This past week, the priests of the cluster had a first meeting with Dennis Cheesebrow, the person who will serve as the facilitator for the Ministry 2025 process in our cluster of thirteen parishes in Carroll County.  At this first meeting, we began to prepare the outline of the steps that we will take throughout this process.

The first step in the process is to undertake the central issue that is on the minds of everyone in these parishes:  to review the proposed structure of one parish for Carroll County with eight worship sites.  This is where we will have opportunity to present and discuss alternative plans for the county. All options can be reviewed, as long as the alternatives come to the same end point as the proposed plan – i.e., four priests for the county, each having three masses per weekend.  If consensus can be reach around an alternative plan, that plan would then be submitted to the Diocese for review and approval.

For this part of the process, the facilitator will meet with the priests, deacons and one parish director from each of the thirteen parishes.  There will be a series of 3 meetings to hold these conversations, with the opportunity for each director to go back to their own parish for feedback and consultation.  It is estimated that this process will take 1-2 months to complete.

Please keep this process in your prayers.

Carroll County Youth Ministry (CCYM) has hired a youth minister for the coming year!   We are happy to announce that we have been able to hire Carli Meixner as a youth minister for our parishes.  Carly is a recent graduate of Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas where she was involved in a number of ministries on campus.  She will begin her position the beginning of September.  We are grateful for the energy and enthusiasm she will bring to this position as we continue to build youth ministry in our parishes.