Hundreds gathered at Saint Patrick Catholic Church on June 25, 2016 to farewell Mary Randall at the 5:30 P.M. Vigil Mass celebrated by Father Tom Lamanna, S.J. Mass was immediately followed by a picnic-style dinner at 6:30 P.M. in the Church Hall to celebrate her retirement.
On Sunday, many more gathered at the 8:30 A.M. and 10:30 A.M. Mass followed by a special Sunday Social Hour honoring Mary, complete with the decorations from the part the night before.
Leadership in Many Areas
After 18 years of devoted service to our community, Mary Randall has retired as Pastoral Assistant for Liturgy, Pastoral Care & Funerals. She has been the leader for numerous programs like Safe Environment, StrengthsFinders and has helped the parish in countless other ways. During Mass, Kevin Lovejoy, Pastoral Coordinator noted in his farewell tribute to Mary for her many years as a servant leader, that she has truly shared in the full circle of life of parishioners— from baptisms to funerals including first communion and marriage.
Support During Transition
Mary has been a tremendous support to the parish during this past year of lay leadership. Her institutional knowledge of our Saint Patrick Catholic Church community served parish staff very well, as we adjusted to our new structure and responsibilities. Her knowledge and experience of how things really work was invaluable.
The Irish Blessing
Mary was farewelled by the parish community she helped build over her 18 years as a servant leader at Saint Patrick Catholic Church at all Masses the weekend of June 25 – 26, 2016. The traditional Irish Blessing was sung in prayer, a very special send off that has become a signature of the Saint Patrick Catholic Church faith community to retirements, deployments and more in recognition and celebration of members of our parish family who will always be part of our parish family even from afar.
Celebrating Service
In a show of appreciation for Mary and her dedication and service to Saint Patrick Catholic Church before she retired and moved to Olympia, Washington to be with her family, the Saint Patrick Catholic Church & School community to celebrate Mary with a picnic-style dinner of hamburgers, hot dogs and fries and fixings. Dessert was the cherry on the party— with a make your own sundae bar or root beer float with a topping that satisfied everyones palate.
Parishioners Reflect
Rob Silva was the emcee extraordinaire and graciously invited parishioners to share fond Mary Randall stories with the party guests. parishioners and staff shared about Mary’s love of senior ministries, her passsion for StrengthsFinders and her loving care of parishioners and the parish community as a whole.
A Special Guest Appearance
Father Seamus Laverty, recent retired pastor of Saint Patrick Catholic Church joined the celebration and would have been remissed if he did not share a few words about Mary— after all, he hired her more than 18 years ago.
Gratitude
Thank you Sheila Jensen, Lorraine Karabaich and Anne Mesick for organizing the event on behlaf of the parish faith community in Mary’s honor. The decor was stunning. It is a very difficult task to make the very large Church Hall feel cozy. These talented ladies did just that with low hanging pendant banners, soft lights and fun table arrangements that even championed the StrengthsFinder program that Mary was so very passionate about.
It is not a party without the Knights of Columbus Tacoma Council 809 members at the grill. The Knights and their crew were master grillers and fryers that evening and even photographers!
Mary Randall expressed her gratitude in the following letter received shortly after the event.
My Dear Parish Family,
Thank you for the beautiful party, all the cards and gifts and best wishes you bestowed on me in the final weeks as your pastoral assistant at Saint Patrick. The picture of the Church you gave me hangs on my living room wall as a reminder to me of your love and passion for the Lord!
May your strengths and talents continue to grow, building up the Kingdom of God here on earth, Be good to yourselves and know that I will pray for you for the rest of my life and that you will remain in my hear forever. Thank you for allowing me to serve you for so many years.
Your Servant in Christ,
Mary Randall
