During the month of February, members of St. Irenaeus Health Care Ministry will be asking St. Irenaeus parishioners to visit parishioners residing in five Care Centers in Anaheim, Buena Park and La Palma as part of a Valentine’s Outreach Project. They will be asked to share their love and care for their fellow parishioners by praying and spending some time with them.

The Valentine’s Outreach Project is extra special because it involves the youth of the parish working together with adults to show their love for parishioners in the Care Centers. Parishioners will be delivering about 100 Valentine’s cards which were created by Youth Ministry’s Peacemakers and students in St. Irenaeus School of Religious Education.

Under the guidance of Youth Ministry Director Laura Benoit, the seventh and eighth grade Peacemakers made some of the cards themselves. They also spent time helping Mrs. Rosa Waytashek’s first and second grade class and Mrs. Janis Plunkett’s second and third grade class decorate their Valentine’s cards. High school students also were involved in making the Valentine’s cards and helping the younger students to write their names and their messages on the cards. They also helped to supervise the younger students as they worked on the cards.

Valentine cards that the students created will be available after the Masses starting on the weekend of February 6 and 7 in the patio area at St. Irenaeus Church. Parishioners who select a card to deliver to a resident in one of the Care Centers will be able to visit and deliver the card any time during the month of February after checking with the Care Centers. There will be envelopes with the names of recipients and location of their Care Centers. There will also be some suggestions of what visitors can do on their visit.

Health Care Ministry members hope that many parishioners will enjoy their visits with residents as they serve as the hands, feet and heart of Christ during those visits.

For more information about the Valentine’s Outreach Project, call Monica Kovach at 310-490-6113.

The article above was submitted by Edna Ethington.

Featured photo

Pictured are the St. Irenaeus Youth Ministry Peacemakers at St. Irenaeus Church Parish Hall on Jan. 26, 2016, seated in a Valentine formation with some holding valentines that will be given to parishioners who are residents of Care Centers in February. Youth Ministry’s Director Laura Benoit is sitting in the middle up front Photo by Edna Ethington.

The post A caring and sharing opportunity for Valentine’s Day and beyond appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

The labyrinth at St. Irenaeus Church Hall in Cypress is modeled after the 11-Circuit Design of the 13th Century labyrinth found at Chartres Cathedral in France. It is rooted in Christianity and can be traced to 324 A.D. when it was used as a form of pilgrimage. Early Christians made vows to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, the Holy City, at some time during their lifetime.

Since it was dangerous and difficult to travel to Jerusalem in the Middle Ages, the spiritual and physical journey of walking the labyrinth in designated cathedrals was seen by the Church as an acceptable substitute for an actual pilgrimage to the Holy City itself.

St. Irenaeus Health Ministry invites persons interested in praying and walking their labyrinth as their personal Lenten pilgrimage to come to St. Irenaeus Parish Hall, at 5201 Evergreen Avenue in Cypress, on Monday, March 21, 2016 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The Labyrinth has been used as a spiritual tool to help people center themselves and focus on prayer while connecting with God. At St. Irenaeus, the Labyrinth Walk offers people an opportunity to pray for deceased loved ones whose names are engraved on Labyrinth Lanterns that surround the Labyrinth.

For more information about the Labyrinth and Labyrinth Lanterns, contact Monica Kovach at 714-310-490-6113.

The start time for this event has been moved an hour earlier than was originally planned due to the number of people responding.

The post Pray and walk the St. Irenaeus Labyrinth in 2016 appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

The St. Irenaeus Fiesta Committee has announced that the 52nd Annual Fiesta Olympiad will be held at St. Irenaeus Parish in Cypress on June 24th, 25th, and 26th 2016. According to Co-Chairs of the Fiesta Committee, Christine and George Welsch, plans for the 2016 Fiesta at St. Irenaeus are going forward thanks to the offers of help from St. Irenaeus’ Knights of Columbus, Girls Scouts, parishioners, and other volunteers. About 24 people, including members of the Fiesta Committee and other volunteers, gathered at the Adult Education Building at St. Irenaeus on April 9 to prepare to send information about the Fiesta to over 4,000 families in the parish.

A letter from St. Irenaeus’ Pastor, Fr. Patrick Moses, and a book of raffle tickets was prepared for mailing to all St. Irenaeus parish families. In the letter, Fr. Patrick invited everyone to come together as a community at the Fiesta and participate in the games, carnival rides, food booths, Bingo games, raffle prizes, and silent auctions while enjoying listening to music and other entertainment.

Since the Fiesta is also a big fundraising event to support the many financial needs and ministries of the Parish, Fr. Patrick asked for parishioners for their support and involvement by buying or selling a book of raffle tickets, helping with the planning and operation of the Fiesta, and by planning to attend the annual celebration.

Each parishioner will receive one book of 40 tickets at $2 each, totaling $80 for one book of tickets, to buy for themselves or sell to others, for the opportunity to win the Grand Prize of $10,000 or the 1st Prize of $3,000, 2nd Prize of $1,500, or the 3rd Prize of $500. The drawing of the winning tickets for the $10,000 Grand Prize and other prizes will be held on the evening of June 26, 2016. The winners do not need to be present for the raffle drawing.

