Year in Review: 2021
Twenty twenty-one was a year filled with many challenges, but in the midst of quiet sufferings and pandemic setbacks, God's presence in the people of Holy Cross continued to prevail and triumph in real and touching ways. To honor some of those moments and memories of the past year, we thought we'd share them with you.
January 2021 – Farewell Fr. Matt! On January 30-31, we celebrated Fr. Matt Rawson's last weekend with us as Parochial Vicar at Holy Cross to journey on to his new appointment at Christ Our Hope Parish in Boonville, NY.
February 2021 – Love is in the Air! Bishop Lucia celebrated a special Mass at Holy Cross in honor of World Marriage Day which just so happened to coincide with Valentine's Day!
March 2021 – A Music Lover's March. For St. Patrick's Day, then tenor soloist of Holy Cross Choir, Liam Fitzpatrick produced and directed a virtual concert full of vibrant Irish tunes. We also wished Liam farewell this year as he moved from Syracuse to New York City.
He Reigns – Christ the King Retreat House led a transformative mission during Lent. Chris Spilka, Director of CTK, shared inspiring stories. Jeremy Bobak led prayerful and uplifting worship, and Fr. Jason Hage filled our hearts with the hope and love of Christ and shared that love in Adoration.
April 2021 – Caring for Creation. On Earth Day, parishioners from Holy Cross spent the day cleaning up neighborhoods and town. The Gardening Angels, a group of volunteers committed to pruning and cultivating the grounds at HC, turned out in memory of founding member, Bill Sovik. We were devastated by the tragic loss of Bill this year along with many others. May we find peace and hope in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and honor the memories of our dear friends we lost this year.
May 2021 – Students at Holy Cross School participated in a special May Crowning celebration and 29 children received their First Holy Eucharist!
June 2021 – Fr. Brendan Foley was ordained to the priesthood on June 5, 2021 and was appointed to Holy Cross as Parochial Vicar on July 1. Holy Cross School students celebrated a year of successful academic work and faith-filled community with graduation celebrations and ceremonies.
July 2021 – We hosted Totus Tuus, a vacation bible school and summer youth retreat put on by college interns and the Syracuse Diocese Office of Youth & Young Adult Ministry. We had so much fun while bringing our youth to the depths of the faith.
August 2021 – Seminarian James Buttner concluded his pastoral year at Holy Cross and celebrated the Rite of Admission to Candidacy.
September 2021 – We kick off another school year and year of Faith Formation and Youth and Families programming with our annual Fall Festival!
October 2021 – Come Holy Spirit! Forty-six candidates received the Sacrament of Confirmation on Saturday, October 24, 2021.
November 2021 – Parishioners from Holy Cross attend the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC), the largest US Catholic youth event.
December 2021 – Faith Formation students and Holy Cross School students finished out the calendar year with some festive fun during the House Winter Olympics!
While these snapshots only represent a small selection of the many memories of the past year, we hope you find joy and warmth in having experienced so much as a community together. If you don't already, be sure to follow along on Instagram and Twitter (@holycrossdewitt) to keep seeing more snapshots like these, and we hope you will join us in making many more memories together.