Elder Abuse Hotline

In response to the countless attempts to scam or defraud our seniors in Worcester County, RSVP—Worcester Area Volunteers has launched its 
Senior Fraud Hotline. 

Senior citizens or their families should call 800-297-9760 (the HelpLine) if they have questions or concerns about a phone call, email, letter, advertisement, or in-person contact.

Calls will be answered by a trained volunteer who will provide intake and referral
if a scam or fraud is suspected. HelpLine sponsored by Harvard-Pilgrim Health Care.
 

The Victims Services Coordinator for our Diocese 
Judith Audette, 508-929-4363

An appropriate way to report inappropriate behavior

How should you communicate your concerns to someone who may be behaving inappropriately with children? The "I" message is a simple way to reframe what you want to say so that the listener hears you speak of your feelings and concerns rather than hearing a complaint against him- or herself. The "I" message, simply diagrammed, says, "I feel [feeling] when [situation] because [reason]." 

For example, you can say, " I feel anxious when you drive a child home alone after religious education classes, because that could put you or the child in a potentially risky situation." It is a much more constructive approach than saying, "You shouldn't be driving children home alone because it is against the rules and puts them in danger." 

For particular help you may call Judith Audette, Director of Office for Healing and Prevention, at (508) 929-4363.
 

Special Religious Development ("SPRED")

SPRED is Special Religious Development available for those with intellectual or developmental disabilities. SPRED prepares participants for the Sacraments, as needed, while giving them a sense of God and church, fostering friendships to grow in the context of a faith community. SPRED has openings for teens and adults for the winter/spring session. Visitors are welcome to come and observe a session at St. Andrew the Apostle Church in Worcester. 

For details, contact Carolyn at 978-422-8512 or by email at carolynprinceton@aol.com

Learn about Monastic Community

All are invited to learn about St. Mary's Monastery in Petersham, a small comtemplative Benedictine community in Central Massachusetts. Their recent Catholic TV interview, which describes their monastic pilgrimage, community liturgy, lifestyle, and guest house is available on YouTube. Learn more at  www.stmarysmonastery.org.
 

Spiritual Support Group for People with Cancer

First Thursday of every Month at 11:30 a.m.
Chapel at St. Vincent Hospital’s
Cancer & Wellness Center (Garden Level)
1 Eaton Place, Worcester

All are welcome to attend a Mass and Anointing of the Sick, followed by a support group session tobe held in the Radiation Oncology Conference Room. Facilitators are board certified chaplain, Sr. Paula Kelleher, SSJ, and Msgr. Peter Beaulieu.
Registration is not required. Validated parking is available in the adjacent parking garage (must use Eaton Place entrance to parking garage). 


Call the hospital’s Department of Pastoral Care
at 508-363- 6246 for more information.

Catholic Young Adult Group: Pure in Heart - Worcester

Pure in Heart - Worcester is a group of young adult Catholics (ages 18-35)
who meet together every month to grow in faith and fellowship through
prayer meetings and social events. 

Join us every third Thursday of the month at 7pm for a prayer meeting at
St Mary's Pastoral Center in Shrewsbury and also join us for our monthly social events! Contact us for more information at worcester@pureinheartamerica.org or
Facebook at Pure in Heart- Worcester.
 

St. Mary’s Schools PreK-12

St. Mary’s Schools offers a full-day Pre-K with before and after-school programs. The cost is less than the cost of day-care for most families. The classes are small thus allowing individual attention to each student from our gifted and qualified
staff. In St. Mary’s Pre-K program, not only are the students appropriately academically challenged, they continue to learn valuable life skills, such as sharing
and working as a member of a group, all within the context of Catholic teachings and values. For more information, please call 508 753-1170.
 

Commission for Women

The Commission for Women of the Diocese of Worcester would like to welcome any woman interested in making a difference in our church and society to come and visit us at one of our meetings. These take place from 7 to 8:30 PM on the third Tuesday of the month in a meeting room at St. Mary’s Church in Shrewsbury.

We strive to bond together the women of the diocese through spiritual, educational and social programs. Each year we study pertinent books and discuss during our meetings. At this time we are reading Pope Francis’s The Joy of the Gospel.
www.worcestercommissionforwomen.org.
 

High School Youth Ministry

Our Lady of Good Counsel Church invites our High School youth to join them at this Ministry event and at other Youth activities throughout the school year. 

Please contact Lee by mail at Lee.maleno@yahoo.com or by phone at  508-853-3606 for more information and to sign up. Thank you.