Catholic Charities - Open hearts follow Jesus' lead. Ryan and Olivia never hesitated when four brothers, all under the age of 10, needed a foster care placement after their parents could no longer properly care for them. Through the support of Catholic Charities, Ryan and Olivia were able to open their home and eventually adopt all four children. The couple had also previously adopted another child. Kyle, now 10, wrote in a letter, "When I found out that we would be adopted, I was very excited because I would have a forever family!" Help Catholic Charities continue to link loving families with children in need through our foster care and adoption programs. Give to the Catholic Charities 2016 Appeal and join us to "find good within" for the tens of thousands of others who benefit from Catholic Charities' 70 programs and services. Find Good Within. Find out more at http://www.ccwny.org or call 716-218-1400.

St. Gianna Pregnancy Outreach Banquet on Thursday, February 11 at 6pm at Classics V, 2425 Niagara Falls Blvd., Amherst. Opening remarks: Bishop Richard Malone. Keynote speaker: Jackie Stalnaker. Live music by David Calire & Bobby Militello. Limited seating; tables are filling up. RSVP today to reserve your table for 10 or individual seats. Advance seating necessary. Learn more about the Center, clients, and our referring agencies. 50/50, gift basket raffle, cash bar. If you cannot attend, please prayerfully consider making a donation. For price and more information, call the Pro-Life Office at 716-847-2205.

Annual Lenten Pierogi & Placek Sale at St. John Kanty Parish Community, on Broadway (between Brownell and Swinburne Streets), Buffalo. Sale takes place every Saturday and Sunday from February 13 through March 20; Saturdays from 3-5pm (following 4pm Mass) and Sundays from 9:30am-12noon (following 10:30am). Off street parking available. Sale takes place in the School Hall... look for the signs.

Women's Lenten Afternoon of Reflection. Fr. Ryszard Biernat, Secretary to Bishop Malone, will offer a Women's Lenten Afternoon of Reflection on Saturday, February 20 at St. Andrew Parish in Kenmore. The afternoon, filled with both inspiration and humor, will begin at 12:15pm in the Msgr. Donovan Center, Lowell Avenue, Kenmore. Ending at 3:30pm, all are then welcome to join the parish in church for the 4pm Mass. Please register by calling Michelle at 716-725-6860.

Third Option Program. Do you need to find the joy in your marriage and live a happier, healthier life together? If so, consider attending the Third Option program. This skills-based group helps participants build stronger, more fulfilling marriages. Group meetings are held every third Sunday from 6-8pm at Resurrection Life, 2145 Old Union Road, Cheektowaga. The next six meetings dates for 2016 are: February 21, March 13, April 3, April 24, May 15 and June 5. For more information, call Paul or Carol at 716-937-9810 or visit http://www.res-life.com/the-third-option.

Year of Mercy Parish Retreat. All Saints Parish in Lockport will host a 4 evening parish Lenten Retreat commemorating the Year of Mercy. The retreat - "Come Receive God's Mercy" - will be presented by Fr. Stephen Vasek, OMI and Sister Marcella Wendzikowski, CSSF and a team of All Saints parishioners from February 21-24 from 7-8:15pm. The retreat will take place in the church at 76 Church Street, Lockport. This is open to the public. For more information, call the parish at 716-433-3707 or visit http://www.allsaintslockport.org.

For Your Family: Lent 2016. Lent is an opportunity to reflect on the quality of our relationships with God and each other. To that end, please consider attending For Your Family: Lent 2016 at St. Joseph University Church, 3269 Main Street, Buffalo (next to UB Main Street campus). Based on the principles of Family Systems Theory, For Your Family: Lent 2016 is designed to strengthen your relationships with family, colleagues and friends. The four-part lecture series is scheduled on the following Monday evenings: February 22 and 29, March 7 and 14 from 7-8pm, followed by an optional 30 minute Q&A. Come to just one or come to all four of the presentations. The speaker is Rev. Dr. Robert Perelli, founder of The Center for Family Systems Theory, Inc. For more information, visit http://www.familysystemstheory.org. Everyone is welcome. Bring a friend.

St. Leo the Great to host Bishop Malone at the Hour of Mercy. On Sunday, February 28 Bishop Malone will offer a prayer service that will include the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick at St. Leo the Great, 885 Sweet Home Road, Amherst at the Holy Hour of Mercy at 3pm. St. Leo's has been designated a Station Church for the Year of Mercy by Bishop Malone because it has a blessed Holy Door of Mercy. All are invited and welcome to attend! For more information, contact Dawn Iacono, Adult Faith Formation Director, at diacono@stleothegreatamherst.com.

Natural Family Planning Introductory Session on Saturday, March 12 at St. John Paul II Parish, 2052 Lakeview Road, Lake View. Light refreshments will begin in the Community Room at 5:30pm with the program starting at 6pm. Come get your questions answered about Natural Family Planning and hear from a couple and their experience with NFP. FertilityCare Practitioner, Sarah Dolph from Catholic Health will be here to introduce you to the Natural Family Planning program. Please register at http://www.JP2Parish.org. (Limited childcare available - registration at least one week prior necessary).

Pope Francis says, "The urgent challenge to protect our common home includes a concern to bring the whole human family together to seek a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change. The Creator does not abandon us; he never forsakes his loving plan or repents of having created us. Humanity still has the ability to work together in building our common home." (13) "Yet we are called to be instruments of God our Father, so that our planet might be what he desired when he created it and correspond with his plan for peace, beauty and fullness." The program is that we still lack the culture needed to confront this crisis. (53) Laudato Si: Care for Our Common Home. Action: Learn more about Pope Francis's encyclical, Laudato Si, and the effects of climate change by going to https://catholicclimatemovement.global.

For your Marriage: the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) provides information and resources about a healthy marriage, in general, and Catholic marriage, in particular. Offerings include a Daily Marriage Tip, regularly changing features like the monthly Marriage Quiz, Book of the Month review and Marriage in the News. They continue to add to the content on a regular basis. Visit http://www.foryourmarriage.org, click on "Caring for Your Marriage," then "Resources."

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28) Everyday there are things that remind us of our experiences of loss. Grief never takes a vacation! Our free 2016 packet "Coping with Seasons of Loss" is filled with resources, insights, prayers and Scripture support. For your packet, contact the Office of Family Life Ministries at 716-847-2210 or email familylife@buffalodiocese.org.

Marriage Moment. Mardi Gras allows us a last fling before the Lenten penitential season. Do something frivolous together today. Eat something decadent, give each other a massage, wear wild make-up, enjoy being foolish. If you're the uptight type, let go. You'll have six weeks to exercise your over responsible side.

Parenting Perspective. Ash Wednesday is February 10. Prepare for Lent by talking with your family about how this can be a time of generosity and mercy (forgiveness). For the next seven weeks, I'll give you ideas about how your family can live more simply. Use this week to think of your own.

*** New Bulletin Announcements will be posted on February 8, 2016.***