PARISH NEWS

ANNOUNCEMENTS MAY 24, 2026

Next Sunday, May 31^st is Pentecost. At the end of the Liturgy, we will have a memorial for all the faithful departed. There will be a light brunch after the service. Please bring a dish or dessert to share.

This Wednesday, May 27^th, from 10 -12 is the last opportunity to bring items for the Daughters of St Nicholas Yard Sale. The Yard Sale will be held on June 20th. (Rain date: June 27^th ).

Parish Council meeting, Sunday, June 7^th , after Liturgy.

Summer hours begin on June 7^th and will run through August. Liturgy will start at 9:00 AM.

ANNOUNCEMENTS MAY 17, 2026

We blessed the union in holy matrimony of Stavri and Sharm Story today. You can see the blessing at the end of the Divine Liturgy

Next Sunday, May 24^th, we will celebrate a 3-year memorial for Walter Majewski at the end of the Divine Liturgy. There will be a special coffee hour in the parish hall afterward.

In two weeks, on Sunday, May 31^st, we will celebrate the Pentecost memorial for All the Faithful Departed in our parish. A brunch will be held in the parish hall afterward. Please bring something to contribute to the meal or to the dessert table.The Daughters of St Nicholas will be holding their annual tag sale on Saturday, June 20^th (rain date: Saturday, June 27^th ). Please bring items to the garage behind the church on Sundays after the Divine Liturgy or on Wednesdays from 10-12. Collections will end on May 27^th.

Please see the attached PDF from our Archdiocese, "Stepping Forward." If you are a mature man in good standing (if married, married for the first time to an Orthodox spouse), please consider studying for the Holy Diaconate. Our parishes are in desperate need of men willing to serve in this vital role.

SUMMER HOURS BEGIN ON JUNE 7^th. During June, July, and August, the Liturgy will begin at 9:00 am. We will return to regular hours in September.

ANNOUNCEMENTS SUNDAY MAY 10, 2026

Next Sunday, May 17th, we will have the blessing of the marriage of Stavri and Sharm Story following the Divine Liturgy. There will be a light luncheon in the Parish Hall afterward.
- On Sunday, May 24th, we will celebrate a 3-year Memorial for Walter Majewski after the Divine Liturgy. A special coffee hour will follow in the Parish Hall.
- On Sunday, May 31st, Pentecost Sunday, we will have a Memorial service for all the faithful departed in our Parish at the end of the Divine Liturgy. A short Memorial will be sung at Oakridge Cemetery after coffee hour.
- Daughters of St Nicholas Yard Sale on June 20 (rain date, June 27). Please see the attachment above for the details.
- "Stepping Forward," Late vocations to the Diaconate. Our Archdiocese is calling all men who may be interested in a vocation to the holy diaconate to "step forward" in this time of great need for deacons to serve our communities—not just in the liturgy but also to care for the pastoral needs of our people. Please see the attachment above.

ANNOUNCEMENT SUNDAY MAY 3, 2026

Next Sunday, May 10, His Grace Bishop Nikodhim will visit us. The service will be less ornate than our annual pastoral visit on our Feast Day and is more of a family get-together with a special coffee hour following

ANNOUNCEMENTS SUNDAY, MARCH 15, 2026

This coming Wednesday, March 18, 6 PM Presanctified Liturgy at St Michael Romanian Orthodox Church, Southbridge

Sunday, March 22, 40-day Memorial for Alexandra Petro

Wednesday, March 25, 6 PM Evening Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Annunciation at St. Nicholas

Friday (3/27) Deanery Akathist at St Nicholas 6:30 PM. Please sign up to bring items for the Lenten Potluck dinner and dessert afterwards. The sign up sheet is on the bulletin board in the Parish Hall.

Sunday, March 29, General Confession and 1-year Memorial for Costa Rapo

Sunday, April 5, Palm Sunday

ANNOUNCEMENTS 03/08/2026

This coming Wednesday (3/11), 6 PM Presanctified Liturgy at St Nicholas

Next Sunday (3/15), Sunday of the Holy Cross (Mid Lent)

Friday (3/27) Deanery Akathist at St Nicholas 6:30 PM. Please sign up to bring items for the Lenten Potluck dinner and dessert afterwards. The sign up sheet is on the bulletin board in the Parish Hall.

The Lent-Pashka schedule can be found in the narthex at church, on our website, and attached to this mailing.