According to Christine Welsch, the Fiesta Committee will be at the patio of St. Irenaeus Church after Masses starting on Saturday, April 23, 2016, to accept ticket stubs and returns. They will also be collecting the names of volunteers who would like to Sponsor a booth, be a Booth Captain, help work in game or food booths, or help with setting up or taking down booths.

This is the 14th year that Christine and George Welsch have chaired the Fiesta Committee and they would welcome the help of anyone who would like to be involved with all the preparations that are needed for successful Fiesta. Christine said that her greatest joy is seeing all the families coming to enjoy the Fiesta and having fun visiting with everyone. For more information about the St. Irenaeus 52nd Fiesta Olympiad, contact Christine Welsch at 714-553-9910.

The post Save the last weekend in June for the 2016 St. Irenaeus Parish Fiesta appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

On Saturday and Sunday, June 11 and 12, St. Irenaues Parish welcomed back Fr. Marc Boisvert, founder of Hope Village in Haiti. Invited by Fr. Patrick Moses, now pastor, Fr. Marc talked about Project Hope and, of course, asked for support.

Again.

According to his own testimony and organization literature, Fr. Marc moved to Haiti in 1998 after serving as a U.S. Navy Chaplain. Part of his duties included comforting Haitian refugees rescued at sea by the U.S. Coast Guard.

My first visit to Haiti was life-changing. I’ve never seen anything like it. Children in the streets with no adults to care for them. I would later learn that their distended stomachs were due to parasites. Their hair, stripped of its pigment, was a sign of malnutrition. These are our kids, just as much as the kids down the street are our neighbor’s. And through no fault of their own, they are orphaned and living in horrendous conditions on the street.

— Fr. Marc Boisvert

Fr. Marc began Hope Village with a handful of orphaned or abandoned boys and a condemned building. Now, eighteen years later, Project Hope is a 125-acre village and home to over 450 children. Resident children and students are served two to three thousand meals a day. Over 1500 children attend six schools. Older children receive vocational training to enable them to support themselves and their own families when the grow too old to remain. The village’s medical clinic provides around-the-clock health care, and mobile dental clinics visit twice yearly.

And it all needs support.

In the United States, the fundraising arm for Project Hope is Free the Kids, a registered 501(c)3 corporation, tax ID #22-3741436.

If you would like to support Fr. Marc’s efforts, you may make out a check payable to “Free the Kids” and mail it to 5704 West Market St., #8947, Greensboro, NC 27419.

If you prefer, you may also donate online using a credit card at www.FreeTheKids.org.

The post Hope Village founder visits St. Irenaeus Parish from Haiti appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

U.S. Veterans and their spouses are invited to a free educational presentation about the Veterans Aid and Attendance Benefit Program on Monday, August 29, 2016, from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. at St. Irenaeus Parish Hall, 5201 Evergreen Avenue in Cypress.

Presented in association with Comfort Keepers, guest speaker will be Neta Wenrick, a Community Outreach Coordinator with KNR Consulting Group. The Veterans Aid and Attendance Benefit can be used by U.S. Veterans, their spouses or both married veterans to pay for In-Home Care service.

Attendees will learn about Who Qualifies, War Period Eligibility, Documents Required, Information on How to Apply, Possible Monthly Pension Benefit Amount, and What Physical and Health Conditions of the Veteran Qualify the Veteran for the Program.

For those who qualify, the Veterans Aid and Attendance Benefit would provide a supplemental tax-free income for wartime veterans and their spouses, solely to be used for In-Home Care services.

Neta Wenrick has a Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration and a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education. She has worked for the past 30 years with older adults and has served as Assistant Program Director at the Institute of Geropsychiatry at the Los Alamitos Medical Center for five years. She was also Director of Marketing for Regency Home Care for the past two years. Wenrick will be available for further discussion during the Question and Answer period following her presentation.

All U.S. Veterans and their spouses are encouraged to attend this presentation on Veterans In-Home Care Benefit Program so that they will already have pertinent information if and when they will need it in the future. Reservations are not required for this free educational presentation.

For more information, contact Monica Kovach, St. Irenaeus Health Ministry, at 310-490-6113 or 714-995-2819.

This article was written by Edna Ethington for St. Irenaeus Parish.

The post In-Home care options for U.S. veterans and their spouses appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Hundreds of St. Irenaeus parishioners and community members came to St. Irenaeus Parish grounds to enjoy the St. Irenaeus 52nd Fiesta Olympiad over three days, June 24, 25 and 26. There were many exciting carnival rides, challenging game booths, a variety of food booths and entertainment provided during each of the three nights by different bands, dance groups and even a Karate demonstration on one night. The entertainment that was especially crowd-pleasing was provided by the Elvis Tribute Artist, George Thomas. Thomas interacted personally with members of the audience for two hours while singing many favorite “Elvis” tunes. Thomas danced on a number of table tops as he sang his versions of Elvis’ songs. He also dedicated songs to different people and danced on the stage with them.

