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Deacon’s Beacon: Thank You Baby Bottle Campaign Supporters

Baby Bottle Drive
Thank you to all who participated

This Spring, the tradition of the Baby Bottles returned to Our Lady of the Wayside.  The bottles were distributed on Mother’s Day and returned on Father’s Day.  Many parishioners volunteered to distribute the bottles on Mother’s Day, and many others volunteered to help with the collection on Father’s Day.  A Special Thanks to John Ourednik and his family for their work with both activities and the planning process; and a Special Thanks to Sara Zimmerman for providing the continuity with the previous collections from earlier years.   And many, many thanks to all who participated and contributed.

You may be thinking “why baby bottles?” and, “what’s so special about them?”  The bottles signify the care and support of a new life.  The Women’s Center of Chicagoland provide that support through their three locations in the Chicago area.  They offer us and many churches the opportunity to participate in that support through our collections of loose change and cash and checks.

All funds collected in the baby bottles will be donated to the Women’s Center of Chicagoland.  The Women’s Center is much more than only an anti-abortion group.

The Center is there to help the needy

The center is dedicated to saving the lives of unborn children and also assisting the mothers and families to provide a loving and supportive environment for the child.  It’s a time in life when many expectant mothers feel scared and alone, without hope or support.

The Women’s Center is called to help those women in need by providing the  expert care and support.  It’s estimated that the Women’s Center has saved the lives of over 40,000 babies in the past 35 years and has provided assistance to thousands of others.

Who are we called to help?

This support of others is an excellent example of bringing Christ to life in our daily lives. Who are we called to help?  How do we know who and when to help?

We see a great example of the answer to that question in this Sunday’s gospel – The Good Samaritan.  A young man asks Jesus what must he do to inherit eternal life?”  Jesus replies, Love God with your whole being and love your neighbor as yourself.”  He then asks Jesus “who is my neighbor?”

Jesus then responds with that parable of the Good Samaritan.  A man is beaten by robbers and left to die.  A priest and a Levite see him, but pass by him, failing to help.  Then, a Samaritan stops to assist the man.

Jesus asks, who was a neighbor to the victim.  The man responds, “the one who treated him with mercy.”  Jesus tells the man to go and do likewise.

Who is our neighbor?

With the baby bottles it is the women who don’t know what they should do.  All who contributed provided assistance for those people.  Those who volunteered to assist with the distribution and collections took their involvement to a higher level.

OLW offers many opportunities to participate

There are many ministries at OLW that welcome new volunteers:  St. Mark’s Food Pantry; Respect Life; P.A.D.S.; to name a few.

God is always calling us to ministry in His name
How do we respond?

For additional information please contact me at:  irenetomc@hotmail.com or 847-253-2082