October/November 2016

Fall has finally come to Erie, Pa. The month of October brought in our 1:38 Women's Conference on October 1. We had four dynamic speakers: Leah Darrow, Mother Mary Assumpta Long, OP, Emily Jaminet, and Michelle Faehnle. Father Larry was the Master of Ceremonies and we celebrated Mass with the Bishop of the Diocese of Erie, Bishop Lawrence Persico. There was opportunity for Confessions as well. We were blessed with many in attendance. We are looking forward to the 22:32 Men's Conference on March 25, 2017 at the Warner Theatre! The three speakers for the Conference are Justin Fatica, founder of Hard as Nails Ministry; Guy Gruters, Vietnam Veteran, former POW; and Gary Zimak, speaker, author, and radio host. Visit the 22:32 Men's website www.2232men.com for more information and to register!


Father Larry's speaking schedule took him to a Parish Mission at the Immaculate Conception Parish in Nashua, New Hampshire. In November he is traveling to the Marian Eucharistic Conference in Greenville, South Carolina and the Indiana Men's Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana. For more information on these events and other upcoming events visit our website at www.thereasonforourhope.org or like us on Facebook.

Speaking of our website, the 22:32 Men had asked for Father's homilies to be set up for Bible Study. You can now listen to previous years homilies in anticipation for the upcoming Sunday's Gospel. We have taken the past nine years and split them up into the three cycles for your convenience. You can find this on our website using this link:  https://thereasonforourhope.org/homilies-for-bible-study.

We receive many testimonies via email, Facebook message, and other platforms every day. Recently Father Larry invited everyone to record a short video (up to three minutes) telling the world why Jesus is YOUR reason for hope. We would like to share them on our website and social media platforms. Record it on your smart phone and email it to cryan@thereasonforourhope.org. Please consider doing this, as you never know who your story will touch and inspire. 

As for St. Joseph/Bread of Life Community news, the Parish is in the midst of celebrating it's 150th Anniversary. Part of this celebration is having a speaker come in every first Thursday of the Month. In October Father Larry spoke about celebrating the church's past and planning for the church's future. On November 3rd Sonja Corbitt will be coming to speak about being a "Light in the Darkness." Her talk will start at 7 pm and is open to the public. For more on Sonja and the upcoming speakers visit the St. Joseph/Bread of Life website at http://www.stjoesbol.org/.

The Hope House Retreat Center is up and running for Overnight Retreats! We have our first one scheduled for November 10-12. In October we hosted a Confirmation retreat and look forward to a few more Confirmation Retreats in the upcoming months. To book a retreat give us a call at 814-455-7364.

Know of our prayers as we prepare for Fall to turn into Advent. We ask you for your prayers for the Foundation, Fr. Larry, and our ministry.


Caitlin Rydberg - Marketing/Operations Coordinator

P.S. You will see my name has changed!! :) The blog is a little late this month because I got married on October 8 to Tim Rydberg.