Christine Welsch, Co-Chair of the St. Irenaeus 52nd Fiesta, said that she appreciated all the volunteers who helped to prepare for the Fiesta, worked during the Fiesta and helped to take down everything and clean up the church grounds. She said that she wanted to thank all the individuals and businesses who sponsored booths and all the parishioners and community members who came to the Fiesta to help make it a successful fundraiser. She especially enjoyed seeing all the families who came to enjoy the entertainment, the carnival rides, game booths and food booths.

Christine did not have a final tally of total funds raised at this time since not all expenses have been accounted for. Hopefully, whatever was raised by the Fiesta will help to defray expenses and support the many ministries and charitable activities of St. Irenaeus Church. Christine was able to announce the following winners of the different prizes that were awarded at the Fiesta.

The first winner to be announced on June 5, 2016 was the Early Bird Winner of $500, Carol Cramp of Cypress. St. Irenaeus parishioners had to sell a complete book of tickets and turn tickets in by June 5 in order to be eligible to win the $500 in the Early Bird drawing.

The second group of winners were three winners of the Booth Decorating Contest who each won a trophy and a certificate. First place was won by the Potato Olympics Booth, chaired by Ayako and Emi Saito, Second Place was won by the Big Valley Booth chaired by John Elias, and Third Place was won by Troop 660’s Olympic Village Hamburger and Hot Dog Booth chaired by Troop Leader Marci Lui.

The final group of winners were the Raffle Ticket Drawing Winners who were selected on June 26. The Grand Prize Winner of $10,000 was Mary Montgomery of Cypress, First Prize Winner of $3,000 was Kim Pham of Los Angeles, Second Prize Winner of $1,500 was Theresa Peel of Huntington Beach, and Third Prize Winner of $500 was Robert Kielmayer of Buena Park. Congratulations were extended to all the winners!

Fr. Patrick Moses, pastor of St. Irenaeus Church, publicly thanked Christine and George Welsch for chairing the 2016 Fiesta in the St. Irenaeus Church bulletin on July 3, 2016. This is the 12th year that Christine and George Welsch have chaired the annual St. Irenaeus Fiesta. Fr. Patrick thanked Christine and George for their leadership and all their hard work for so many years. He also thanked everyone who volunteered and gave their time, talent and other contributions to support and help make the Fiesta a success each year.

For more information about the St. Irenaeus Fiesta, contact Christine Welsch at 714-553-9910.

The post “Elvis” brings down the house at 52nd St. Irenaeus Fiesta appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Parishioners of St. Irenaeus Church in Cypress can now receive the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick on the second Friday of each month after the 6:30 and 8:30 a.m. Masses at a community celebration.

This Sacrament confers a special grace on the Christian experiencing the difficulties of serious illness or old age by the laying on of hands and anointing with holy oils by priests of the parish.

For more information, contact Monica Kovach at 310-490-6113.

Editor’s Note: St. Irenaeus Catholic Church is located at 5201 Evergreen Ave. in Cypress, next door directly to the south of Cypress Senior Center at the intersection of Evergreen Ave. and Grindlay St. To learn more about the services and ministries offered by St. Irenaeus Parish, visit their website.

The post Monthly Anointing of the Sick at St. Irenaeus Church appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

H.O.P.E (Helping Other People Everyday), an all-volunteer organization at St. Irenaeus Church, has been dedicated to serving families in need since 1976. H.O.P.E. focuses on providing assistance to families residing within our parish boundaries with food, used clothing and small household items.

H.O.P.E. will be holding their 27th Annual Dinner Dance Fundraiser on Saturday, November 5 at Knott’s Berry Farm Resort Hotel. Cocktails will be served at 6:00 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. The ticket price is $50, which also includes entertainment, silent auction and raffles.

Contact Val Cordova at 714-826-7513 or Bob Sgobba at 714-994-0743 for tickets or additional information. All proceeds will support the activities of H.O.P.E.

This article was submitted by Barbara Murphy.

The post St. Irenaeus Church to hold fundraiser for H.O.P.E. volunteer ministry appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Orange County Breeze is celebrating its five-year anniversary. Let’s look back to see what we published 5 years ago this week: October 2 through October 8, 2011.

Orange County Breeze is celebrating its five-year anniversary.

We thought it would be fun to launch a new retrospective article series looking back to see what we published five years ago. We started with articles published from October 2 through October 8, 2011.

