We had a great time at today’s annual Pie & Cake Ice Cream Social. Thanks to all who helped make this event, which benefits our activity program, such a fun and delicious success!!!
If you weren’t able to join us, but would still like to make a donation, just visit us at www.stannesguesthome.org/ice-cream.
It’s Almost Time for our Ice Cream Social!
Our annual Pie & Cake Ice Cream Social will be held this coming Sunday! We’re still looking for people to help by bringing a cake/pie, working the kitchen, serving, and cleaning up.
Please let us know if you’re interested: 701-746-9401.
You can also volunteer or donate online at https://stannesguesthome.org/ice-cream/
Thank you!
A Time to Plant…
Several residents joined Sr. Christina this morning as we put in our garden.
Hopefully, within the next week or two, we’ll start seeing cucumbers, beets, peas, and onions popping their little heads out of the ground.
Some of the cucumbers and the cabbages were started inside earlier this month.
Pleasurable Plum Planting Procedures
Last September, we received a good amount of little plums from Sr. Rebecca’s niece.
Sr. Christina and a few of our residents pitted them to be used in some tasty plum jam. Several of the plums were saved for an experiment and buried in our raised garden over the winter.
Plums, like other pitted produce, are supposed to go through a cold period, called stratification, prior to sprouting.
This past Wednesday, when the garden was tilled, several little seedlings were found and carefully removed.
After being stored temporarily in some water (to give them a good drink and provide a place until soil and containers could be found), they finally found a new home in some pots in our atrium.
Once they get bigger and the weather gets nicer, we will have to think about a place in the yard where we would like to have plum trees.
If anyone would like a little plum tree, we may be able to part with a seedling.
Congratulations, Sr. Rebecca!!!!
Below is a press release from the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency, honoring Sr. Rebecca who manages our HUD apartments.
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BISMARCK, ND – North Dakota Housing Finance Agency recognized its outstanding partners as Champions of Affordable Housing at the Statewide Housing Conference.
“The Champions Awards recognize and celebrate the work of individuals, non‐profit organizations, public agencies, and private sector businesses who go above and beyond to provide affordable housing for North Dakotans.” said Jolene Kline, NDHFA executive director.
Through NDHFA’s homeownership programs individuals and families, which are typically first‐time buyers, receive low‐cost financing, and down payment and closing cost assistance.
Four financial institutions and a loan officer from each business were recognized for originating loans on behalf of NDHFA. Blackridge Bank and Doug Wentz of Bismarck; Bremer Bank and Renae Meisch of Wahpeton; Choice Financial and Lindsey Matter of Bismarck; and First Community Credit Union and Tanya Nenow of Jamestown received awards.
NDHFA recognized four real estate agents, Aruna Hagen of Fargo, Kristy Sagaser of Jamestown, and Paige Danner and ‘Stasia Mitzel of Bismarck, for the assistance they provided to NDHFA’s borrowers.
The agency also administers rental programs and supports the development of multifamily housing for low‐income families, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. Sister Rebecca Metzger of Grand Forks received NDHFA’s Property Management Award for her compassionate management of St. Anne’s Guest Home, a subsidized housing project that is home to 30 elderly households of limited means.
The agency’s Housing Production Award was presented to the Grand Forks Community Land Trust, which creates and maintains a permanent supply of affordably priced, owner‐occupied and rental housing, and assists households that purchase homes to become successful owners.
Leadership Award winners were Gerald Eid and Lynn Fundingsland. Gerald, a Fargo‐area builder who served as the chair of NDHFA’s advisory board for 15 years, was instrumental in the development of the agency’s down payment and closing cost assistance programs. Lynn is the outgoing executive director of the Fargo Housing and Redevelopment Authority who employed innovative approaches to provide for and to improve the housing conditions of the lowest‐income households in the community and throughout the region.
A self‐supporting state agency, NDHFA is dedicated to making housing affordable for all North Dakotans.
The Industrial Commission of North Dakota, consisting of Governor Doug Burgum as chairman, Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, oversees the agency. For more information on the awards or the agency’s programs, contact (800) 292‐8621 or www.ndhfa.org.
