Paris in the Springtime!

Beautiful weather and long may it last! With Spring here the trees in St Joseph's garden above the church are getting a visit from a tree surgeon. They were pruned and trimmed a few years back and it is time to give them the same again. Also, tomorrow morning the cleaning of the façade of the building begins followed by the replacement of all our windows, front and back. It will be well into Summer before all this is completed. After 30 years since being built, these kinds of works can be expected to arise. Each Lent at St Joseph's the Pastoral Council chooses a project towards which alms-giving in Lent is directed. In recent years we have reached out to places as diverse as Democratic Republic of Congo, West Indies, Belfast, to mention just a few. This year we are supporting three agencies addressing the needs of the many refugees who have arrived in Paris - Foundation Notre Dame, Caritas International and Order of Malta France. These groups have the capacity to effectively help people who due to war and conflicts have been forces to flee their home countries. Last year St Joseph's raised over €30,000 during Lent to assist with the education of displaced students in Iraq and Syria. We reach out as best we can to those of our brothers and sisters who are struggling to survive. The first three weeks of Lent have seen almost €13,000 raised. Our website is operational again following serious disruption and up to date information is available - www.stjoeparis.org     AT