Sunday, October 2

• St. Irenaeus Parish throws a month-long baby shower
• Create a beautiful Fall garden in October
• Intro to stand up paddling

Monday, October 3

• New chief of OCDA Bureau of Investigation sworn in
• Acacia Adult Day Care cooks up a fundraiser
• Los Alamitos police blotter, September 23 to September 29
• Cypress police blotter, September 22 to September 28
• 2011 Cypress Job Fair
• LAHS girls volleyball, Dave Mohs championship

Tuesday, October 4

• Los Alamitos City Council, May 16, comments by Poe and Stewart
• Los Alamitos Race on the Base
• Principal of Hopkinson reports to LAUSD Board
• Two chances to give blood this week
• Casa addresses Los Alamitos Council
• Video of October 3 Los Alamitos City Council meeting

Wednesday, October 5

• FBI seeks ‘Stare Down Bandit’ for bank robbery
• Stanton man on trial for bludgeoning death of roommate
• Parent company of El Torito files for bankruptcy
• Principal of Los Alamitos High School reports to Board
• Los Alamitos proclaims Fire Prevention Week
• Room with a view: rain
• Crime prevention proclamation

Thursday, October 6

• Republican Gary DeLong gathers endorsements in Congressional District 47 race
• American Red Cross 21 weeks to prepare: week 3
• Los Alamitos proclaims October as Crime Prevention Month
• Casa throws a ball to raise money to help kids
• Troy Edgar makes his race for Congress official

Friday, October 7

• Cypress Police Chief to address Chamber
• Cypress Library holds Fall book sale
• Los Alamitos High School announces National Merit commendations
• Los Alamitos loses Trash suit

Saturday, October 8

• No-Bands Bandit sought by law enforcement
• Haunted House fundraiser slashes through The Youth Center
• 79th Sustainment Support Command to host groundbreaking at JFTB

The post 5 Years Ago This Week: October 2 through October 8, 2011 appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Parishioners of St. Irenaeus Church in Cypress have opened their hearts and wallets whenever Fr. Marc Boisvert has visited with stories from Project Hope in Haiti (Pwoje Espwa in Haitian Creole):

Free the Kids, a US nonprofit organization, whose mission is to support the work of Pwoje Espwa, a village in Les Cayes, Haiti, has set up a special donation page to help with Hurricane Matthew efforts.

Pwoje Espwa, is a 125-acre village in Les Cayes, Haiti, which is located on the southern tip very close to where the eye of the Category 4 hurricane hit on early Tuesday, Oct. 4.

Espwa has a full equipped medical clinic and staff, which also serves the local community. Over 300 children live at Espwa. Another 1,200 children attend our schools.

Yesterday, Hurricane Matthew made landfall in Haiti just a handful of miles from Project Hope’s location in Les Cayes, on the southern coast of the southern peninsula that juts out into the Caribbean Sea pointing westward toward Jamaica.

Communication with the site is limited, but some information is now available. According to Project Hope’s Facebook page, no one was injured but the storm crippled facilities.

A partial list of known damage:

• Homes for both the boys and staff members had their roofs blown off. Rain soaked the interiors and contents. Everything is ruined
• The secondary school and library facilities were destroyed. Books, computers, and furnishings must be entirely replaced.
• The primary school has been forced to serve as shelter for boys and staff members.
• The farm and its crops were basically washed away. Months will be needed to rebuild it.
• The main bridge connecting Lew Cayes with the capital, Port au Prince, has been destroyed. This severely limits relief efforts.

In addition, neighbors of Project Hope lost everything and are coming to the facility looking for food and shelter.

If you wish to help, the quickest and most secure way is to make a donation through Free the Kids.

Fr. Patrick Moses, pastor of St. Irenaeus Parish in Cypress, and Fr. Marc Boisvert, founder of Free the Kids and Hope Village, on the patio of St. Irenaeus Church on July 18, 2010. Photo by C.E.H. Wiedel.

The post Hurricane Matthew heavily damages Project Hope appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Over the last six years, Fr. Marc Boisvert has visited St. Irenaeus Parish in Cypress several times to tell the story of Hope Village, an orphanage in Les Cayes, Haiti.

Last week, Hurricane Matthew made landfall close by. Hope Village, its supporting facilities, and its surrounding community, were massively damaged.

Here is a video of Fr. Boisvert describing the damage:

Boy’s housing

Every single structure in the boy’s housing area had its roof lifted off. Some structures will need to be entirely demolished. Furnishings must be replaced.

In contrast, the so-called dome housing in the girl’s area withstood Matthew well.

So plans are to rebuild demolished boy’s residences with dome housing and replace roofs in otherwise usable structures.

However, materials to do this will be exceedingly difficult to obtain.

Other property damage

Offices, storage building, and other facilities were heavily damaged.

Banana trees and mango trees were uprooted and flung about. A vital water pump was destroyed. Roads were washed out.

Homes and gardens in the surrounding community were destroyed. Residents are destitute, with no shelter, no food, no clean water. The government of Haiti offers no help. With your help, Project Hope will help.

If you wish to help, the quickest and most secure way is to make a donation through Free the Kids.

Fr. Patrick Moses, pastor of St. Irenaeus Parish in Cypress, and Fr. Marc Boisvert, founder of Free the Kids and Hope Village, on the patio of St. Irenaeus Church on July 18, 2010. Photo by C.E.H. Wiedel.

