Father’s Day blessings to all! We are tremendously grateful for the key role that the witness to faith of our fathers and central father figures in our lives in opening our hearts and lives to the friendship, guidance and mercy of God to which we are all called through Jesus.
Msgr. Robert Kawa’s funeral Mass and burial this past week were very impactful. He served for many years at St. Bernard Church in Beverly, in Washington County. Fr. Tim Kozak, who served as a parochial vicar here in Guernsey County for a few years, offered a very enjoyable homily at the funeral Mass. Both he and Bishop Monforton expressed profoundly and accurately how almost all of us were impacted by the life and caring ministry of Msgr. Kawa.
If you would like to view the funeral, you can go to the Facebook page for that parish: https://www.facebook.com/StBernardBev/. I will try to set this link both at our parish website and at our Facebook page.
The front page of the most recent edition of the Steubenville Register also included a summary of Msgr. Kawa’s ministry as well as some brief tribute statements. Follow this link to this edition at the Register’s website: https://www.diosteub.org/the-steubenville-register, and choose the June 11, 2021 edition from the list of recent Steubenville Register Publications on the left side banner.
Thank you to all who from here who attended that funeral and who came to our cemetery in Byesville for the graveside service. It was quite an impressive funeral procession of ~20 vehicles over the hilly and winding roads of OH 339 from Beverly to the I-77 exit at Macksburg and then through Byesville to Holy Trinity Mt. Calvary Cemetery. The planned luncheon ended up being simply a grab-and-go lunch, and so the procession arrived about 30 minutes earlier than had been estimated by the funeral home beforehand. May he rest in peace!
We’re due for another short trek for our Holy Hikers. Let us plan another Sunday afternoon hike next week on June 27th, leaving from the Gomber Avenue parking lot at 2:30 p.m. or meeting at the parking lot at the beginning of the Swim Beach Trailhead parking lot at Seneca Lake Park at 3:00 p.m. There are several trails we could choose from that point, based on our group. Indeed, all are welcome for these hikes! Please feel free to recommend trails at other parks that you have enjoyed. Thanks!
May the Lord help us to experience the transforming power of God’s mercy! May Our Lord help us to be always ready for the gift of eternal life in Heaven!