unday, September 24, was a special day in our parish (HAOC Mechanicsburg) filled with so many blessings -- in so many ways! We were pleased to host Father John Parker -- Dean of Saint Tikhon's Seminary -- for the weekend. He served Great Vespers (Saturday evening) and Divine Liturgy along with Father Timothy and Father Nicholas Molodyko-Harris, and gave an inspirational homily! May God bless and grant many years to Father John and his efforts on behalf of Saint Tikhon's Seminary.
At the start of our Divine Liturgy service, we welcomed the Warkentin family -- Aaron, Carolina, Aidan, and Micah -- into the catechumenate. May God bless and grant many years to the Warkentin family as they learn and prepare for entry into the Orthodox Church.
We also commemorated the 62nd Anniversary of the Ordination into the Priesthood of Father Nicholas (which also providentially became the day of the Synaxis of the Alaskan Martyrs Juvenaly and Peter the Aleut!). Father Nicholas and Matushka Anastasia together played a critical role in the expansion and building up of the Orthodox Church in Alaska. May God bless and grant many years to them for their over six decades of service and dedication to our Lord and our Church.
And finally, after Divine Liturgy, we spent the afternoon at our 17th Annual Dinner Dance & Silent Auction (our only fundraising event of the year), where we enjoyed fellowship, food, and fun as a parish community.