The United State Conference of Catholic Bishops has declared November 15-21 as National Bible Week for Catholics across the United States. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to celebrate the importance of the Word of God in the life of our communities. The theme The Bible: A Book for the Family serves as a reminder that God wants to live with us in our homes and speak to us through this gift of the Bible. The Little Rock Scripture Study has a week of very concise and insightful reflection for your use. Please click here for the link to access a brief reflection for each day of the week, in English or Spanish. 
What an amazing response to our Special Collection last weekend. Thank you, Sacred Heart! If you missed the special collection, contributions to help purchase food for the holiday baskets can be made by mailing donations to Jim Schmidt, 2 Certero Circle, HSV. Please make your check payable to Sacred Heart and on the memo line, please write "basket program." This is necessary to identify the basket donations from the general church donations.According to the United States Census, approximately 22% of the individuals in Garland County live in poverty. So, thank you for your generous donations, and please continue to help us help our less fortunate neighbors!
If you can deliver a basket at either Thanksgiving or Christmas, please contact Ed Keearns, 922-3832, or e-mail keearns@sbcglobal.net. The delivery can be made anytine 10 days prior to the holiday. We need your help.
This month continues to be a period of rapid growth. At 24 weeks, your baby can suck his thumb and hiccup. Your baby's brain is also developing rapidly. A special type of "brown fat" that keeps your baby warm at birth is forming. Baby girls develop eggs in the ovaries, and bones are becoming solid. Your baby is almost fully formed and looks like a miniature human. Your baby cannot usually live outside the uterus at this stage withouy highly specialized care. By the end of the sixth month, your baby will be around 11 to 14 inches long and will weigh about 1 to 1.6 pounds. Please continue to pray for this special child of God. 
As we enter the Fall, we want to see if anyone is interested in looking into the Catholic Faith and perhaps, consider becoming a Catholic either through the waters of Baptism (if you haven't already been baptized with water in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit) or through a profession of faith and Confirmation if you have already been baptized. Every situation is different and requires flexibility in the preparation process.If you or someone you know might benefit from finding out more about what we, as Catholics believe, and our way of living the Catholic Faith, ask them to call Father Bill at 209-2502 to get more information.
There is so much more that can be done to help our neighbors here in Arkansas if everyone contributes to CASA. We've been receiving more and more contributions lately. Won't you please join the 290 parish famiies (of 783 total) who have contributed, by considering a contribution to this statewide appeal. Please return your CASA gift/pledge in the envelope provided or visit us online at www.dolr.org/casa.
The Ladies of the Sacred Heart sponsor a Shawl Ministry for the parish. Members meet the first Tuesday of the month at 1:00 p.m. in one of the classrooms. New knitters and crocheters are always welcome. We make shawls for anyone who is ill or in need of spiritual comfort, and Father Bill or Deacon Bernie bless the shawls. We usually have them available after our monthly meeting of the Ladies of the Sacred Heart on the second Monday morning of each month, September through May. To date, we have given over 1,000 shawls. Call Dee Kapple at 915-9331 or Tillie Tylka at 922-4190 if you need a shawl for someone; or, if you need more information. 
Sacred Heart Rosary Makers will resume weekly meetings on Thursday, September 17, after daily Mass. We will again meet in classroom C, and we are always looking for new members to help us make rosaries for the needy missions. As a reminder, we have rosaries on the Rosary Tree in the nartex for anyone who needs or wants a rosary. We have made and sent over 70,100 rosaries to date. For questions, contact Dee Griffin at 226-5647. 
If you haven't already, make plans now to join John Michael Talbot, Christian Music Pioneer, Best-Selling Author and TV Host and two great pastors, Fr. John Keller and Fr. Tom Rafferty on a 7 day Spiritual Cruise & Fund Raiser. You will be sailing out of Galveston, Texas (Round Trip) for 7 days, January 17 through 24, 2016. Ports of call are Cozumel, Belize and Roatan, sailing on the "Carnival Magic" cruise ship. Daily Mass will be offered by Fr. John Keller, Prince of Peace and Fr, Tom Rafferty, St. Anthony of Padua along with music by John Michael Talbot. There will also be inspiring, daily presentations featuring message and music from John Michael Talbot! Please click here for additional information. 
