Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church is continuing the scripture studies program that began in the fall.  The program includes both group study as well as individual studies and is open to all wishing to participate.

Starting December 7, and continuing weekly through February 1, there will be a group study on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM in the Sacred Heart Administration Building classrooms.  The groups will be studying the Gospel of John and the First, Second and Third Letters of John.  Many believe that the Apostle John has the most penetrating gaze of all the New Testament writers and that through the study of John’s writings one comes closer to God.  The study groups are open to anyone wanting to study the Gospel and Letters of the Apostle John.  For additional information and to sign up you can call Mickey Townsend at (501) 922 – 0705.

In addition to the group scripture studies, Sacred Heart has access to and can make available a broad range of individual scripture studies that can be purchased for those wishing to study in the privacy of their home.  These may also make great gifts to give to those wishing to increase their scripture knowledge and understanding.  Each scripture study comes with a study guide with study questions, a commentary and an answer guide.  The studies are provided through the Little Rock Scripture Studies Program and cost $16.25 plus shipping.  More information is available from Mickey Townsend at (501) 922 – 0705.

Dear Fellow Parishioners:

Many, many thanks to all those who joined in celebration of the 25th Anniversary of Deacon Wally's ordination as a Permanent Deacon in the Diocese of Little Rock.  Kind congratulatory thoughts from so many before and after the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the following marvelous pot-luck dinner, will long be remembered by us and those of our family who were present.

Special thanks to Father Bill who initiated the gala event and for his generous comments, to Tom Canavan and Bill Hurley and their Parish Life Committee for all the wonderful arrangements.  Thanks too for the many who came with delightful dishes and those who gave contributions for the Diaconate Koinonia Fund and/or the Seminarian Fund of the Diocese of Little Rock in our honor.  Over $1,000 has already been received that will go to these good causes.

Suzy and I are so happy to be part of this Parish Family and are very grateful for the outpouring of love for us.  You always warm our hearts.

We pray that God bless you and continue to bless our parish.

Deacon Wally and Suzy Gieringer 

Deacon Wally Gieringer and wife Suzy.

On October 29^th parishioners and guests gathered at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church in Hot Springs Village to celebrate with Deacon Wally Gieringer the 25^th anniversary of his ordination as a deacon of the Little Rock Diocese.  A special celebration mass, presided at by Father Bill Elser, Pastor of Sacred Heart, was followed by a dinner in the church hall.

Born in Farmington, MO, in 1928, Wally attended Catholic grade schools and spent two years at a Catholic Jesuit college, St. Louis University.  He then joined the Air Force and while serving at Wright Patterson AFB met his wife of 61 years, Suzy.  He received his wings following pilot training and saw action in Korea during the war.  Following five years of service Wally began his professional career that included 30 years in economic development work primarily in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.  While in Pine Bluff, Wally and Suzy were very active in the local Catholic church serving in a variety of ministry and lay leadership positions.  In 1982, with encouragement from his wife, family and a Sisters of Charity nun, Wally made the decision to join the diaconate program.  Following three years of study Wally was ordained a Deacon on November 15, 1985.

Wally and Suzy have seven sons, 23 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.  In 1984 Wally retired and in 1998 the Gieringers moved to Hot Springs Village where Wally was assigned to serve at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church.  The retirement age for deacons is 75 but when that time arrived for Wally in 2003, he asked the Bishop to allow him to continue to serve on a limited basis.  That request was granted and Wally has continued to actively serve the parishioners of Sacred Heart.

Serving as a deacon, managing a large international economic development company and being a husband and father to a large family seems like a very stressful situation.  Wally has always welcomed the challenges that come his way and the study at his home is filled with numerous awards and mementoes of the times he has cherished in the past with family, business associates and religious colleagues.  When asked what was most rewarding over the 25 years as a deacon Wally says that he really enjoyed baptizing and bringing new life into the church.  He also derives much satisfaction when, following a sermon, someone tells him how meaningful his words were to them.

The parishioners of Sacred Heart gave a big “thank you” to both Wally and Suzy as together they celebrate this milestone.

Preparing for the revised Roman Missal

There will be ONE FINAL PROGRAM on the changes in the Roman Missal that all parishes in the U.S. will begin using on November 27^th.  Anyone that was not able to attend the programs in September or October is encouraged to attend these final sessions.  This final program will consist of 2 classes on consecutive Saturday mornings

Saturday Morning from 10:00 to 12:00:

November 12^th will cover videos 1 through 9

November 19^th will cover videos 10 through 18

In addition to the video presentations there will be group discussions and time for questions.

