In response to Ohio’s state of emergency during the Coronvirus Pandemic, we will be suspending PSR classes until further notice. The PSR office will be open on Sundays, March 29 and April 5, 10:00-11:30 a.m.  Please stop by and pick up your child's folder and get instructions for at-home assignments to use during our hiatus (or when you pick your palms on Palm Sunday, 9:00-10:00 a.m.).  Information will also be sent via email throughout. In addition, families will be able to find calendar updates, learning support, and community information on our parish website, https://stjosephmantua.com/families-growing-in-faith (look for PSR At Home Hub link). To keep everyone safe, all Masses, events, activities, and meetings at St. Joseph are cancelled until further notice. Staff members are working from home (mail & messages checked regularly). We appreciate your patience during this fluid situation. We will keep you posted about any developments here and throughout the Diocese of Youngstown. If you have any questions, contact Peg Haney, Director of Religious Education at phaney@stjosephmantua.com. God Bless.

To remember that special someone, contributions to our Easter Intentions may be made by using the special envelope included in your contribution envelope packet (or through ParishSOFT Online Giving). Donations must be received by Monday, March 30, to be printed in the Easter bulletin. Be sure to PRINT the names of those you wish memorialize and indicate whether your contribution is “in memory of” (deceased) or “in honor of” (living). These donations assist with church environment expenses throughout the year.

Father Ed Stafford will bless the palms privately. On Palm Sunday weekend palms will be distributed in front of the church with drive up pick-up available on Saturday, April 4, 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 5, 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. Our Palm Sunday bulletins will also be handed out.

The Men of Saint Joseph Parish Mantua are inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting where we will live stream a 30 minute presentation on the Eucharist using the Zoom video conferencing app. Topic: “FIXING OUR EYES ON JESUS - REFLECTIONS ON THE EUCHARIST” LENTEN SERIES Time: Mar 25, 2020 @ 7:00 PM Presenter: Joe Daczko Though we are one many, we are one body in union with Jesus Christ, and we are joined to each other as different parts of that one body. Embrace this opportunity to join in communion with each other and encounter Jesus Christ, our Lord & Savior, who is always with us, fully present in the Eucharist. The Zoom app can be downloaded on your computer, laptop, ipad, tablet, or smartphone (https://zoom.us/download). Use the link or meeting ID below to join. Join Zoom Meeting https://us04web.zoom.us/j/6394379480 Meeting ID: 639 437 9480. Since free Zoom access is limited to 40 minutes for large meetings, the presentation will begin promptly at 7:00 p.m. Please plan to join the meeting by 6:55 p.m. Peace be with you, The Men of Saint Joseph Mantua

Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the Parish Office will also be closed starting March 24th until further notice. Staff will be working from home. Mail & messages will be checked throughout the week. All Masses, events, meetings, and activities at St. Joseph Church have been cancelled until further notice. We encourage parishioners to either mail or drop off their contribution envelopes to the Parish Office OR sign-up for online giving. Please keep up with the latest news through our parish website and Facebook page. In addition, please keep those who do not have access to the Internet or social media informed about what is happening. Thank you and God bless.

Our Sunday bulletin is an important way for us to communicate with you, especially during these days of the Coronavirus pandemic. It might be the only way that we can reach some of you. Every bulletin that you receive is paid for through the generosity of the businesses that you see advertised on the back cover. Most of these advertisers are members of our local community, and many belong to our parish. We urge you to think of them when you decide to have a meal or other item delivered to your door. Tell the business owners that you appreciate their support of our parish through their advertisements in the bulletin. This is one small way that we can work within our own community to weather the challenges that we face. Together we can help each other make it through. © J. S. Paluch Co., Inc.

Along with our parish website and Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/stjosephmantua/), the bulletin is the center of our parish communication, and we want to keep you informed. The bulletin has been available on our website at https://stjosephmantua.com/bulletins for quite some time. Thanks to our bulletin company, J.S. Paluch, we are now going to be sending the parish bulletin directly to your email every week. Any registered parishioner who the parish currently has an email address for in our database will receive the bulletin automatically every Saturday (be sure to check your spam folder if you do not find it in your inbox). If you do not receive this email, you can self-signup at https://ebulletin.jspaluch.com/#/ or by texting the word ‘BULLETIN’ to 94090. We will still receive a limited number of printed bulletins to keep on hand in the Parish Office. As you can see, there are plenty of ways to stay connected anytime. Stay kind, be generous, be hopeful, and God bless.

Not attending Mass? Don't forget that the church still has bills and ministries that need funding. If you'd like to support your parish, simply mail your contribution to the parish office. Or better yet, sign up for online giving (https://giving.parishsoft.com/app/giving/stjosephmantua). It can be done as a one time donation or recurring. Check it out all the details on our website (https://stjosephmantua.com/parishsoft-giving). Thank you for your consideration.

Please know that when our Mass schedule is returned to normal, we will reschedule Mass Intentions from cancellations. Watch for details about requesting a replacement date or to inform the Parish Office to reschedule as they wish on available dates.

If you will need a 2019 contribution statement for tax purposes, please contact the Parish Office (ktrares@stjosephmantua.com or 330-274-2253). You have the option of requesting a statement being emailed to you or printed out and mailed to you.

The Fundraising Committee is starting an easy way to generate some funds for parish improvements through recycling aluminum cans. Collect your clean cans in plastic bags, crushing if possible, and deposit in the designated containers in front of the church or in the All-Purpose Room. They will be picked up every weekend after Sunday Mass. Thank you in advance for your participation. If you would like to assist in any of our fundraisers, please contact John or Debbie Kruis (330-618-3604 or 330-221-0272).

During the summer of 2020, Fr. James-Peter Trares, OP will be moving to Rome to begin studies in the Fall at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (commonly known as "the Angelicum")! He'll be pursuing a Doctorate in Spirituality, which should take about four years, after which he'll be qualified to teach full time, to work in seminaries, to do spiritual counseling, and assist with the formation of the order's younger brothers. Since his ordination May 20, 2017, he has been assigned as a campus minister and theology professor at the University of St. Thomas based in the twin cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, MN. He resides at St. Albert the Great Priory, 2833 32nd Ave., South, Minneapolis, MN  55406 with eight other Dominicans. We congratulate him and wish him well in his new adventure.

We would like everyone at St. Joseph’s to feel welcome as a part of our parish community family. Your assistance in keeping our records up-to-date helps to ensure that no one becomes “just a member. ” To be a registered member of a parish is to have a sense of belonging to a family. Registration is important when it comes to requesting the Sacraments or becoming involved in the life of the parish family. Please do not take for granted that you are registered just because you attend Mass here. Are you on our database? Do your receive envelopes? If not, you are most likely not registered as an active parishioner. To register or to update your information, please contact the Parish Office (330-274-2253 or ktrares@stjosephmantua.com). If you have started the process, but have yet to return the blue registration form, please do so ASAP.

Our new fundraiser that follows the Ohio 3-Digit Lottery evening drawing was so successful that we're doing it again in 2020! Tickets are $5.00 each, good for the entire month, and you may purchase the same number for the entire year. Winning tickets are worth $50.00 (payouts mailed weekly). Proceeds help with our church improvements.