Season for giving celebrated at St. Paschal Baylon Church ––parishioners collect food




Season for giving celebrated at St. Paschal Baylon Church ––parishioners collect food


Members of St. Paschal Baylon’s Men’s Club, church volunteers and St. Paschal schoolchildren will be filling food baskets to be distributed to 75 pre-selected needy families in the Conejo Valley this Sat., Dec. 20 in the parking lot of the church at 155 E. Janss Road, Thousand Oaks.


Food has been donated by Project Response, Manna and the St. Paschal parish community.


The Men’s Club and two anonymous donors also provide scrip for each family to buy a turkey and perishables. The event chairman is Forrest Andrews, aided by 100 volunteers.


The day will kick off with hundreds of kids attending St. Paschal’s annual Christmas party at 11:30 a.m. in Thomas Aquinas Hall. (Eager youngsters begin lining up at 8 a.m.) The Men’s Club has hosted a Christmas party for area children and their families for the past 25 years. Santa Claus, played by Men’s Club Member of Honor Joe Smolarksi, will make sure each child attending goes home with a present as well as a goodie bag filled with candy and fruit. Entertainment will include a magician, accordionist and clown, plus lunch served by local Girl Scouts. (The Boy Scouts clean-up afterward.)


Toys are donated by Conejo Valley Board of Realtors, Toys for Tots and St. Paschal parishioners. Seventh- and eighth-grade students from St. Paschal’s School bring presents to be given to teens ages 13 through 16.


St. Paschal’s confirmation class students wrap the gifts.


For more information, call the church office at (805) 496-0222.



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