St. Catherine of Siena holds Fair Trade Christmas sale
Submitted by St. Catherine of Siena
St. Catherine of Siena Church in West Dundee will hold its sixth annual Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade Sale offering Christmas gift items from Third World countries. Proceeds will benefit local individuals and families in the community who are in most need.
The Fair Trade Sale will be held from noon to 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 25, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 26, and 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27, in the church’s narthex, 845 W. Main St., West Dundee. Everyone is invited to attend the event.
“We are pleased to offer a wide variety of unique gift items, including chocolates, chocolate Advent calendars, jewelry, Christmas decor, handmade baskets, children’s toys and musical instruments, and religious articles available for purchase from over 20 different countries,” said Deacon Hank Schmalen, coordinator of the event.
“Purchasing a gift during our sale is a chain reaction that benefits the recipient, a Third World country individual, and ultimately a local person or family in need. It is a gift that gives three times.”
Catholic Relief Services, in conjunction with SERVV International, provides Fair Trade items from Third World countries. The product makers and/or growers receive a fair price for the sale of their products. All of the proceeds made by the sale at St. Catherine of Siena Church will support people in the local community who are in need.
Members of St. Catherine’s Spirit, the social justice ministry at St. Catherine of Siena Church, have organized the sale. It coincides with this year’s focus of charitable outreach for the parish.
According to the Rev. Michael Lavan, parochial administrator, “the individual ministries throughout the parish will focus on a year of events for parish growth, including: liturgical, personal faith formation, charitable outreach and parish community as the parish reaches its centennial in 2012.” The Jubilee will conclude with a Jubilee Mass and the Centennial Siena Ball on Sunday, July 8, 2012.
St. Catherine of Siena Church was founded at 426 Highland Ave., West Dundee on July 8, 1912. The site is now the home of the Dundee Township Historical Society. For information, call Debbie Schmalen at (847) 426-7326.