Our Parish Mission Statement:

Rooted in the Most Holy Eucharist and the other Sacraments, St. Patrick Church of Merna welcomes all to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ through stewardship, by loving and serving others through our God-given gifts.

What are you going to do this Advent? Below are several ideas of how you can renew your desire to welcome the Lord more deeply into your life, and  anticipate the birth of Jesus. 

✴Decorate your house with a special place for a nativity or crèche as a reminder of Jesus’s birth. 

✴Read the daily reflection in the Little Blue Book.

✴Listen to music of the season.

✴Attend Adoration and/or Mass an extra time during the week.

✴Use this year’s Advent book, “Rejoice! An Advent Pilgrimage into the Heart of Scripture” and learn to hear God’s voice through Scripture (can be ordered at www.ascensionpress.com).

✴Be grateful in all things.

✴Be generous with your Time/praying, Talent/serving, and Treasure/giving. The Reverse Collection is ending soon, St. Vincent de Paul is always in need, and there are many opportunities to volunteer in the community at this time of year.

✴Simply spend more time in conversation with God.

Happy Advent!

In his homily on 11/12/23, Fr. Schultz discussed Stewardship and what it means for our Parish. Below are some highlights to consider as you move forward living a life Rooted in Christ:

  • The History 
    • Both Fr. Jerry and Fr. Greg had profound visions for our Parish and Fr. Schultz wanted to continue their visions while considering the current needs of our Parish. He introduced Stewardship under the theme of Rooted in Christ. 
  • Definition of Stewardship
    • Stewardship is a way of life. It is Rooted in Christ using the gifts of Time, Talent, and Treasure through Praying, Serving, and Giving.
  • Vocabulary
    • The addition of the verbs praying, serving, and giving were introduced to help parishioners better understand the relationship that Time is praying, Talent is serving, and Treasure is giving
  • Stewardship is Biblical
    • 1 Peter 10 “As each one has received a gift, use it to serve another as good stewards of God’s varied grace”
    • 1 Chronicles 14 and 16 “…For everything is from you, and what we give is what we have from you”; “Lord our God, all this wealth that we have brought together to build you a house for your holy names comes from you and is entirely yours.”



Click Here to View the History of Stewardship at St. Pat’s

Parish Stewardship Council Members

  • Father Dustin Schultz
  • Father Matt Deptula
  • Deacon Mike Pool
  • Lynette Mehall, Chair
  • Brenda Seger, Steering Committee
  • Jenny Cook, Communications
  • Jeff Lopez, Stewardship Director
  • Marylynn Meredith, Time
  • Janis Lancaster, Talent
  • Becky Foley, Finance
  • Rusty Schopp, Finance
  • Troy Morris, Eucharistic Revival
  • Bobbi Hassel, Religious Education
  • Bob Freitag, Adult Formation
  • Julia Nalwejaka, Youth Ministry