Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Let us rejoice and be glad! Jesus Christ is born!

Because of Him we can really be full of true joy. Even in the most difficult times, where many people around us are in fear and sadness for many reasons, we live in hope and joy, because our hope and our joy do not come from the things of the world, but from God himself! Let us share our joy and our hope with those who live in darkness, so they also can see a great light! Our small community of St. Agnes in Greenport is still focused on that mission: To announce the Good News of Salvation in Jesus Christ.

I want to use this opportunity to thank you all for joining in this mission. I especially want to thank the volunteers from the Religious Education Program, our altar servers, proclaimers, eucharistic ministers, cantors, volunteers from John’s Place Homeless Shelter, the North Fork Parish Outreach, Spanish Apostolate, and so many others for your efforts to help increase the Catholic faith in our community.

In the school building, we have our CCD program where our volunteers are transmitting the teachings of the Church to the next generation. We are preparing the children for the sacraments of first communion and confirmation and showing them the beauty of the Catholic Faith! In the school basement, we have the Food Pantry, which is run by the North Fork Parish Outreach (NFPO) to help those who struggle with food insecurity. We also have AA meetings to help those who struggle with addiction.

We have an ever-increasing demand for these ministries, and the need for maintenance and repair of aging infrastructure. As you probably recall, we repainted the corridor and did a floor replacement of the first floor in our school. In the near future, we have plans to remodel the school basement for activities including AA meetings, the Spanish Apostolate, and the new home of the NFPO Thrift Shop. This past summer, we installed new AC units and a boiler in the rectory. Recently, the boiler in the church broke and needs to be replaced.  At the same time, we discovered that our cemetery needs a bulkhead to be protected from water erosion. Unfortunately, these are very expensive jobs.

We also know how much the economic situation affects all of us. Just to give you an example: To heat our school, church, and rectory in 2020, we used 8960 gallons of fuel and we paid $21,740. This year, we saved fuel and only used 7469 gallons, but we paid more than $30,000.

We are unable to do anything without your generosity! Your gifts to St. Agnes Parish are greatly appreciated. Thank you for your faithful support! There are many ways to support our parish. Many of you use Faith Direct. If you want to use that system, just go to https://www.faithdirect.net/give-now/ or call Faith Direct at 866-507-8757. We are parish NY494. But the most important thing is to increase our prayers and spread the good news! Invite your friends and family members who have drifted away from the church. Tell them: Jesus loves you! Allow Him to enter into your heart!

In Poland, there is a tradition that people invite a priest to come and bless their house at Christmas time. This is always a good time to meet, to pray, and to talk about issues and joys in our parish and our families. Just let me know if you want me to visit you with a special Christmas Blessing!

In closing, I would like to wish you and your families a blessed Christmas and I hope to see you at our Christmas celebrations! Masses will be held December 24th: 4 pm, 6 pm, 7:30 pm (Spanish) 9 pm (Spanish) and December 25th: 12 Midnight, 8 am, 10 am, 12 noon). May God bless you!

In Christ,

Fr. Piotr Narkiewicz 

Each year as fall approaches the Saint Agnes Church in Greenport, NY transforms its parish hall into a Winter Homeless Shelter known in our community as "John’s Place".

We open our doors each Tuesday evening to 30-40 people who need a warm place to sleep with hot showers, meals, and clothing from November through April. We provide dinner, dessert, breakfast and a brown bag lunch to go. All guests are welcome with respect and kindness regardless of situation, origin, background or religion. Our volunteers are there to talk, listen, or simply be in the company of our guests so they don’t feel alone and remind them that God loves us all.

Our mission can not be successful without the continued support of our volunteers and benefactors. The cost to maintain the facility that houses our guests has become increasingly expensive over the recent years.

In 2020, a leaking roof had to be replaced for $25,000 and utilities to run the shelter exceeded $17,000. In 2021, we had to replace the floor and upgrade the electrical work as they were very outdated. To properly finish the renovations, we needed to paint the walls and ceilings. All renovations were necessary to provide shelter to those most in need during the harshest months of the year. Your continued donations have greatly supported our mission and we are most grateful. We pray for your continued support especially as we face continually rising energy and food costs.

Any donation to help support our mission would be a blessing. Our guests thank you and may God Bless You.

Click this link to our on-line fundraiser: https://gofund.me/16ebaa0e