Expectations in charity/justice:

• Ask for and receive help from others when you are in need
• Spend an average of one hour a week in service to parish or community
• Reflect on and pray about the service you have offered others
• Once a year engage your political leaders in concerns for justice

Bereavement Support Group

The death of a loved one, friend or acquaintance can be a devastating and lonely experience. St. Columbkille Parish offers a Bereavement Support Group to help those who have lost loved ones through this difficult time. The group allows participants to share, cry and laugh together as they remember those dear to them. Meetings are held the third Thursday of the month in the Parish Office meeting room. Included is time for prayer and for reflection on where God is in their grief. For more information, please call  at 402-339-3285, ext 105.

Domestic Abuse

Information and awareness on domestic abuse is provided throughout the parish campus and community by this group. Contact Mary Beth Jellen at 402-331-3296.

Food For Families

Non-perishable food items are collected monthly and transported to shelters for distribution to needy families. Contact Barb & Paul Kenney at 402-339-9007.

Fundraising for the Needy

Furniture and appliances are collected for a “Use It Again” sale. Proceeds go to help the needy. Contact Mary Jo Kampschneider at 402-593-8556.

Gift Giving Weekend

St. Columbkille Parish joins with other area churches and organizations to help supply the Sarpy County Christmas Center. This is a one-day event where parents of the families who qualify through Family Services can come to pick out a toy and an item of clothing for their children to open on Christmas morning. On the last two weekends of November, a “Giving Tree” is located in the Commons area filled with paper ornaments that have gift suggestions on them. You may take as many ornaments as you wish and return your unwrapped gifts to the church on a designated weekend in December. For more

information on Gift Giving Weekend, please call Becky Grant at 402-592-1103.

Global Outreach

The Gospel calls us to reach out beyond our borders and to help the work of the Gospel throughout the world. The Global Outreach Committee works in the parish to help the parish stay informed of the needs of our sisters and brothers in parts of our world. The committee is working specifically with the IXIM project of the Archdiocese of Omaha to establish a sister diocese relationship with Huehuetenango, Guatemala. If you are interested in helping with mission trips to the third world or educating others on the needs, please call  at 402-339-3285 ext. 103.

Hospital Visitation

St. Columbkille Parish and St. Mary Parish in Bellevue provide Holy Communion and visitation daily to patients at Midlands Hospital. If you are interested in this important and rewarding ministry, please contact Mary Ann Mucia at 402-339-2067, or  at 402-339-3285 ext. 105.

Meals For Families in Crisis

This group of volunteers provides meals to families in crisis such as health issues, loss of employment, death, etc.
Contact Patty Pechar, 402-733-4761 .

Ministers of Care

In our Gospels, we proclaim a Lord who suffers with the suffering, who grieves with the grieving, who knows our isolation and our pain. Ministers of Care reach out to the homebound, the sick, the grieving, people in the hospital, or people returning from the hospital. They develop a bond with the person in need to help them know they have not been forgotten. They take Holy Communion to the long-term shut-ins, visit those recuperating from surgery, visit the nursing homes, and spend time with the dying through hospice. The members receive training and their efforts are coordinated to ensure they have support. If you think this is a program you would be interested in or know someone who might need the support of a Minister of Care, please call Deacon Steve Jordan at 402-331-8150.

Parish Nursing

The Parish Nurses promote health awareness, provide blood pressure checks and other health screenings at parish events. They make home visits to help people understand their medications and doctors orders upon returning home from the hospital. The Prayer Shawl Ministry is coordinated through the Parish Nurses and meets on the second Thursday of the month to pray and to make prayer shawls for those who are ill. Contact Gretchen Reid at 402-592-0726.

Pro-Life Group

This group coordinates Pro-Life events in the parish and the participation of the parish in archdiocesan pro-life activities. Contact Lynn Jones at 402-339-1947.

Senior Ministry

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities are visited by members of this group to pray with and provide Holy Communion to residents. Contact  at 402-339-3285 ext. 105.

St. Vincent de Paul Society

The St. Columbkille Conference of the St. Vincent de Paul Society is affiliated with the Omaha District Council, which is affiliated with the national organization in St. Louis, MIssouri, and the international headquarters in Paris, France. 

