COLORADO SPRINGS. At the request of Bishop James Golka, parishes around the Diocese of Colorado Springs have been taking second collections to benefit humanitarian relief for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.

MONUMENT. Col. Earl George Depner (Ret.) was born on a homestead outside of Edgar, Montana on Nov. 12, 1917, and died Jan. 23, 2022, at 104 years of age. At the time of his death, he was the longest-serving Knight of Columbus, with over 84 years of continuing service.

What do you get when you combine God’s plan for marriage with 21st-century technology? One answer to that question is the Marquette Method of Natural Family Planning.

Natural Family Planning (NFP) refers to methods of monitoring natural signs of fertility to determine a woman’s fertile window, utilizing that information to either avoid or achieve pregnancy.

COLORADO SPRINGS. School is more than just learning mathematics and phonics; it’s helping children build the foundation of who they will become. The Unified Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Colorado Springs partner with parents on this journey helping form the whole child — mind, body and spirit. All of the Unified Schools are currently enrolling for the 2022-2023 school year, each providing a unique educational experience for their families.

I’m Father Mark Zacker. I’m currently Parochial Administrator of St. Francis of Assisi Church in Castle Rock. I celebrated my 25th jubilee as a priest in 2021. I have been serving in the Diocese of Colorado Springs for nearly 20 years. Every day is an adventure! I am so thankful for the gift of the priesthood and the call that I received from an early age. I never seriously considered any other vocation.

IMPORTANT LENTEN AND EASTER DATES FOR 2022
Ash Wednesday: March 2
The Annunciation: March 25
Palm Sunday: April 10
Holy Thursday: April 14
Good Friday: April 15
Holy Saturday: April 16
Easter Sunday: April 17
Divine Mercy Sunday: April 24
Ascension: May 29
Pentecost: June 5

COLORADO SPRINGS.  The St. John Henry Newman Chapel and Catholic Student Center is inviting residents to help celebrate its one-year anniversary.

The chapel and student center will hold an open house and tours of its facility on March 5 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The facility is a spiritual home for young adults ages 18-23 in the Diocese of Colorado Springs where they can attend mass and participate in spiritual activities.

COLORADO SPRINGS. Bishop James Golka will hold six listening sessions — one in each of the diocese’s five deaneries and a Spanish-language session — as part of the diocesan phase of the Synod on Synodality convened by Pope Francis.

SECURITY. Knights of Columbus Council No. 4636 at St. Dominic Parish in Security will hold a Mass for families with children with special needs on Feb. 19 at 10 a.m. Father John Stearns will be the celebrant.  The Mass will provide a quieter, less stimulating environment with fewer stressors to cause anxiety. The lights will be dim, there will be no ringing of bells and no choir singing. A deaf interpreter will be provided and ushers will be available to assist with seating. Refreshments will be served in the narthex after Mass. Those who plan to attend are asked to RSVP to John Mascitelli at 719-306-5101 or windstaraviation@hotmail.com.

COLORADO SPRINGS. Re-enrollment for St. Mary’s High School’s 2022-2023 school year is open and the priority application and tuition assistance deadline has been extended through Feb. 15. With its 135-plus year history rooted in Catholic tradition and its renewed focus on 21st century learning, St. Mary’s is uniquely qualified to educate the next generation of Catholic leaders.

Christopher Check tells stories — more to the point, stories about stories. In his keynote address at the March 19 Our Lady’s Dowry Gala at the Pinery at the Hill to support Chesterton Academy of Our Lady of Walsingham, Colorado Springs’ first classical Catholic high school, Check will argue that storytelling serves a purpose far more profound and formative than mere entertainment. Stories, says the president of Catholic Answers, are key to making the “human person.”

I have heard about Operation Christmas Child for years but never participated in this Samaritan’s Purse outreach that delivers toys, clothes, hygiene items and school supplies to children around the world and to children living on Native American reservations in the U.S.

COLORADO SPRINGS. When Michelle (Polliard) Quaney last walked the halls of Corpus Christi Catholic School as a student in 1976, the United States was celebrating its bicentennial and “Silly Love Songs” by Wings filled the airways. Yet when she returned to the Colorado Springs campus as a teacher six years ago, the feeling invoked by the building was the same.

COLORADO SPRINGS. A new residence for pregnant mothers and their preschool age children is set to be built on the campus of St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish. The home is the culmination of years of research and planning by four long-time pro-life advocates in the Diocese of Colorado Springs — Julie Bailey, Lisa Schmitz, Dick Eitel and Mike Faricy — who refer to themselves as the “Gang of Four.”v