We will combine all choirs for Thanksgiving this year. If you are not currently singing in one of our choirs and would like to join us, we will have only ONE practice this year on Wednesday, November 18, at 4:15 p.m. The Combination Choir will practice after our regular Sunday Mixed Choir practice at 3:00 p.m. in the choir area of the church.Call Lynne Border at 922-2062, extension 13 with questions you may have.
St. Elizabeth Guild will be sponsoring a bake sale this weekend November 14/15 in the A & E Building before and after ALL Masses THIS weekend. Please stop by and purchase some goodies to take home. 
Not looking forward to the holidays? We will offer a special Grief Support session with ideas on dealing with the upcoming holiday season after the loss of your spouse. These meetings will be small groups, one session only, from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. The first session will be held Monday, November 9, for men only. The remaining sessions on Wednesday and Thursday, November 11 and 12, will be for women only. If you have lost your spouse this year and are facing the holidays alone, please consider joining one of these groups. To reserve a spot, call Martha Rogers at 501-580-1750 or e-mail marthapatton66@gmail.com. We prefer to keep the size of the groups limited to six or a maximum of eight, so please call early. The men's session will be facilitated by Deacon John and the women's sessions by Deacon John and Martha Rogers. 
Members of the Knights of Columbus Fourth Degree Assembly invite all Military Veterans to join in a Veterans Appreciation Program in the Lower Hall on November 11 - following the Patriotic Rosary which follows the 9:00 a.m. Mass that Wednesday. All participants at the Mass and/or rosary are also invited to attend. There will be coffee/donuts and a short program recognizing the unselfish contribution of veterans. The program will begin at 10:30 a.m. Each year Sacred Heart delivers food to needy families in Fountain Lake, Jessieville and Mountain Pine areas for the holidays. Last year we delivered 60 baskets for Christmas alone. The food for the baskets is purchased in part, with funds donated by Sacred Heart parishioners. Without those donations, we would not be able to help as many families.Donations to help purchase food for the baskets can be made at a special second collection next weekend, November 7 and 8. Just drop your check in the collection basket. If you miss this opportunity, you can also mail donations to Jim Schmidt, 2 Certero Circle, HSV. Please make your check payable to Sacred Heart and on the memo line, please write "basket program." This is necessary to identify the basket donations from the general church donations.
According to the United States Census, aproximately 22% of the individuals in Garland County live in poverty. So, thank you for your generous donations in the past, and please continue to help us help our less fortunate neighbors! In addition, if you can deliver a basket at either Thanksgiving or Christmas, please contact Ed Keearns, 922-3832, or e-mail keearns@sbcglobal.net. The delivery can be made anytime 10 days prior to the holiday.
The next Blood Drive as supported by the parish Knights of Columbus and hosted by the Village United Methodist Church on Carmona Road, will be held Tuesday, November 10, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. New donors can go to www.redcrossblood.org for detailed information. Contact John Bodensteiner with questions or to be placed on an e-mail reminder list. E-mail jbodie65@gmail.com or call 915-0339. 
Members and guests will enjoy a Pot Luck and Games evening on Monday, November 9, from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. in the Lower Hall. Bring your friends and neighbors and a dish to pass. Sign-up in the narthex and call Ann with questions at 922-6963. 
Members of the Ladies of the Sacred Heart are sponsoring a Day of Recollection on Thursday, November 5, from 9:00 a.m. Mass to 3:00 p.m. Father Mike Hinken will be presenting, "The Holy Trinity in our Personal Spiritual Development." All parish women and friends are invited. Bring your lunch; coffee/water will be provided. There is no charge, but reservations are needed. Sign-up in the narthex or contact Sheila Harrison, 922-1767 or Judy Gallagher at judy444@hotmail.com.