ANNOUNCEMENTS 02/08/2026

Thank you to all who contributed to our annual Sanctity of Life Sunday collections. We raised $850 for Problem Pregnancy in Worcester. PP is an entirely volunteer-run program. All funds go to support women and families in crisis pregnancies, bring their children safely into the world, and provide material resources (baby furniture, clothing, diapers, formula, along with rent and help with childcare options when needed). Our parish has given thousands of dollars over the past twenty-plus years to help in the ministry.

Next Sunday, February 15, we will sing the Memorial Service for all the departed members of our community. We will have a potluck mercy meal in the Parish Hall following the Liturgy. Please bring breakfast foods to share in memory of your beloved departed.

Also attached to this email is a flyer for the Pan-Orthodox Sunday of Orthodoxy liturgy at St. Spyridon’s in Worcester. It has been our practice to close and join more than a thousand other Orthodox for this liturgy. Please make it a high priority to be there. If you need a ride, let us know, and we can try to set up a carpool. It is truly a wonderful thing to be together with so many others on the Sunday that celebrates our common faith.

ANNOUNCEMENTS 02/01/2026

We did our first of two collections for Problem Pregnancy in Worcester (for the Sunday of Sanctity of Life). If you haven't given and would like to, we'll be collecting again next week. All of the funds go directly to helping mothers in crisis pregnancies to keep their babies. Anything from baby furniture to diapers and formula, or even rent payments for families in crisis pregnancies, is funded by people's donations. There are no paid staff; everyone who works for Problem Pregnancy is a volunteer.

Our annual icon auction was held today after a couple of weeks' delay due to snow.

The Memorial Saturday of All Souls will be celebrated on Sunday, February 15^th (two weeks from today).

Our first Presanctified Liturgy of Lent will be on Wednesday, February 25^th . We anticipate that we'll be alternating Wednesdays with St. Michael, as we have in the past.

Though it is a way out, St. Nicholas will hosting the Deanery Akathist service on Friday, March 25^th

The full calendar for Lent and Pashka will be out soon.

Lastly, several of us from St. Nicholas attended the presentation of a relic of the Holy Cross at St. Michael Romanian Orthodox Church this past Friday. It was a profoundly moving experience to see hundreds of people in attendance and to venerate the Lord's cross and receive prayers for healing.

ANNOUNCEMENTS 01 04 2026

Next Sunday, January 11, 2026, The Great Blessing of Water following the Divine Liturgy

Sunday, January 18, 2026, The Icon Auction following the Divine Liturgy

New text element

12 07 2025 bISHOP nIKODHIM'S VISIT FOR OUR PATRONAL FEAST dAY

His Grace, our bishop, Nikodhim, paid a visit to our parish for our patronal feast day today. The Hierarchical Liturgy was beautiful, and the ceremonies were unique to a bishop’s visitation. Our small choir sang superbly.

His Grace’s sermon focuses on the mercy of God toward the woman who had been tormented by a severe illness for 18 years. He mentions how some of the religious leaders were angry when Jesus healed her on the Sabbath, and how that shows us that God’s mercy is not limited to certain days. The leaders attempted to stand in the way, but the lesson for us is to become vessels through whom God’s mercy can flow—not for our own glory but for his.

Link to today’s Liturgy: https://youtu.be/3v72X-bpZNU

Below: Daughters of St Nicholas with His Grace, Bishop Nikodhim, Father John Daly, and Father John Downie (St. Michael Romanian Orthodox Church, Southbridge)

ANNOUNCEMENTS 11 30 2025

We celebrated Albanian Flag Day with prayers and pictures today. The prayers can be found at the end of the Divine Liturgy, and the picture is attached to this email.
Next Sunday, our Hierarch and Shepherd in Christ, Bishop Nikodhim, will be with us to celebrate the Divine Liturgy and join us at our St Nicholas Dinner. We are all looking forward to being with him on that special day.
Our Nativity Collection for St Kosmas Academy will continue through Theophany. Thank you to all who have given to this wonderful venture of building the first Orthodox classical school in Worcester County. We hope to start with a Kindergarten class next fall. Eventually, the academy will go through high school. Your gifts are a great blessing.
The Tri Community Food Pantry is in great need of nonperishable foods (canned vegetables and fruit, cereal, pasta, and other items. Please be generous. This is a hard time of year for many people, and the fallout from the 40-day government shutdown is still being felt.

NATIVITY SEASON PROJECT 2025

SAINT KOSMAS ACADEMY COLLECTIONS

We will be taking collections for our new Orthodox Classical Education school which will be initially housed on the property of St. George Antiochian Cathedral in Worcester.

The first class will begin next fall 2026 and we hope to have a full opening of the school beginning September 2027.