The post Update on Hurricane Matthew damage to Haiti orphanage appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

It is astonishing to note that the Salon Meritage shooting took place five years ago this week.

Orange County Breeze is celebrating its five-year anniversary.

We thought it would be fun to launch a new retrospective article series looking back to see what we published five years ago. We started with articles published from October 9 through October 15, 2011.

Sunday, October 9

• WWII B-25 ‘Executive Sweet’ returns to Los Alamitos Army Airfield
• Bishop Brown to formally install new pastor at St. Irenaeus

Monday, October 10

• New sidewalk on Bloomfield
• The Marketing Maven: Getting your press release released
• Cypress police blotter, September 29 to October 5
• Los Alamitos police blotter, September 30 to October 6
• Good manners go a long way
• JFTB personnel help open Moving Wall exhibit
• H.O.P.E. seeking donations for its 22nd annual fundraising dinner
• Citizens for a Fair Trash Contract issue statement on ruling by Judge Banks

Tuesday, October 11

• SECLO and Liberty Theater to hold open auditions for ‘A Christmas Carol’
• Tenth Annual Wings, Wheels, Rotors & Expo slated for Oct. 23
• Donations accepted by LAUSD Board
• Room with a view: Fix-it ticket
• Patricia Eskenazi announces sale of local Servpro franchise
• Public reacts to possible sale of surplus Cypress Elementary School properties

Wednesday, October 12

• Alumna Geri Jewell speaking on campus Oct. 17 as part of Disability Awareness Month
• A timely reminder to plan for retirement
• LAUSD Board hears Hopkinson modernization update
• Cypress police chief speaks to hometown Chamber
• Video of October 11 Rossmoor Community Services District Board meeting

Thursday, October 13

• Seal Beach Police report on Salon Meritage shooting
• American Red Cross 21 weeks to prepare: week 4
• Cypress Job Fair going on now
• Cypress sends out single-man survey teams
• Los Alamitos expresses prayers and best wishes to Seal Beach regarding recent tragedy
• Victims of Salon Meritage shooting tentatively identified
• Seal Beach responds to shooting at Salon Meritage
• Seal Beach Police release confirmed identities of Salon Meritage shooting

Friday, October 14

• Cypress Trustees hear budget report
• Los Alamitos to permanently block left turns at Chestnut from westbound Katella
• Orange County DA to seek death penalty in Salon Meritage shooting
• City of Seal Beach commends grief counseling team

Saturday, October 15

• OC Breeze steps up
• Bethlehem Lutheran Church invites our communities to their Apple Festival
• Cypress School Trustees approve acceptance of donations
• Vons collecting and matching donations to Salon Meritage families
• For our skeptical readers, OC Breeze publishes the Trash transcript
• “Seal Beach Victims’ Fund” established to support families of Seal Beach shooting victims at Salon Meritage

The post 5 Years Ago This Week: October 9 through October 15, 2011 appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

St. Irenaeus Health Ministry will be presenting a workshop about The Gift of Palliative Care and Hospice Care for people who are living with serious illnesses on Monday, October 24,2016, from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at St. Irenaeus Parish Hall at 5201 Evergreen Avenue in Cypress.

The public is invited to come and learn what Palliative Care is, how it differs from Hospice Care, and how it improves the quality of life of those with serious illnesses but not necessarily terminally ill. Guest speakers will be Dr. Vincent Nguyen, Program Director of CARES, a Palliative Service at Hoag Memorial Hospital, and Patty Barnett Mouton of the Alzheimer’s Association, Vice-President of Outreach & Advocacy with years of experience with Hospice and End of Life Care.

The speakers will show how Palliative Care differs from Hospice Care by using a multi-disciplinary team approach that addresses and meets the emotional, psychological and spiritual needs of the patient and the family and encourages patient-based decision-making.

For more Information, contact Karen Nerrie at 714-743-3792 or knerrie@gmail.com.

The post St. Irenaeus Health Ministry to host workshop on palliative care appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

H.O.P.E. (Help Other People Everyday) is a non-profit all-volunteer organization that operates the area Food Bank on the grounds of St. Irenaeus Church on the first and third Saturdays of each month.

H.O.P.E. provides assistance with food, used clothing and small household items to approximately 150 to 200 registered needy families residing in parish boundaries. H.O.P.E. does receive some donations of food from the government, local businesses, parishioners and community members, but there is always a need for monetary donations to fill needed items that are not provided. H.O.P.E. volunteers are hosting their November fundraiser and are hoping that it will raise needed funds to help those who need help.

The public is invited to the H.O.P.E. 27th Annual Dinner Dance, “Starry, Starry Night,” on Saturday, November 5, 2016, at Knott’s Berry Farm Resort Hotel, 7675 Crescent Avenue, Buena Park with free parking provided. The event will begin with cocktails at 6:00 p.m. and Dinner at 6:30 p.m. with choice of fried chicken, salmon or vegetarian lasagna. Entertainment will be provided by the OHIO TRIO PLUS BAND and there also will be Raffles and a Silent Auction of a number of interesting items.

