The case for giving to the Annual Pastoral Appeal

If you've ever doubted the importance of the Diocese of St. Petersburg's Annual Pastoral Appeal, listen to the parents of St. Raphael seminarians.

Photos by Jane Winstead

Seminarians Bob and Dan Angel

Seminarians Chris McBride and Dan Angel

Pack Rat Rummage Sale earns $4,221

Bargain hunters scooped up treasures galore at the annual Pack Rat Rummage Sale on Saturday, January 22 in the Parish Hall. The sale earned $4,221, which will go to support projects of the St. Raphael chapter of the Council of Catholic Women.

Altar servers: Trying and being reverent

By Bob Musselman

It was during 7:45 a.m. Sunday Mass, and I was the only server on duty. Thirteen years old, I had been up since 5 a.m., when my dad and I set out to deliver Sunday papers on my Dayton Daily News route. Toward the end of the homily I began to nod off.

“AHEM!” boomed Father Tom Meyer, right before the words “We believe in One God,” to start the creed, and I was jolted from my reverie.

I got a similar holy “ahem” in 1998, when I was called to become director of altar servers at St. Raphael’s. Father Ken Malley, the parochial vicar at the time, was happy to have a volunteer handle organizing, training and scheduling our huge team of youth altar servers. Father Meyer, and other good priests of my youth, had planted seeds that turned into service.

St. Raphael has one of the largest crews of youth altar servers in the Diocese of St. Petersburg. If you travel to other churches, as I often do, you’ll seldom if ever see as many servers in the sanctuary or as active in the Mass. At any given time there are nearly 100 servers signed up to serve on Sunday, representing nearly as many families. It must be the largest volunteer ministry in our parish.

I’m not really sure how it got that way. Other big churches with schools and lots of families don’t always have active server programs. I’m sure it has something to do with the Holy Spirit and the high standards set by our church leaders.

Monsignor Caverly, the first pastor I worked with, always valued the quantity and quality of our server crew. If kids feel more connected to the Mass, won’t vocations tend to follow? Won’t the parish be encouraged to see young men and women front and center in the Eucharistic celebration? I always thought he sent a strong, silent, subtle message (in typical Monsignor fashion). Father Sherwood has expressed the same support for an active server corps.

Great parents have a lot to do with the success of our server program. Competing with sports, academic activities and travel plans is not easy. So many St. Raphael parents make serving a priority. I’ve had parents say they’ve skipped a soccer tournament on a Sunday morning to make sure a serving assignment was fulfilled. That would be heresy in secular circles.

The program is not perfect. Kids make mistakes, act irreverently, act like kids, miss assignments. But I try to stress to adults who complain that kids will be kids, and parents are doing the best they can. These are the best and brightest children in our parish and we must be patient with them. In my 13 years, I’ve never had to “fire” a server for failure to do a good job. Patience is surely an important virtue when trying to mold the next generation of Catholics.

At our server meeting to begin each year, I always teach the kids what “ironic” means by describing the contrasting duality of their server chores: “Serving will be the most important thing you do all week, more important than school or chores or sports. But the ironic thing is that it doesn’t matter if you mess up or make a mistake. As long as you’re trying and being reverent it really doesn’t matter. Just do your best and God will be happy with your service.”

Bob Musselman directs the altar server ministry at St. Raphael Catholic Church. He wrote this especially for the Saint Raphael Messenger.

Photo: Bob Musselman as an altar server at 13 years old. | Photo courtesy of Bob Musselman

• Altar servers: Teaching what 'service' really means
• Altar servers of 2010, a photo review

Altar servers: Teaching what 'service' really means

Photo courtesy Bob Musselman

Off camera, there’s a gun pointed squarely at their heads.

The picture I’m talking about is of my four sons serving Christmas Mass in 2007. It’s one of the few times they all donned the server garb and helped out at Mass together.

The metaphoric gun was required because they all weren’t so enamored with the spectacle of four Musselman boys in the sanctuary. Bobby the eldest at 16, didn’t really see himself as a server anymore. In fact, he wasn’t technically even scheduled on Sundays. Even the 13-year-old, John, was not excited about being there.

My kids are no different than other kids who serve. Often, they don’t want to do it. Mass is too early, or too late, or inconvenient. They don’t want to wear good shoes and long pants to every Mass, in case they’re needed. They’re embarrassed to be seen by their flip flop-shod buddies.

But serving is an excellent opportunity to teach kids about what “service” really means. And it’s an opportunity for parents to, well, act like parents. Kids do not come out of the womb as selfless, hard working, humble saints.

I try to stress at our annual server parent meeting that we all have battles to fight with our kids, and we have to pick them carefully, looking for the “hill that’s worth dying for.”

To me, the lessons learned from altar serving—humility, service, reverence and teamwork—are well worth the effort. Even if it requires a little extra prodding early Sunday morning.