We will have a sign-up sheet in the Narthex.  If you plan to attend these final sessions, please sign up so we have an approximate number of attendees.

Joan Smith, a Sacred Heart parishioner, prepares to take a load of donated clothes from Sacred Heart Church to Harvey’s Chapel Baptist Church.

For more than a year, Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church parishioners have been donating clothes to the Clothes Bank at Harvey’s Chapel Baptist Church.  Harvey’s Chapel, located on Mountain Pine Road a few miles out of Mountain Pine, operates both a food pantry and clothes closet for needy residents of the Mountain Pine area.  Sacred Heart parishioners bring the clothes to church where they are collected all week.  On Mondays, Joan Smith, a Sacred Heart parishioner, loads up her car and takes the donated clothing to Harvey’s Chapel.  There is a great need for children’s clothes but all clothes are accepted and used.  Recently Sacred Heart learned that Harvey’s Chapel food bank was short of the funds it needed to restock some of its supplies.  Sacred Heart sent a donation to the Project Hope Food Bank to provide a credit for them to purchase needed supplies.  Sacred Heart is pleased that it can assist the people of Harvey’s Chapel in meeting the needs of the Mountain Pine area.

L to R, Wayne Kapple, Marvin Young, Bill Hurley and Bill Janser.

On Saturday morning, October 15, 20 members of the Sacred Heart Men's Club, led by Ray Ambrozich, met at the El Acapulco parking lot to pick up trash along Highway 7.  They cleaned up approximately one mile of the highway located south of the Village West Gate entrance.  The great turnout allowed the members to finish in less than an hour. Fifteen bags of trash were gathered.  The Men's Club does this service project twice yearly.

Bill Patterson (right), President of Sacred Heart Men’s Club, and Buddy Dixon (left), Program Chairman, welcome John Paul to the club’s October meeting.

On October 11^th members of the Men’s Club at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church gathered for a dinner meeting.  They were joined by John Paul, Director of Golf for Hot Springs Village.  Following dinner, Mr. Paul updated the members on the status of golf in the Village.  He explained that the spring tornado and extremely hot summer had taken a toll on the Village courses.  Coronado, Balboa and Ponce were particularly hard hit.  At present, he reported that 95% of the tornado clean up has been completed thanks to lots of hard work and also partly to an insurance policy taken out a year ago that has paid over $300,000 in reimbursements for work completed.  During his talk John mentioned the newly implemented E blast email system that the POA is now using to inform residents about activities in the Village.  Of interest to golfers, there are golfing specials now being offered such as a two for one special at DeSoto on a Sunday afternoon.

John spent time reviewing the discussions underway on changing the course greens from Bent Grass to Bermuda Grass.  Hot Springs Village is in the “transition zone” from a weather standpoint which makes this a difficult issue.  There is no perfect solution, just a series of pluses and minuses depending on which way you go.  At this point no decision has been made and John emphasized that any change will be made slowly and only following careful evaluation and trials.

After briefly outlining the plans for renovations and improvements projects during the coming year John took questions from the audience.  Bill Patterson, President of the Men’s Club, thanked John for his presentation and for taking time to stay and answer the member’s questions.

Tim Keating, (left) past Men's Club President receiving past president's plaque from current Men's Club President, Bill Patterson.

Father Bill Elser (center) greets visitors to the Sacred Heart open house.

Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church held an Open House on October 9^th.  Beginning at 2:00 PM, visitors were welcome to come and tour the church facilities.  Representatives of various church ministries and the religious education program were present to answer any questions about their respective organizations and activities.  Welcoming guests in the narthex of the church, Father Bill Elser, Pastor of Sacred Heart, would guide those interested in a tour.  At the entrance to the church was a display table.  One side of the table had a display that focused on the mission of the parish emphasizing worshiping, praying, serving, sharing, healing and loving together.  A picture display showed parishioners involved in these activities.  The other side of the table had a display summarizing the educational and bible study opportunities available at the parish as well as providing information about the more than 40,000 hours of volunteer time parishioners have given the past years and the more than $235,000 donated to local charities by the church and the organizations within the church.  After completing the tours, Father Bill invited everyone to join him in one of the church’s meeting areas where he served some of his homemade ice cream.  Cookies and ice tea were also available, compliments of the Ladies of Sacred Heart Guild.

In commenting on the Open House, Father Bill said that he was pleased to offer the Hot Springs Village community the opportunity to come and see Sacred Heart, both the church and the people of the church.  He was excited to share all that Sacred Heart offers for the community and for its parishioners.  Father Bill also commented that the Open House was a planned, public time to visit but guests are always welcome to visit the church and to explore what Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church has to offer.