Tickets for the H.O.P.E. Dinner Dance Fundraiser can be purchased after the weekend Masses at St. Irenaeus Church in the Patio Area of the church for a donation of $50.00. For more information, requests for tickets, reservations and menu selection, contact Val Cordova at 734-826-7613 or Bob Sgobba at 714-994-0743.

The post HOPE Annual Dinner Dance to raise money to support those in need appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Orange County Breeze is celebrating its 5-year anniversary. Let’s see what we published 5 years ago this week: November 13 through November 19, 2011.

Orange County Breeze is celebrating its five-year anniversary.

We thought it would be fun to launch a new retrospective article series looking back to see what we published five years ago. We started with articles published from August 14 through August, 2011. Now, of course, we’ve made it to Veteran’s Day.

Sunday, November 13

• Cypress School Board approves accepting donations
• October state revenues suggest mid-year misery for public education

Monday, November 14

• Seven-day weather forecast for Orange County Breeze country
• Orange County Breeze office closed today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• St. Irenaeus book fair offers great holiday gift opportunities
• Chamber Board member goes to bat for United Cerebral Palsy
• Cypress residents to avoid trash fee hike

Tuesday, November 15

• Los Alamitos police blotter, November 4 to November 11
• Cypress police blotter, November 3 to November 9
• Local economy faces ‘moderate’ risk from current European economic crisis
• Seal Beach office of Edward Jones supports Toys for Tots drive
• Cypress Boys and Girls Club trick-or-treats for UNICEF
• Labor relations lawyer speaks to local business people
• Video of Los Alamitos High School girl’s volleyball vs. Thousand Oaks, CIF quarter finals

Wednesday, November 16

• CIF-SS announces 2011-2012 basketball divisions
• California National Guardsmen to return from Iraq tomorrow
• Five good reasons to create an investment strategy
• Cowboy Dan supports Toys for Tots
• Boys and Girls Club reports on funds raised at Halloween Carnival
• Room with a view: Picking through trash
• Enjoy a basketball clinic for youth by the city Seal Beach

Thursday, November 17

• American Red Cross 21 weeks to prepare: week 9
• Small Hands art class offered by the city of Seal Beach
• Cypress Council rejects staff request to increase time extensions
• California National Guard soldiers return safely
• Cypress College Foundation announces 2012 Americana honorees

Friday, November 18

• CIF girl’s volleyball Southern Section championships
• Almost one-third of California mortgages are underwater
• Cypress Council approves grant application
• Rossmoor Homeowners Association announces opening of 2012 scholarship applications
• Protect your packages from theft during the holiday season
• J.M. Ivler formally requests that I ‘cease and desist’

Saturday, November 19

• Cypress Police note 35th anniversary of loss of Sgt. Donald Sowma
• Former Cypress Chamber Chairman Bob Snow retires, moves to Nevada

Those are the news articles published by Orange County Breeze 5 Years Ago This Week: November 13 through November 19, 2011 — can you add other news from five years ago this week?

The post 5 Years Ago This Week: November 13 through November 19, 2011 appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

Once again, St. Irenaeus Noel Night is a resounding success!

The Saint Irenaeus Catholic Church annual Christmas concert takes place the first Friday of December and features a wide variety of music including everything from classical choral music and modern pop to exceptional soloists, a talented Teen Choir and the always wonderful performance by the Youth Choir.

The highlights of this year’s concert, directed by Kimberly Wargo and accompanied by Kevin Weed, included a more powerful sound in the performance of the Rutter Gloria and several traditional carols, helped largely by the addition of a large brass section that livened up the music in a new way.

The loudest applause of the night was given to the performance by “Fully Alive,” the young adult choir, who performed a cover of Pentatonix’s “Mary Did You Know” which was fully a cappella and included a beatboxer. We hope to see even more innovation from this concert next year!

The article above was released by St. Irenaeus Catholic Church.

About St. Irenaeus Catholic Church

Editor’s note: St. Irenaeus Catholic Church is located at 5201 Evergreen Ave., just south of Lincoln Ave., in Cypress. It is well-known for holding an annual parish fiesta that draws attendance from Cypress and neighboring towns. The rectory phone number is 714-826-0760. The parish supports a school, serving grades kindergarten through 8. The school office may be reached by calling 714-827-4500.

The post St. Irenaeus Noel Night is a resounding success appeared first on Orange County Breeze.

St. Irenaeus Care Ministry in Cypress asked for the help of teachers and students at St. Irenaeus School and parishioners of St. Irenaeus Church to share the Christmas Spirit with residents of local Care Centers and Homebound Parishioners through their Annual “Giving Tree” Outreach Project.