The mission of the Society is to grow as disciples of Jesus by helping those in need, materially and spiritually. Members accomplish this through personal visits. Members visit at least one home a month and have monthly meetings. The Society also helps sponsor the five St. Vincent de Paul Society Thrift Stores and a family shelter. 

The St. Columbkille Conference is able to pursue its work on the generosity of parishioners and an active fundraising committee. Every dollar contributed to the Society goes to help those who are in need.

If you would like more information about the St. Vincent de Paul Society or would like to become involved in its work, please call the Parish Office, 402-339-3285, or watch the bulletin for meeting dates.

Stephen Ministry

Stephen Ministry is a program of the parish that equips parishioners to provide distinctively Christian one-to-one care to those who are experiencing all kinds of life needs and circumstances, both in the parish and community.

Stephen Ministers are committed parishioners who express God’s care through their lives to others. They receive training in important caring ministry skills and concepts, are commissioned as Stephen Ministers after training, and visit another person regularly and dependably to offer Christian support and care. Stephen Ministers will participate in regular support and supervision under the guidance of trained Stephen Leaders and are committed to preserving the confidential nature of the caring relationship. They will serve for a minimum of two years and receive continuing education and skill building throughout their years of service.

A care receiver is a person who is grieving the loss of a loved one; is dying - or the family and/or caregiver(s) of a dying person; separated, divorced or in the process of separation or divorce; disabled or suffering from a chronic illness; homebound; lonely and/or isolated; an inactive parishioner struggling with faith issues; or a parishioner experiencing any emotional, spiritual, life-altering and/or physical stress.

For more information, please contact Deacon Bob and Sandy Stier at 402-331-0716.

Ted E. Bear Hollow for Grieving Children & Families

This program is for children from 3 to 19 (sometimes younger, sometimes older) who have experienced the death of someone they love. Family members have a chance to meet separately from the children to receive support and grief education.

Ted E. Bear Hollow is a safe place for children to share stories, for families to share grief, and to find new coping skills. It is a loving place with trained facilitators and a delightful place to remember and play. Grief is not a mental illness but part of life. Sharing grief diminishes the pain and hurt. Children can grieve, play and be healthy, and family members can find support. Community is built through common hopes.

For more information, please call  at 402-339-3285 ext.105.

TLC for Caregivers

Are you a Caregiver? St. Columbkille Church invites you to consider joining one of our TLC for Caregivers support groups. If you are taking care of your Spouse, Friend, Aging parent, Relative, Child or Sibling with a Chronic Illness.  Meetings are monthly on the second and fourth Tuesday.

TLC for Caregivers offers spiritual support, respite, peer-sharing, information and refreshments at no charge for those who give care and those assisting others giving care. Remember, you must take care of yourself if you wish to care for others! To register or for more information, please visit the TLC Caregiver site.

Thanksgiving Meals

Food and funds are collected to provide and deliver a complete Thanksgiving Meal to needy families in the greater community. Contact Becky Grant at 402-592-1103 or Linda Gries at 402-339-7058.

Transportation

Transportation to parish activities is provided by this group. Contact Michelle Grzywa at 402-331-4184.

Tri-City Food Pantry

The Tri-City Food Pantry is located at 302 American Parkway in Papillion. Churches of the Tri-City Ministerial Association support the pantry. The Pantry also receives support from clubs, organizations and individuals in the three-city area. Members of the parish volunteer to staff the pantry on a regular basis. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Jean Almeida, Director Tri-City Food Pantry, 402-552-7061.

Widowed, Divorced and Separated

The Widowed, Divorced and Separated of Omaha (WDS) is a peer-to-peer Christian ministry sponsored by the Archdiocese of Omaha and directed to widowed, divorced and separated persons. They offer a safe environment where men and women and their families can find support in the following areas: spiritual, educational, friendship and social. On the second Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m., WDS of Omaha has a general meeting at St. James Parish Center, 90th and Tomahawk Boulevard in Omaha. A “Fun Night” is held at the Steinhausen Center on the fourth Friday of each month.

For more information, please call JoAnn at 402-339-2799.