Our St. Thomas sponsored Scout Troop 1071 is hosting a Frese’s Catering Service Chicken BBQ at the St. Thomas Church parking lot on Thursday, September 28th from 3:30 to 6:30 PM. For $15 per takeout order, you can enjoy a half chicken dinner with coleslaw, baked potato, corn on the cob, roll & cookie. All proceeds to benefit Troop 1071. Please call 518-369-5962 to preorder by Sept 21. Thank you for supporting scouting!

How is the Holy Spirit Calling you today? Special thanks to Deacon Daniel for sharing your vocation story with all of us!  He reminded all of us on how the Spirit continually is at work in our lives; inspiring us to discover our vocation in life and giving us the grace to serve HIM and others. We thank everyone for coming out to have fun, ice cream and to pray for vocations! Special shout out to our Youth Ministry CORE Team for hosting!

The Christ Child Society of Albany is planning their annual Baby Shower for Saturday, October 14, 2023 from 12:00pm to 2:00pm at St. Madeleine Sophie Parish Center, 3500 Carman Road, Schenectady, NY 12303. The needs of our Layette Program continue to grow and we extend a warm thank you for your donation in assisting over 500 newborn babies in our community who are in need. All are welcome. The Layettes we distribute include an afghan or quilt (36”- 42” or 40”- 40”), receiving blankets, disposable diapers (newborn and size 1), onesies (3 to 6 months or 6 to 9 months), sleepers (3 to 6 months), hooded bath towels, handmade sweater sets and baby board books. We ask that you bring your Layette Item(s) as a donation unwrapped. Refreshments will be prepared for your enjoyment. Please RSVP by Sunday, October 1 to Carol Kelly at (518) 698-6633.

The Churches of St. Matthew's, Christ the King, St. Lucy's, and St. Thomas the Apostle plan to begin the Gabriel Project® as part of our Walking with Moms in Need program. The Gabriel Project® is a pro-life and parish-based program offering assistance to women experiencing difficult circumstances during their pregnancy. We need volunteers to accompany pregnant women and assist them spiritually, physically, emotionally, and materially. If you are interested in learning more about the Gabriel Project®, you can come to the training meeting at St. Thomas on Saturday, September 23, at 9:30 am in the parish office conference room. For more information, please contact Louise Schrecongost in the parish office.

Beginning Experience of the Hudson Valley is a peer led ministry that serves those grieving the end of a marriage or spousal relationship due to death, divorce, or separation. This fall we are offering two programs and we invite men and women of all ages to attend. Healing Weekend- an in-person weekend retreat at St. Lawrence Retreat Center in Beacon NY from October 20 to 22, 2023. For information or to register please call Phyllis at 914 261 5812 or Betty at 973 903 3941 In the Beginning…Coping with Life Alone- one day remote via zoom program held on Saturday, September 23, 2023 from 9AM to 4PM. For information or to please call Jim at 845 569 9452 or Denise at 845 325 3147.

All are welcome to join us for our September book discussion. As described on Amazon.com, "As a parent, leader, citizen, athlete, coach, friend, spouse, entrepreneur, who are you helping those around you to BECOME? Are you ready to ask bigger and more meaningful questions? What is this one life really all about? Is there a recipe to create clarity of purpose? A traumatic car accident and other "Frying Pan" moments in the middle of Jonathan Fanning's career as a management consultant to Fortune 500 companies triggered a quest for a deeper sense of purpose, meaning, and significance." A limited number of copies of the book are available in the parish office for $15 per copy. Join us on September 21 at 7pm in the Gathering Hall to discuss our next book selection Who are you Becoming by Jonathan Fanning WITH Jonathan himself!

Thank you! “Act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 Fr. Sean O’Brien, OFM, Director at St. John/St. Ann’s Outreach Center is humbled by your continued support of our neighbors! We thank our young church, Corella and Peg for greeting and sorting our donations. Click here for more photos.

You are invited to Mater Christi Parish for Sung Vespers in the spirit of Taize on September 12 and October 19 at 7pm. These are special evenings of song, scripture and silence. For more information contact Justine Rodriguez, Director of Music at 518-489-3204.

“What does love look like? It has the hands to help others...” St. Augustine. The South End Children’s Café thanks you for your gifts of cleaning supplies and personal care items that will assist families on a tight budget. Special thanks to Corolla, Peggy and our young church for greeting and sorting! God bless you St. Thomas for sharing the LOVE! Click here for more photos!

“Remember that anyone who is merciful to the needy is in truth, leading to the Lord; and the Lord will reward them for what they have done.” Proverbs 19:17 Thank you St. Thomas for your generous support of our neighbors served at the Capital City Rescue Mission! We packed our van with supplies to assist the chef in preparing healthy meals. Special thanks to Barbara and Lynn for sorting. Click here for more photos

Have you yet to start watching The Chosen? Christ the King Church will be starting with Season 1 on August 6 at 6pm. The next viewing dates will be August 13, 20 and 27. Keep an eye on the bulletin and our social media for the upcoming September dates.

“A family that prays together stays together!” Special thanks to you, our St. Thomas family, for supporting our neighbors, our family served at St. James Food Pantry. As you can see from the picture, there are many empty pantry shelves. Linda Cruz, Coordinator at the Pantry, shared that inventory at the Food Bank, supplier of goods for our C.C. Food Pantries, is extremely low or just completely out of some items like juice. If you have an extra bottle of juice, please bring it to the drive this week for St. John/St. Ann’s Outreach Program and we will share some to the juice with St. James. Your donated items are making a difference in the lives of so many families! Big shout out to the Mueller Family & Corolla who did an amazing job greeting, sorting, and packing our van. We are FAMILY St. Thomas! for more photos click here.

Composting takes waste and turns it into a resource. Composters are participating in nature’s act of recycling valuable nutrients. Consider being a member of St. Thomas’ Food Scrap project and care for creation. Click for more information.

The 51st Annual Diocesan Marriage Jubilee Celebration will be held Saturday, September 23rd, 2023 at 4 pm at The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Albany. Couples celebrating their 25th, 40th, 50th or other special wedding anniversaries are invited to attend this celebration. Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger will celebrate the Mass at 4 pm and greet couples and their guests at a reception in the gathering area at the Cathedral immediately following Mass. Please register through your parish office or by email to [email protected].

LaSalle School will be having a Brooks BBQ Fundraiser on August 26 from 2pm until sold out. Dinners are $18 and presale tickets start July 24.

It has come to our attention that several spam emails have been sent with Fr. Lesser's name associated with it. Fr. Rick will never ask for money. Always check to confirm that the emails sent from Fr. Lesser are coming from his official email [email protected].

Capital Region Catholic is gathering young adults ages 21-39 for an evening of good food, Latin music, and if you wish, free salsa lessons on July 22 at 6pm in Freedom Park in Scotia behind Jumping Jacks. Come early to claim your spot, grab some food, and settle in. Dance lessons to start, followed by Alex Torres and his Latin Orchestra. You’re free to sit and listen, practice the dance steps you’ve just learned, or listen while having some drive-in food.

For ONE WEEK ONLY, July 16-23, we will be collecting NEW boys & girls clothing in all sizes. Long & short sleeves shirts, pants, jeans, leggings, hooded sweatshirts, and socks are needed. Bins are in the Gathering Hall. This is a collaboration of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany’s Youth Ministry Service Action Learning Team, Works of Mercy Initiative of Schenectady County and you our ever faithful St. Thomas Family.