Starting in November, Health Ministry Board members began preparing over 400 paper bags for their Christmas Giving Tree Project. Teachers and students were asked to help decorate the bags for men and women who reside in the five Care Centers that are within the boundaries of St. Irenaeus Parish. Health Ministry members visit these five Care Centers each week to pray the rosary or conduct Eucharistic services so they know many of these residents personally. In addition, St. Irenaeus parish priests celebrate Mass once a month at each of these Care Centers.

On the first weekend of December, St. Irenaeus parishioners were offered the opportunity to participate in the Giving Tree Project by filling the decorated brown bags with items from a suggested list of gifts for the men and women at the Care Centers and the Homebound Parishioners. St. Irenaeus parishioners responded quickly and generously so that by December 12, the new “Brides’s Room” in the church was filled with the brown paper bags overflowing with gifts!

Parishioners were invited to attend the Christmas parties where their gift bags would be presented. They also were asked if they wanted to join in the singing of carols and other holiday songs and help deliver the gift bags to those who were bedridden. Some parishioners responded positively and came to the parties to experience the joy of giving.

Gifts delivered with songs and love

During the week of December 12-16, teams of Health Ministry members delivered the filled gift bags to Harvest Retirement and Knott Care Center in Buena Park, Sunrise Assisted Living in La Palma and Genesis and Karlton Care Center in Anaheim. They were joined by St. Irenaeus Adult Choir members, parishioners, and different groups of people at each place. The residents all seemed to enjoy listening to and joining in singing familiar holiday songs. They liked the surprises they received in their gift bags, especially lap blankets.

The Christmas parties at two of the Care Centers were full of parishioners and young people, at Harvest Retirement and at Sunrise in La Palma. At Harvest Retirement, residents were treated to extra special surprise performances of carols played on the piano by Michael Pace, holiday songs performed by violin teacher Margie Chan and her violin students, and other Christmas songs led by St. Irenaeus Choir members accompanied by ukulele and jingle bells. Santa Troy Kissell was accompanied by his mother Lucy Kissell dressed as Mrs. Claus, and his grandmother Grace Francis and his two children dressed as elves as they delivered gift bags to residents at the party. Troy’s wife Cindy was one of the leaders of Scout Troop 660 who brought scouts dressed in uniform to help sing and deliver gift bags who were in their rooms. It was a wonderful gift giving time for the Kissell family and the residents loved seeing them all dressed in holiday outfits! It was the only party that was held at night starting at 7:00 p.m. and included some fathers who came with the scouts.

At Sunrise Assisted Living in La Palma, students from Mrs. Cathy Corkhill’s Sixth Grade Class at St. Irenaeus School and some of their parents, came with bags filled with gifts. They each made a lap blanket and wanted to personally give their bags to residents in their colorfully decorated bags. The students joyfully joined in singing carols and other holiday songs with choir members and Health Ministry members. The appearance of Santa Vickie Larson brought smiles to the faces of the students and the residents alike as Santa enthusiastically joined in singing all the familiar and favorite songs including “Silver Bells,” “Jingle Bells,” “Silent Night” and “Rudolf.” Santa especially enjoyed joining the singing of the song, “Must be Santa!” as she moved around the room greeting people. Santa presented each person with a gift bag, a hug and sometimes a kiss!

The Sixth Grade students were Santa’s elves and helped to carry the gift bags for Santa as they were presented to each person in the dining room and later to residents in their rooms. While the students were delivering the gift bags, Lexington Jr. High students Juliana and Angelina Daubert entertained residents by playing two holiday songs on the piano. All the students showed their youthful enthusiasm as they sang “We wish you a Merry Christmas” and “Feliz Navidad” to all the residents at Sunrise.

Mrs. Grace Francis oversees and visits all five of the Care Centers each week. She said that she appreciated all the singers and volunteers who helped to make the Christmas parties such a joyful event for the residents of the Care Centers. She especially wanted to thank people who volunteered to be a Santa, including her grandson Troy Kissell, John Lewallen and Vickie Larson. Vickie enjoyed being Santa so much that she volunteered to be Santa at three of the five Care Centers.

Mrs. Francis also said that she was so grateful for the generosity of all the parishioners of St. Irenaeus who made it possible to bring gifts to residents of the Care Centers. She said that gift bags will be delivered later to Homebound Parishioners of St. Irenaeus.

Volunteers needed for Health Care Ministry

The Giving Tree Project for 2016 came to an end on December 16, but evangelization still continues each week at the Care Centers. People who would like to join Health Care Ministry members and bring the Good News of Christ to residents of the Care Centers can contact Grace Francis at 714-742-0960 or contact Sr. Rita O’Connell at 714-826-0760.

Editor’s note: St. Irenaeus Parish is located at 5201 Evergreen Ave. in Cypress, between Lincoln Ave. and Orange Ave.

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Top Ten Stories for Dec. 18 through Dec. 25 include Buena Park’s remodeled Marie Callender’s, USC football, and a Huntington Beach murder suspect.

