Thank You & Farewells to Shannon and Jordan Haddad

From the Desk of Fr. Cooper

There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven.
~ Eccl. 3:1

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

Where the Church’s mission must be most visible and most alive is in the church parish. The parish is the privileged place where people are “gathered in the name of the Lord” and where they receive the challenge to go out into the world as active participants in God’s plan and as living witnesses to the one Lord. It is at the church parish where Jesus is encountered and where the Catholics’ personal relationship with Him is nurtured and made fruitful. It is at the parish that inter-personal relationships are born and lived out as in a family. There the members of the parish interact, mutually support, and sacrifice their time and resources for one another. Above all, it is in the parish where we gather to hear God’s Word that sharpens our Gospel vision; where we eat the Body and drink the Blood that revitalizes our strength to continue our journey together as pilgrims in a land that is not our permanent home.

As in all families, our parish family of Divine Mercy is experiencing a time of farewells and transition. We bid farewell to our Director of Religious Education, Mrs. Shannon Haddad, as she embarks on a new chapter in her life. I am grateful to God for the numerous gifts and talents that Shannon has brought to our parish staff over the past two years. She has collaborated with me in passing on the Faith to our little ones by transitioning our parish to a family faith formation model of evangelization and catechesis. Shannon has been a tremendous blessing in working with our children preparing for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion, implementing a strong adult formation program, shepherding our adults, teens, and children in preparation for sacraments and to be received into the Catholic Church, and helping with various administrative duties and faith formation liturgies and programs. Her warm smile, her welcoming demeanor, and her committed work ethic will be greatly missed by all of us. We extend our prayers of thanksgiving for all that she has sacrificed for the good of our parish family. Shannon will remain in her position as Director of Religious Education until June 30, 2023.  

We also bid farewell to our Director of Parish Renewal and Lay Formation, Dr. Jordan Haddad, as he embarks on new adventures in his work and ministry. Jordan has been responsible for developing an initial framework for a parish-wide formation and revitalization program centered on the key pillars of the New Evangelization; nurturing a Christ-centered culture of evangelization and discipleship formation for parish leadership, and providing formation and catechesis to strengthen the apostolate of the laity. We wish him well in his continued work as the Director of Lay Ministry Programs and Lay Formation at Notre Dame Seminary and as President and Co-Founder of The St. Louis IX Art Society (www.sl9art.com). Jordan will remain in his position until June 30, 2023.  

Let us continue to unite ourselves in prayer as we move forward in this time of transition. It is my hope that our parish will continue to be a true family in which the Good News of the Gospel is preached and lived by the witness of our daily lives. As Mary and the Apostles were gathered at Pentecost awaiting the empowerment of the Spirit to spread the Good News, we too stand on the threshold as we continue to hold fast to the mission entrusted to us at Divine Mercy Parish. Let us see ourselves gathered, gifted, and sent to make our presence as Church a source of blessing to the world.

Faithfully in the Heart of Christ,
Fr. Robert T. Cooper, Pastor
Divine Mercy Parish and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School