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Dear friends on the journey, Have you ever visited a Subway sandwich shop or a Panda Express restaurant and been greeted with a word of welcome? There’s something about this that bothers me. I presume the companies see the value in welcoming their customers and have trained their employees to do as much. However, their “welcome” is not in fact welcome to me, simply because the well meaning staff person is generally helping another customer already, busily putting together the order. Most times no eye contact is made with the newest customer and their voice is devoid of sincerity. Please do not get me wrong ... I applaud their recognition of the importance of welcome but the activity itself must be genuine and intentional. One of the charisms of our parish is the spirit of welcome and hospitality. I felt it twenty-four years ago when I arrived at Padre Serra. Today guests, visitors and new parishioners tell me all the time, “Padre Serra is so welcoming.” “I could feel it the moment I arrived.” “Everyone is so friendly.” “I’ve never experienced anything like it before.” “There’s just something special here.” It’s palpable and yet I cannot always explain the feeling or spirit in words. But I can tell that from the birth of this parish, welcome and hospitality has and continues to be intentional, from the facilities to the cookies to the people. From staff to volunteers, we prepare for your arrival, visit, and departure. One way we do that is our Sunday morning welcome team at the 9:00 and 11:00 am Masses. Each Sunday a member of the welcome team at each of these Masses is at the welcome gazebo by the Tao cross, awaiting you and your family and looking forward to meeting a guest or visitor, to welcome all who arrive with a smile, wave, and friendly greeting and then send you off after Mass with a smile, wave, blessing and even a hug. It’s the easiest ministry we have. It’s one of the most rewarding. Our team members have shared stories of meeting friends they knew as children in another city, catching up with fellow parishioners, meeting new people, helping someone find the church or restroom and even taking your prayer requests. If you’ve been on the receiving end of or witnessed genuine welcome and intentional hospitality here at Padre Serra, I invite you to consider joining our welcome team. Come be part of and extend the Padre Serra spirit of welcome to others. The only requirement is a friendly smile and the ability to wave and say good morning and good bye.  That’s it. I promise ... you don’t even have to be an extrovert. Even introverts like me can welcome! The time requirement is fifteen minutes before and after Mass, once a month. Friends, couples, families with children can do it together. Ministry is always more fun with a partner. Contact me [email protected] if you’d like to know more or get involved. Siempre Adelante, Teresa Runyon Associate Pastor Comments are closed.
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