Visitation Roman  

Catholic Church

Hi. My name is Shannon Goodrich.  I have been a Parishioner at Visitation for the past nine years.  I am the incoming President of Visitation’s Council of Catholic Women also known as the CCW.  The CCW is a great tradition I am proud to continue. 

I am thankful to my family and friends who could be here with me today.  Thank you to my husband, John, of sixteen years who is my partner in all things. 

To my three beautiful, talented, kind-hearted children – Reese, Jack, Henry – Daddy and I love you more than you will ever know.  With you now in Kindergarten, 4^th and 8^th grade, this is the last year you will all be in the same school, so this is a very special year indeed.

Catholicism has been a huge part of my life.  I went to Catholic School from 2^nd grade through college: 2^nd – 8^th at Santa Maria del Popolo in Mundelein; Carmel High School also in Mundelein; and Fordham University in The Bronx, New York. Like most of my classmates, Catholicism was a gift from my ancestors.  Catholic School suited me.  I like it.  I had wonderful friends and was welcomed into so many wonderful families. 

My parents, Sharon and Pat, were married in the Catholic Church, like their parents before them.  Thank you Mom and Dad for supporting my brothers and I for nearly fifteen years of Catholic education.  During that time and the years to follow, my Mom has worked for two Catholic organizations – Loyola University Chicago and Friends of the Orphans also known as NPH - Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos. 

All four of my grandparents were very involved in their parishes. 

My Grandma Therese and Grandpa Ray met very young at social events at St. Sabina’s Parish on Chicago’s South Side.  At that time, people rarely referred to the neighborhood they lived in.  Instead, they would say, “what’s your parish?”  My Grandma Therese enjoyed going to mass, participating in events like the Lenten Friday Fish Fry, and she was so dedicated to the church that at the end of her life when she wasn’t sure where she was her default location was the Rectory of St. Benedict’s in Fontana, Wisconsin, which overlooked Lake Geneva. 

My Grandma Jean and Grandpa Ed were very involved in parish life, especially after Vatican II.  My Grandpa Ed traveled to Washington D.C. to represent their parish Good Shepard in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.  Some of the big changes at that time was related to the music of the church and he was very engaged in the many details.  Grandpa Ed was a reader at Mass.  My Grandma Jean assisted behind the scenes as an usher and helped prepare masses many times a week.  Both Ed and Jean were instrumental in the renovation of their church.  It was kind of a hippy church with a guitar-playing nun.  Everything about it was very warm.  They had a few minutes at the beginning of mass where you could welcome anyone new or visiting.  Grandpa and Grandma were also first to stand and say their Grandchildren were here visiting.  We would blush of course, but it was very sweet. 

The gift of faith is certainly the most important gift my parents and grandparents have ever bestowed upon me.  Because I have The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit, I am never alone.  The journey of life has brought me love, success, good health and also failure, misery, and disappointment.  While I am grateful for every single day with my husband and my children, it’s not always easy.  The missed sleep, the rushing, the constant need for food, new shoes, birthday presents, and some kind of crazy spirt week socks is endless.  I’ve heard a few people say recently – both things can be true at the same time.  In my saddest moments I am truly grateful.  I do believe it is a wonderful life. 

I pray often, if not constantly, but it is only at mass that I am solely focused on the task of returning my own love for God. 

This year the theme I have chosen for CCW is “Compassion in Action.”  I think this theme is wonderful because it truly builds on Colleen’s theme from last year – Coming Together in Faith.  After the pandemic, coming together physically was no easy task!  Now this year we take the next step and ask the Lord to help us all be more compassionate. 

What does compassion mean?  Well…Kindness is a wonderful way to treat strangers and acquaintances.  Empathy is attempting to put yourself in someone else’s shoes.  Compassion goes beyond kindness and empathy.  Compassion is when you are so moved to be kind and feel empathy that you take action.  You pray for them and you tell them so.  You drive someone you don’t know that well to a doctor or carpool with their children to a game.  Compassion is preparing and delivering a meal.  Compassion is taking the time to surprise someone with flowers.  You let a friend cry on your shoulder.  You become an official emergency contact for a neighbor who does not have family within the required 15 minutes away.  These are all real things I have been blessed to experience right here at Visitation.

My hope is that through the community of Visitation and through CCW, we create a more compassionate parish; a more compassionate community; and in a small way a more compassionate world.

So with that, I am wishing us all a fruitful mass today, and a wonderful year ahead for all of the women of our parish.  There is much to do and our board will appreciate your participation and of course your prayers.