Cathie and Bill Janson were married 42 years ago this month in St. Louis of France Church, a marriage that nearly equals --- and has since been intertwined with --- the life of their 51-year-old parish.
Cathie has taught in the parish school for most of those years, and also has coached, taught religious education classes after school, helped at fiestas and "tardeadas" and given of time and talent wherever and whenever needed. Bill has done the same. One year the school needed a math teacher, so he "filled in" --- and continued teaching for the next eight years.
"I've always felt like I am part of a family here," says Cathie. "The people I've worked with --- teachers, students, parents, administrators --- have been very warm and friendly. It means a lot to me to be part of the parish, to be part of everything going on. I love children."
That's very clear: at least 15 times she has been a confirmation sponsor for a former student, participated in their weddings and has been a godmother. Now she is teaching children of former students.
"I like the atmosphere," she says of her work in the school and parish. "It's like a family and I like it here. I like the families, the warmth, the atmosphere, and I can talk about God."
But she sees herself no different than so many other parishioners. "The people in this parish are so generous," she says.
St. Louis of France's pastor is in total agreement. "There is a positive, prayerful spirit here," says Father Lorenzo Miranda. "They're very generous, very helpful. There are so many volunteers in this parish. Everybody has a place." And it is the generosity of the people that makes parish programs so successful, popular and large.
With more than 8,000 parishioners, Sunday Masses are generally filled. "People are starving for the spiritual world," Father Miranda says. "And there is an openness in the people --- people feel very welcome and there is a lot of evangelization going on."
The parish has several types of prayer groups and Bible study. As many as five or six activities a night can sometimes be going on in the parish. Religious education classes are filled. Confirmation classes have 100 students on the waiting list to enroll. This past year 277 second-year confirmation students were confirmed, and another 200 will be this year.
Director of Religious Education Rena Kokoris oversees a program of over 1000 students and 65 volunteers in regular classes. Fifty teens are enrolled in First Communion classes. Rena works closely with Christina Lujan who is responsible for teen groups and their activities --- the summer program "Jesus and Flip-Flops" and year round teen activities helping at a local senior center and feeding the homeless each Sunday morning.
Like their parents, the teens in St. Louis of France Parish have generous hearts. |