– Bob Musselman

• Altar servers: Trying and being reverent
• Altar servers of 2010, a photo review


Bob Musselman directs the altar server ministry at St. Raphael Catholic Church. He wrote this article especially for the Saint Raphael Messenger.

St. Raphael altar servers of 2010

Photos by Jane Winstead

• Altar servers: Trying and being reverent
• Altar servers: Teaching what 'service' really means

Nursing Home ministry

Photo by Jane Winstead

Louise Barrett speaks with a resident of Shore Acres Rehabilitation Center during a recent ministry visit. “As we minister to the residents, they minister to us,” she says.

By Louise Barrett

I am part of St. Raphael's Nursing Home ministry along with Greg Langston, Linda Champion, Bill and Karen Muhlstadt, Angela Soucy, Mary Baecher, Maggie Moren, Joan Priest, Chris Winstead, Rose York, and Mary Wilson.

Our ministry members visit Shore Acres Rehabilitation and Health Center each Sunday. In addition to our weekly Sunday visits, on the third Wednesday of every month, one of our priests from St. Raphael celebrates a Mass right at Shore Acres for residents who able to participate.

After Mass, our priest does individual room visits for those who are too weak to attend Mass.

Residents receive Holy Eucharist, confession, Sacrament of the Sick, prayers, and holy objects like prayer cards and rosaries when requested. We have seen many Catholics who had fallen away from the faith who return to a full sacramental life.

We have witnessed the baptisms of some residents. The residents become part of our St. Raphael family. Whenever asked, we pray with our Protestant brethren in the power of the Holy Spirit.

In a recent survey about the positive benefits of Shore Acres nursing home, one of the residents listed our Nursing Home ministry as a highlight of his experience there!

Over the years, this ministry has touched the lives of many amazing people who find themselves at Shore Acres because they need round the clock nursing care for various reasons.

Many come for a time and then return home. Some are young, needing rehab. Some are terminally ill. For some, Shore Acres will be their final home for several years until their death.

These residents are dear to us and we look forward to our visits with them.

I have been in the ministry since August 1999. I have met hundreds of residents during that time. I have held their hands and watched them get better, and I have held their hands and been at their side as they died. As we minister to the residents, they minister to us.

This is an incredibly rewarding ministry and you are welcome to join us. We train you on the job and take you through the steps needed to become a volunteer.

If you're interested: Please call Louise Barrett at (727) 821-2561.

Please view two slide shows below showing Father Dominic and Father Tim celebrating Masses at Shore Acres Rehabilitation and Health Center.

Photos by Jane Winstead

New Children's Choir CD

Photos by Jane Winstead

Becky Wahlberg, at keyboard, leads the St. Raphael Children's Choir.

If you've ever attended one of the weekly school masses at St. Raphael's, then you have heard the beautiful voices of the St. Raphael's Children's Choir.

This year, under the direction of Becky Wahlberg, the children's choir recorded their first CD.

Becky and her husband, Bert, recorded 17 of the choir's favorite worship songs, and have spent the last few months completing the project in their home-based music studio.

The CD is being sold as a fundraiser for the entire school music program, which not only includes the School Choir, but the band program as well.

Everyone involved with this project is very proud of it. It would not have been possible without the help of Jo Ann Devine, Jamie Scarpino, Alan Horner, and Daisy Ash, who have volunteered their time and talent.

If you're interested: If you'd like to buy a copy of the new Children's Choir CD, they are available after Mass in the Narthex.

Andrew Wargo, Knights of Columbus ministry

I came to Florida to work with Franklin Templeton Investments back in 2006. 

At that time I was on my own with no family in the area.  I knew that God was important to me and I wanted to find ways to better grow toward Him. 

I participated in the Fall Harvest Festival for Saint Mary's church in November 2006 and the event was a great success. During the event, I was approached by a man named Don who asked if I had ever considered becoming a Knight. 

Having little knowledge of the organization based on my memories in Pennsylvania, I decided to join as I was looking for more opportunities to get involved with charity.  

The Knights of Columbus began in 1881 in the basement of St. Mary's Church in New Haven, Connecticut. Father Michael McGivney brought a group of men together to   K of C is the world's largest Catholic fraternal service organization.

Since then, I have helped raise money for the Knights that has gone toward seminarians, distressed brothers, the handicapped, and the church. 

Most of these events are not glamorous and are things that the majority of people would not be interested in doing. 

I have served the Knights by standing outside of churches and Publix, by hosting dinners and pancake breakfasts, providing meals at Pinellas Hope, working the Papa Johns pizza booth at Tropicana Field, and taking an officer role in Council 2105 to provide input for how we could better serve the community. 

There are 14,000 councils and 1.8 million members throughout the world.

I am currently the Deputy Grand Knight and have been nominated for Grand Knight this coming year. 

I am greatful for all that I have been able to do with this organization and I encourage anybody at Saint Raphael who is interested in charity to join.

If you're interested: If you would like join the Knights of Columbus, send an e-mail to Andrew Wargo at wargocc83@hotmail.com