St. Thomas Aquinas Human Concerns Committee Meeting Minutes, November 25, 2008

Attendance:
Paul Chestnut, Laura Chiu, Ruth Chippendale, George Chippendale, Mary Washburn, Mary Fong

We welcomed one new member: Mary Washburn.

1. Faith-Sharing/Question of the Week - Laura
Laura brought a "Thanksgiving Prayer of Atonement" which we all recited:
O God, you love the poor and dispossessed.
When you sent your beloved among us,
Jesus came not into the world of the powerful,
but into the impoverished streets and hearts of his time.

This night your Spirit moves among us once again. We feel the power of Christ in our midst.
We hear his call to us to feed the poor,
to clothe the naked, to love the unloved,
And our selfishness and sin humbles us.
This night we offer you our repentant prayer of thanks,
knowing that the light of Christ in our midst
is leading us to a new day of Gospel compassion
wherein our heart can be made to overflow in love
for those who hunger for bread, for love, and for dignity.

- Dr. Edward Francis Gabriele, From "The Blessed Frederick Ozanam" in Prayer with Searchers and Saints. Reprinted in Living God's Justice: Reflections and Prayers.

2. The October minutes were approved.

OLD BUSINESS

3. Death penalty forum
Terry was not present, but he had sent his thoughts:
• We had a very successful Death Penalty Prayer Vigil at Lytton Plaza on November 9.
• Karl Bunje delivered an outstanding homily on the death penalty at the Masses at St. Thomas Aquinas on November 16. He told me that he has been invited by Fr. Hester do give the same homily at his Mass next Sunday. I will be putting Karl's homily online.
• I am still very interested in showing the Empty Chair at a later date.

4. Unused gift cards
It was suggested at the October meeting that we collect unused gift cards as a way to raise money for the poor. We discussed plans. Laura will arrange for a notice to be placed in the bulletin regarding this initiative. The message will be repeated at Masses in December and January.

NEW BUSINESS

5. St. Vincent de Paul activities for fiscal year - Mary Fong
Mary summarized the activities for the fiscal year (October to September). Donations from parish collections totaled more than $30,000. The money was spent as follows: 42% for rent help, 12% to utility help, 13% for hotel help, 4% for gas cards, and 11% for food vouchers. Other miscellaneous assistance: prescriptions, phone bills, tow company charges, storage, car repair, and classes.

6. Volunteers needed for St. Vincent de Paul food drive to sort, move, and store the collected food:
Sun, Nov 30, 11:30am, after the 10:30 am Mass, OLR church foyer,
Sat, Dec 6, 9:00am, OLR church foyer, 3233 Cowper, Palo Alto.

7. Volunteers needed to prepare income tax returns for low income citizens. Paul forwarded a message from Catholic Charities:
"Seeking Volunteers to help low-income families file their taxes and claim the credits they have earned. Can you give 3-4 hours per week, January-April 2009? Full IRS-certified Training will be provided during November and December. This year Catholic Charities helped 1,353 tax payers file claims to receive a total of $1,503,359 in refunds and $685,612 in Earned Income Tax Credit. Each household received an average of $1,111. Change lives for good! To learn more, contact taxezvolunteer@ccsj.org or call To Lam, (408) 325-5106 or Arely Valeriano, (408) 325-5241. A flyer is attached."
Catholic Charities is recruiting and training volunteers for VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance), an IRS program. We discussed whether HCC should take this on as a project. The sense of the group was that this is too technical an effort. We will place the notice in the eBulletin.

8. What's On Your Mind?
Laura presented her opinion about Proposition 8 at the Pastoral Stewardship Council meeting. There were several members who wanted to discuss the merit of the Church's support for this proposition. Fr. George said that it is a subject about which the Church wishes no discussion.

George talked about the need for food assistance in East Palo Alto. The need is increasing this season due to the recession. George and Ruth need help to sort and deliver food, and need Spanish speakers to take phone calls from needy folks. Also, in December, they will need people to handle the contributions of toys that will be coming in from the toy drive. Volunteers are needed to sort, pack, and deliver toys at St. Francis School in East Palo Alto.

9. Volunteer for Faith-sharing/Question of the Week
Ruth volunteered.

Next meeting - January 27