A Monthly Publication of the Diocese of Allentown
Faith - Hope - Charity
I am pleased to welcome you to our first monthly edition of the BISHOP’S ANNUAL APPEAL (BAA) Newsletter. This publication has been designed to offer you another opportunity to understand the important services that are supported by the BAA. This year, over 25,000 families around the Diocese made a gift to the Appeal, which has raised over $3.2 million. I am grateful to all of you who make a financial sacrifice so that our Diocese may continue to offer services to those who might otherwise go unassisted. Your commitment year after year touches the lives of thousands of individuals. Thank you again for your continued generosity and support of the BISHOP’S ANNUAL APPEAL. Have a blessed Advent Season. Sincerely yours in Christ, Most Reverend
Edward P. Cullen, D.D. SPECIAL
LEARNING CENTERS CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS
COUPLE
MARRIED 69 YEARS LEAD DIOCESAN A couple that has been married 69 years was honored at the Diocese of Allentown’s 29th annual Anniversary celebration on Sunday, September 28, 2008. Anthony and Theresa DiPierro of Roseto, who were married on June 25, 1939, are the longest married of the almost 200 couples that attended the celebration at St. Thomas More Church in Allentown. Thirty other couples that have been married 60 or more years also attended. In total the couples to be honored have been married more than 8,300 years. The Most Reverend Edward P. Cullen, D.D., Bishop of Allentown celebrated the Mass. Each of the couples in attendance received a personalized certificate signed by Bishop Cullen. The Diocesan
Office of Family Life Ministries sponsored the annual celebration.
Couples celebrating five, ten, twenty-five, forty, fifty and sixty
or more years of marriage are invited each year. Among the Forty-one
couples who celebrated their fifty-year anniversary at this year’s
Mass were Frederick and Ann Koons of Bethlehem, whose son Monsignor
Thomas P. Koons, the Diocese of Allentown’s Vicar for Religious,
delivered the homily. There were also seven couples who celebrated
anniversaries whose children also celebrated anniversaries at the
Mass. BERTHA'S
STORY Bertha was referred to the Holy Family Adult Day Care Program of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Allentown, because she was feeling isolated and lonely. At that time, she was unable to leave her home because she could neither lock nor unlock her door. Bertha was unable to keep appointments and was subsequently no longer eligible for service with the senior transportation company. Staff of the Adult Day Care Program talked with Bertha about putting the key to her house on a separate key ring so that she could better manage to open the door. Staff also encouraged the transportation company to give Bertha another chance. This was the beginning of a major change in Bertha. Adult Day Care Program staff assisted Bertha with personal care, hair care, and new clothing. “She has blossomed into a social butterfly with care, love, and attention,” remarked Linda Herb, Adult Day Care Director. Bertha talks with prospective clients who visit the program and assists them with learning the value of attending the Holy Family Adult Day Care Program. “She has become our public relations person,” noted Pat Forster, Activities Coordinator. Bertha loves to bake and leads cooking classes. She loves to sing in church services and will lead others in prayer. With her many new friends, Bertha looks forward to the days she spends at the Adult Day Care Program.
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Dear
Friends, 
SPECTACULAR!
No other word describes the upcoming Christmas performances at each
of the three Special Learning Centers. Each year, staff work tirelessly
for several weeks to prepare and practice with the students at