of you as you come back to Church after nearly a year away. It has been a long year for all of us!
 
I want to remind all of us that we need to keep to the rules for Mass attendance. We still need to maintain a log of attendees for contact tracing, so please go online to sign up for Mass or call the Rectory at 650-880-1422. Sign-ups for Masses close on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. as we need to print the lists and get them to the Mass check-in people. Please make every effort to register ahead of time. We accommodate last minute check-ins, but it elongates check-in times. Also, please get here 5-10 minutes early to allow for check-in. When the crowds get larger, the process takes longer. Also we ask you to sanitize your hands before Mass and just before receiving Communion. For outdoor Masses, remain at your chair to receive Communion. For indoor Masses, please go up for Communion section by section; keeping 6 feet apart at all times. After Mass we ask you to use the disinfectant wipes to clean your chair/pew and leave without lingering in the Church or parking lots. When talking to each other, please keep 6 feet apart and keep your face masks on. Thank you for cooperation. We are just a few months away from normalcy. We can do this together. Thank you.
 
Lastly, I encourage you to join me on the Lenten Retreat series Forgiveness: A Journey from Hurt to Freedom. We have about 300 people watching live and another 1,000 people watching during the week. Last week, I went over the latest Cairn of Love and explained how we typically respond to hurt and anger. Then I offered the choice of “forgiveness.” However, we need to accept God’s forgiveness of us, then forgive God for allowing so many things to happen to us. I explained how critical it was to forgive oneself. We cannot forgive others if we have not forgiven ourselves. If you have not watched the first three sessions, you can still do so by clicking here for YouTube. Next week, we will move onto the Cairn of Gratitude and explain how after forgiving God and ourselves, we are now ready to forgive others. I will walk through several ways in which we can learn how to best pause and begin the process of forgiveness. So please come join me on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. for our fourth session on forgiveness.
 
This week, we will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and we will not have the large dinner in the parish center for the second year in a row. I know this is a huge disappointment, and I am bummed too. I heard so much about this event that I thought this could have been my real opportunity to “see you”. Alas, it was not to be. Christine Moore, my favorite parish sommelier and co-host of our Wine+Word sessions wrote some lovely words about St. Patrick’s Day and the tradition behind the food we eat for that day. See here St. Patrick's Day Wine. I want to close by offering you a traditional Irish blessing.
 

God be in our heads,
and in our understanding;
God be in our eyes,
and in our seeing;
God be in our ears,
and in our hearing;
God be in our mouths,
and in our speaking;
God be in our hearts,
and in our thinking;
God be at our end,
and our departing.

God Bless,
Fr. Brendan 

Save-the-Date for our Virtual Celebration!

Reconciliation Service – March 27
 
Please join us for a virtual Reconciliation Service:
Saturday, March 27
2:00 – 2:20 p.m. 
 
YouTube:  St Simon Presentations - YouTube
Facebook:  Saint Simon Catholic Church | Facebook
 
You are invited to an in person Reconciliation
2:30 – 4:00 p.m.
Reconciliation with a Priest, outdoors, with masks, distanced for safety. For an appointment, please sign up HERE

Reserve Your Seat for Mass

 Live Stream Mass Schedule

Easter Baskets

The members of St. Vincent de Paul will be making Easter baskets for children of needy families. We have chosen 44 children to receive baskets this year. Would you like to help? The children range in age from one to twelve. If you would like to help please drop items in our wooden box in the vestibule of the church or the bin next to the check-in table at outdoor Masses. We can use the following items: small stuffed animals, coloring books, small boxes of crayons, toothbrushes, small tubes of toothpaste, small toys, any kind of wrapped candy/snacks or anything appropriate for Easter baskets.

Can't get out to shop but still want to help? You can donate by check or online to help us buy supplies to fill the baskets. Please make checks out to St. Vincent de Paul.

We will also be collecting items needed at the Workers Center in Mountain View and the Homeless shelter in Sunnyvale. They are in great need of socks for adults, both men's and women's. These should be new due to Covid19 restrictions.

Thank you for your continued support of St. Vincent de Paul's mission to help those in need. We are very grateful for all of your help and prayers. We wish you and your family a very blessed Easter season.
Any questions please call or email Rose Mary Becker at 
wpbecker@att.net / 650 941 9673.

Prayer Shawl Ministry

The Prayer Shawl Ministry (PSM) existed for about 5 years. The mission of the Prayer Shawl Ministry is to provide hope, comfort, and healing. It is a unique way of reaching out to the community in a very tactile way. A prayer shawl can be seen as a symbolic “hug” from God. It was very special and much appreciated by the people who needed to be comforted for a variety of reasons.
 
We are hoping to bring this Ministry back.
 
Here is a listing of the responsibilities of the coordinator.
 
1. Call for a meeting (about an hour) about 8 times a year.
2. Accept completed shawls from members at the meetings and arrange for a priest to bless the completed shawls.
3. Procure labels for each shawl. These labels should read something like: “Made for YOU with love and prayers. St. Simon Parish, Los Altos, CA”. The labels should be attached by the donors of the shawls.
4. Accept requests for a shawl and arrange for distribution.
5. Store the completed shawls at the Rectory or home.
 
Members of the PSM should attend the meetings and contribute a couple of shawls per year as they are able.
 
If you are interested in coordinating or being in this Ministry, please email Kim Karmirantzos, kim@stsimon.org

Parent & Child First Eucharist Retreat 

Place: On Zoom
Date: Saturday, March 20, 2021, 9:30 am - 12:00 pm OR
          Saturday, March 20, 2021, 1:00 pm – 3:30 pm

Celebrations of the Sacrament of First Eucharist (in-person)

Place: Mass outdoors at St. Simon Church
Livestream Mass on YouTube for those who wish
Dates: (a link will be sent for sign-up after the retreat)
 Saturday, May 1, 3:00 pm
 Saturday, May 1, 5:00 pm
 Sunday, May 2, 11:15 am 

Summit:  High School Youth Ministry
 
We are virtual on Zoom Sunday, March 21 at 3:30 pm.
Hope you'll join in! 
 
Lost & Found
 
We all need spaces and people who help us find our way back when we find out that we are lost and welcome us home. Jesus wants us to know that these environments exist, especially with Him. With Jesus, lost things get taken care of and found things get celebrated. Come join us in the month of March as we have a great time together and learn about the life of Jesus during this Lenten season.
 
Sign up for Sunday's Summit Meeting:
 
Summit HS Youth Ministry March 21 Sign Up (google.com)