Creation is beautiful: it is God’s wonderful gift to the world. We were blessed this summer to have two new little granddaughters join our family—Miriam was born in May to join Jeremy who is almost four, and Fiona was born in August to join her big sister, Tessa, who is 3 and a bit. This brings our total to four. As many of you know, it is a wonderful feeling to be grandparents, a delight to be treasured, and we do.
I think all little children are beautiful gifts from God to be treasured but their circumstances don’t always allow them to be equal. We know how blessed our grandchildren are to be born in a part of our country where a Catholic education is readily available, where instruction in our Catholic faith is not an obstacle but a given.
Life is always a struggle for the children and their parents in our poor mission communities. Religious education is not always available in schools, thus making it difficult and costly for parents to have their children instructed in their faith and to receive the sacraments that we so easily take for granted.
It is only through your generosity that religious programs are being developed in remote areas, books and materials being purchased, and leaders trained to offer the little children in our missions the same opportunities to grow in their faith as our grandchildren have. At this beautiful time of year when we are preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus and to give thanks for the many blessings that we have received through Him, may we continue to be mindful and generous in our giving as we reach out to the little children across our country. These are God’s little children whom we can help to know and love Jesus through instruction in their Catholic faith.
During this season of giving, I’d like to suggest a special way to involve your children and grandchildren, if they are old enough, to become aware and share with others.
Establish a family endowment to support the religious education of children and youth in our Canadian mission communities.
Let us show our children what “missions” mean in
Remember back in the days when saving our pennies during Lent for the missions was the norm, or that familiar saying: “A family that prays together stays together”? In this Advent season, you may wish to consider deepening your relationship with families in our missions by establishing a family endowment. Discover the joy of working towards a common goal of enriching faith in others! Discover how “a family that gives together grows in faith together.”
For information on how you might begin a family endowment, please contact me at
Tel: 416-934-3424
Toll-free: 1-866-YES-CMIC (937-2642)
Fax: 416-934-3425
or via e-mail at giftplan@cmic.info or
Fill out a Request Information Form
Your endowment gift can be in your name or in honour of a loved one (either living or deceased) and will serve as a lasting memorial to your name and the Catholic values that you have held precious during your lifetime. Your legacy of faith will help to keep the light of Faith burning across
To establish an endowment, a minimum gift of $5,000 is required. If you wish, this can be completed by annual instalments.
A blessed and merry Christmas to all of you!