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Rummage Sale – Coming Up This Friday!
Rummage Sale – Coming Up This Friday!
On Friday, April 13th
St. Anne’s Guest Home (524 17th St. N.) is sponsoring our annual Rummage Sale.
There will be many great buys, and proceeds benefit St. Anne’s.
8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
We will be having a clothing bag sale from 1-2 p.m.
We hope to see you there!
Remember, one person’s junk is another’s treasure.
Blog: St. Anne’s Scoop
The St. Anne’s Scoop
If you’d like to share suggestions for The St. Anne’s Scoop, we’d love to hear from you.
You can email us at stannesguesthome@gmail.com.
Thanks.
Hot Cross Buns
It’s that time again…
Hot Cross Buns…One a Penny…Two a Penny
I just finished mixing up my dough. In the almost six years that I’ve been here at St. Anne’s, it’s become tradition that I make hot cross buns to serve for our residents’ snack on Holy Thursday afternoon. Actually, they have traditionally been a food for Lent and Good Friday especially. However, serving a special homemade treat seems more appropriate, to us here, for Holy Thursday rather than during the solemn fasting of Good Friday. Also, Holy Thursday is the day we gratefully remember the first Eucharist, when Christ gave the “Bread from Heaven” for the first time. To me, it seems fitting that residents enjoy these little breads on that day.
This time of the liturgical year is busy and a bit stressful since I serve as sacristan here, but I still like to take the time to make Hot Cross Buns. It’s a kind of neat way of keeping our Catholic cultural traditions alive. I must confess, I’ve usually cheated in the past, using frozen sweet bread dough, but this year I’m doing them from scratch! I blame it, in part, on last month’s pretzel-making. I have a few yeast packets left over that I might as well use up. My other reason for not “cheating” this year is the hope that the raisins will stay in place better if I can knead them right in as I mix the dough. In the past, I’ve had some of them pop out and there would be raisins left on the pans. ?
I’d like to share some history about Hot Cross Buns which I found some years back. I regret that I no longer have the source(s) to document.
Hot cross buns have quite a history, within Christianity and even mixed with pagan traditions (Incan, Egyptians, Saxons and possibly even Roman roots). As with many things, the church adopted Hot Cross Buns during their early missionary efforts to pagan cultures. They re-interpreted the “cross” of icing which adorns the bun to signify the cross of Jesus.” The practice of eating special small cakes at the time of the Spring festival seems to date back at least to the ancient Greeks.”
One source noted the Christian roots in the 1100s when a monk placed the sign of the cross on buns to honor Good Friday, known at that time as the “Day of the Cross.” Another source dates this event to the 1300s. “Hot cross buns” became popular in England and Ireland, and later in the United States.
These buns have an interesting connection with the persecution of Catholics in 16th century England. When Catholicism was banned, people could be tried for “Popery” because they marked the cross on their Good Friday buns. They came up with an excuse for continuing the practice, saying that it was necessary so for the buns to properly rise.
One thing connected with this history which I found especially interesting follows: It was a universal custom (and still is in Catholic countries) to mark a new loaf of bread with the sign of the cross before cutting it, in order to bless it and thank God for it. What a neat custom!
A Special Guest @ St. Anne’s Guest Home
Several months back, a family from the northwestern Minnesota brought a statue to St. Anne’s.
It had come into their possession after it was removed from an area church a few decades back. However, due its large size, they could no longer store it. The family thought we might be able to have it restored. They even gave donations toward the project.
A visitor for Adoration who saw it in its poor condition gave us the name of someone who does statue restoration work. They had recently done work at St. Mary’s Church here in Grand Forks. The gentleman, from DeNardo Statuary & Restoration Company, came and took a look at the statue. After a little discussion, he took it and began to work on it.
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This past week, we saw a familiar face at the front desk. The man was back and had the statue ready.
Now, with its beauty restored, the statue of the Sacred Heart stands in the hallway leading to our chapel, welcoming those who pass by. We are not certain how long it will stay there, or if it will find a more permanent home elsewhere, but for the time being, at least, we are enjoying the presence of a special guest here at St. Anne’s Guest Home.