St. Alphonsus Church on East Genesee Street will host a Parish Mission with Franciscan Friar, the Rev. Daniel Lanahan Saturday, Oct. 11 through

Wednesday, Oct. 15. There will be a Mission Mass at 9 a.m. each day and a Mission Talk at 7 each night.

Lanahan was raised in Brooklyn and joined the Holy Name Friars at age 20. He was educated in moral theology at the Catholic University of America and received his doctorate from the Alphonsian Institute in Rome. For the first 20 years of his priestly ministry he was involved with the formation of candidates for the priesthood at Christ the King Seminary at St. Bonaventure University and last in East Aurora, where he served as president and rector. During his years of seminary work, Lanahan conducted many retreats, days of reflection and weekends of prayer.

After completing his work in the seminary, Lanahan was part of a team ministering to a New Jersey parish for four years. In 1986, he joined the Franciscan Ministry of the Word Parish Renewal Team, and in this capacity, he conducted numerous parish missions. He is also the author of the spiritually inspiring book “When God Says No - The Mystery of Suffering and the Dynamics of Prayer.”

St. Alphonsus Parish invites everyone to join Lanahan for this wonderful opportunity.

Also at St. Alphonsus, a flu clinic with flu shots and pneumonia shots will be available to the public from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9, in the Parish Center. The cost is $30 for flu shots and $50 for pneumonia shots. Seniors are asked to bring their Medicare or today's Options Cards.

In addition, please mark your calendars for the second annual Fall Harvest Festival at St. Alphonsus Parish to be held Sunday, Oct. 19. They have openings indoors for crafters and vendors to sell their goods, along with outdoor spaces available for a farmers market. Please call Adelaide or Kim at the rectory at 252-7261 for more information.

Special thanks to my dear friend Adelaide Hutson for sharing the news.

In other news:

• The Half Acre Union Church of West Genesee Street in Auburn will hold a chicken barbecue beginning at noon Sunday, Oct. 5 until sold out. This barbecue will be held at the Aurelius East Fire House. Attendees may eat in or take-outs are available. The cost is $8 for a full dinner, which includes half chicken, potatoes, salad, roll, cookie and beverage, and $4 for a children's dinner, as well as $4 for chicken only. This is one of the church's yearly fundraisers.

This year the proceeds will benefit Hospice of the Finger Lakes and the Gordon Eadie Activity Center, an Alzheimer's Respite service. Thanks so much to Janet Klimek for sharing the news from Half Acre Church.

• The 67th annual Harvest Supper will be held Oct. 13, Columbus Day, at The United Church of Genoa starting at 4:30 p.m. The cost is $8 for adults, $4 for children, and children younger than 5 are free. The menu is a traditional Harvest/Thanksgiving meal including turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, squash, cranberry relish, apple salad, sweet breads, pies, coffee, tea, milk and water.

The proceeds of this event are used to support the church's day to day expenses as well as outreach programs such as Food Pantry and missionaries at home and abroad. The Harvest Supper also brings the community together by serving families from not only the Genoa area, but from surrounding areas such as King Ferry, Lansing, Groton, Dryden, Locke and more.

The church members are asked to bake turkeys, breads and pies. For those who don't bake, there is a long list of grocery donations needed. The Harvest committee works for months to organize this event.

Last year, the group fed more than 500 people. Special thanks to Fran Sampson for sharing this news.

The beautiful season of autumn is almost here! Have a great week everyone, and remember God loves you so very much.

“I am with you always, until the end of time.”

-- Jesus

Denise Bennett is a parishioner at Holy Family Church in Auburn. She can be reached at deniseb132@yahoo.com