The Top Ten Stories for Dec. 18 through Dec. 25 were the most read stories at Orange County Breeze over the last week (excluding weather forecasts):

1. Orange County Sheriff’s Department seeks drunk drivers during holiday season
2. Printable sudoku and crossword puzzles for the fourth week of December 2016
3. Marie Callender’s Buena Park re-opens with fresh new look
4. USC football coach Helton named as finalist for coach of the year
5. Federal water legislation supports Orange County drought solutions
6. Poseidon Water happy over new federal water law
7. Jason Joseph Becher extradited to face Huntington Beach murder charges
8. Cypress police blotter, December 12 to December 18, 2016
9. Treasurer John Chiang releases statement on CalPERS discount rate decision
10. St. Irenaeus Noel Night is a resounding success

Featured photo

Cover graphic of the December 2016 Orange County Breeze Dining, Arts & Entertainment (DARTS) guide. The guide lists events local to northwest Orange County and southeast Los Angeles County.

Download OCB DARTS now — it’s free!

Do you enjoy working puzzles? We added puzzles to DARTS! Beginning with the May 2015 issue, two pages of puzzles are included in our free monthly DARTS downloadable publication.

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Upcoming events at St. Irenaeus Catholic Church include a holy day of obligation, saints’ feast days, an annual retreat, and a warm-clothing drive.

St. Irenaeus Catholic Church in Cypress starts the New Year by celebrating the Octave of Christmas and the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. For Catholics, this is a holy day of obligation, meaning that they are required to attend Mass.

Saints commemorated in the first week of the New Year include Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen (both bishops and doctors of the Church), Elizabeth Ann Seton, and John Neumann.

The Christmas season continues through Epiphany on Sunday, Jan. 8, and the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, on Monday, Jan. 9.

The Parish’s annual men’s retreat will be held Jan. 20 to 22 at Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center in Sierra Madre. The theme of this year’s retreat is “The Crucified One is No Stranger.” The Passionist Retreat Team will lead activities. For more information, call Gary at 714-826-3402 or Frank at 714-952-2420 or Fred at 714-606-5561.

The Parish will hold a warm-clothing drive on the first two weekends in February. Gather your clean, used jackets, sweats, sweaters, jeans, blankets, and sleeping bags for distribution to local homeless in need. Clothing may be dropped off at the patio outside the Church after any of the regular Masses.

About St. Irenaeus Catholic Church

Saturday Vigil Mass is held at 5 p.m. Masses on Sunday are held in the morning at 6:30, 8, 9:45, and 11:30. A Spanish-language Mass is held at 1:15 p.m. each Sunday afternoon. The evening Masses are at 5 p.m. (geared towards teens) and 6:30 p.m.

St. Irenaeus Catholic Church is located at 5201 Evergreen Ave. in the city of Cypress. For more information, call the parish rectory at 714-826-0760, visit the parish website at www.StICypress.org, or email parish@StICypress.org.

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St Irenaeus Parish in Cypress have a dedicated couple, Deacon Gerald “Jerry” Pyne and his wife JoAnn, who wanted to help the homeless during this cold weather season. They conducted their annual Warm Clothing Drive on the first two weekends in February on February 4, 5, 11 and 12 of 2017. They asked parishioners to donate clean and still useable jackets, sweats, sweaters, jeans, blankets and sleeping bags to help keep homeless people warm. The Pynes were overwhelmed with the response from St. Irenaeus parishioners who filled about 175 large trash bags full of clothing and other items. They are very grateful to St. Irenaeus parishioners for their generosity of donating clothing for their homeless brothers and sisters in neighboring communities. Their days are busier now as they are delivering the bags of clothing to Homeless Shelters in Orange County and are still accepting donations of clothing.

JoAnn Pyne said the donated clothing will be delivered to the following shelters: Catholic Worker in Santa Ana, Micah’s Way in Santa Ana, Mercy House in Santa Ana, Courtyard Homeless Transitional Center in Santa Ana, and Daughters of Charity Homeless Outreach.
Deacon Jerry said that he especially appreciates the help of his faithful volunteers, Gary Pons, Ron Ball and John Brunner. He hopes that more men will volunteer to help carry the heavy bags of clothing and deliver them to the shelters.

Deacon Jerry said that there are so many necessities of life that the homeless do not have that he and JoAnn may conduct additional drives for toiletries and other items that they need in the months ahead. They said that they do what they do for the homeless because the homeless population is increasing and the need for help is there. When asked why he does what he does for the homeless, he said that “it is part of Christian Charity” that we help the needy.

Deacon Jerry and his wife JoAnn also show their Christian Charity by volunteering to go to Juvenile Hall on the second Sundays of each month. He conducts Communion Services there, and JoAnn helps to find juveniles who wish to have sacramental preparation for Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation.

If anyone would like to help Deacon Jerry and JoAnn in their work with the homeless or at Juvenile Hall, please contact Deacon Jerry Pyne at St. Irenaeus Church at 310-756-4908. Persons who wish to help at Juvenile Hall need to register with the Catholic Diocese of Orange and also take a few classes.

Newly baptized Catholic Ron Ball was amazed at the number of bags that were collected on February 12.

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