September 14, 2025
The Exaltation of the Holy cross
by Fr. Boniface Endorf, O.P.
Dear St. Joseph Parish Family,
I want to give everyone an update on the boiler project. The boilers are currently being installed and should be ready by the end of the month, just in time for the heating season. So we will have heat this winter! Also, the balcony reflooring is complete. Check it out when you have the chance: the new tile colors complement the space much better than the old brown linoleum tiles.
Concerning the boiler campaign, we have almost reached our goal, even though the thermometer in the narthex appeared to say otherwise. The reason we’re in better shape than the thermometer showed is because we based the original campaign goal on the projected costs before we had bid the project. We were conservative in those original projections, assuming that the project would cost on the high end and that there would be large contingencies (one never knows what will be found when opening walls…). However, the bids were better than expected and the contingencies much less than expected. We expected the balcony to be around $115,000, but in the end it cost $64,000. We expected the boiler to cost $1,400,000 (including all the associated elements, such as architectural planning, engineering planning, permitting, demolition, electrical rewiring, plumbing, contingencies, etc.), but in the end it will be around $765,000. That’s a total actual cost of $829,000. Also, we have received some recent large donations to the boiler fund, so our campaign total is now at $773,000. We are just $56,000 short of covering the whole project!
Thank you to everyone who has donated to the boiler fund! Your generosity enables St. Joseph’s to fulfill its mission. We’ll have heat this winter because of you! May God bless your generosity!
In order to help raise this last bit, Monte’s, our local parishioner owned and run Italian restaurant, has generously offered to host a dinner there as a fundraiser. More details to come.
St. Joseph has a new ministry starting this Tuesday: it’s a chapter of Communion and Liberation, an ecclesial lay movement that aims to recognize Christ's presence within the everyday, and to witness to his presence to others through charitable, cultural, and educational events like the New York Encounter and the Way of the Cross over the Brooklyn Bridge. CL invites you to visit our "school of community," our weekly discussion group, here at St. Joseph's every Tuesday at 7 pm McGuire Hall. All are welcome. Please email Daniella Pavon for more information. daniellapavon2@gmail.com.
God bless,
Fr Boniface Endorf, O.P.
