October 2008 Breakfast Meeting - Saturday 10/11/08

We are honored to have our new Pastor, Fr. Ray Morales, as our keynote speaker for the October Catholic Men's Prayer Breakfast on Saturday, Oct. 11. Fr. Ray will challenge us with the question, "What Now?" For more than two years, OLR Catholic Men's Fellowship has been providing food, faith, & fellowship for the men of our parish, their families and friends, and the parish at large. These first years have been spiritually informative and inspirational.  We have journeyed far together as a community,and yet we know that Christ calls us to continue moving ever closer to Him. Fr. Ray will lead us in considering the next steps our CMF community is being called to take, and to discern where and how Christ's Spirit is leading us to invest the blessings we have gained. What actions can we take, what work can we embrace to move us forward in growing as a family and community of faith and making a real difference in our homes and communities? As always, we will start with 8 am mass and then gather in the hall for breakfast, song, and fellowship.   PLEASE RSVP to Rob at rob@jroseassoc.com or Steve at sshanklin@verizon.net .

July 2008 Family BBQ - Saturday 7/12/08

Summer Family BBQ. OLR's Catholic Men's Fellowship is inviting the whole family to join in a summer celebration of food, fellowship and fun on Saturday, July 12 in the Parish Hall Patio. Burgers, hot dogs, drinks and all the trimmings will be provided, along with live music and games. All are invited! It is suggested that you bring a side dish or dessert to share. Please RSVP to Steve Shanklin at 562-505-8238 or email at olrcmenf@ourladyofrefuge.org, including the number of guests you will be bringing, so that we can plan for food. See you there. Bring sunscreen.

June 2008 Breakfast meeting - Saturday 6/14/08

We are excited to welcome Coach Lynn Rogers, president of Coach’s Oats, as our June Guest Speaker. Coach Rogers knows about persistence and excellence. He began the women’s gymnastics program at California State University, Fullerton, and coached the Titans for 24 years. Under his tutelage, Fullerton won a national championship and six regional championships, producing 66 individual All-American awards.

Coach Rogers next focused that same persistence towards excellence on his quest to develop a better oatmeal. He and his wife Bonnie experimented with tasting, grinding and cooking their own oatmeal, and in the process discovered a way to make oats tasty and hearty while cooking in fewer than five minutes. When friends tried Coach’s oatmeal, they didn’t want to go back to regular oatmeal, and Coach’s Oats was born. That was 1992. Before long, Coach and Bonnie were grinding oats all weekend long just to fill their friends' orders. They incorporated Coach’s Oats as a company in 1993. In 1995, Coach received two U.S. Patents on his oatmeal and Roman Meal began milling Coach's Oats.

Coach turned his attention full-time to running Coach’s Oats in 1999. Since then, Coach’s Oats products have been on store shelves throughout the United States and selected international locations. Today, you can find items such as Coach’s Oats oatmeal, cookies and pancake mix on the market (see http://www.coachsoats.com/ for additional information).

Lynn and Bonnie live in Brea, California, with their children, Nolan, 14, and Calvin, 12, and their dog, Jack, 8. The family is active in their church in Fullerton and is involved in the FAST swim team in Fullerton. Lynn loves to swim, surf and play guitar.

As always, we will start with Mass at 8 AM, and follow up with breakfast at 8:30 AM. Chef Lawrence will again be heading the Breakfast Crew. Come hungry, and bring some friends. Please RSVP to Steve Shanklin at 562-505-8238 or email at olrcmenf@ourladyofrefuge.org, including the number of guests you will be bringing, so that we can plan for food.

May 2008 Breakfast meeting - Saturday 5/10/08

Our May guest speaker will be Drew Marcos. Drew is an alumni of OLR (97) and St. John Bosco (01) and is currently pursuing a degree in Special Education. Drew has been active in Youth & Confirmation ministry for 10 years. He is also an accomplished percussionist who has played with OLR's 5:30 contemporary ensemble and the CSULB Catholic Newman Club. Drew's talk will be titled "Broken, Fallen, Risen," which will detail his personal struggles and victories with his Catholic faith, and how his involvement in parish & campus ministry has provided a sure path for his journey. Drew is currently the percussionist for the 12:30 Life Teen Mass at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Long Beach. He also finds time to play with his own, as yet unnamed band, as well as playing with Catholic bands the Perfect Cry and Walking Refuge.

The morning starts with the 8:00 am Mass, followed by breakfast and fellowship. Everyone is welcome. Drew's message is powerful to all of us; however, we believe that this will really hit home to the Catholic high school and college age kids. You can RSVP by responding to this email.

April 2008 Breakfast Meeting - Saturday 04/12/08

Our April Catholic Men's Fellowship Breakfast on Saturday April 12 will mark the 2nd anniversary of CMF at Our Lady of Refuge Catholic Church in Long Beach California. In recognition of this milestone, the focus of the April breakfast will be an open forum on the "state of the fellowship." What does CMF mean to our parish community, to our families, and to our own personal journeys? This will be an opportunity for each of us to hear and to share how CMF has helped us over the past year, and to envision together the path that we should set for the coming year.

The speakers who have inspired and challenged us this last year include lay and religious scholars and theologians, fellow parishioners, San Pedro RegionAuxiliary Bishop Alex Salazar, former Angel pitcher Dave Frost, and of course our own Fr. Al Scott. These speakers have touched our lives in different ways. The April breakfast will provide an opportunity for us to consider together the impact that these men of Christ have had on our lives and on the life of our community. (Scroll down through this page, and checkout the archives for a full review of the past year's keynote speakers.)

It has been said that the "Open Forum Saturdays" have provided some of our best breakfast gatherings. April's breakfast should be no exception. Come prepared to be fed and to "feed" our community with your presence. Prepare yourself by meditating on the following question: How have you benefited from CMF and how can CMF benefit from your participation?

It is our belief that Catholic Men's Fellowship has been a gift and a work of the Holy Spirit here in our parish. God has blessed our parish with great pastoral leadership and a great community of men. As a member of our parish community, your input is a vital ingredient of this ministry. Answer the call, and join us as we venture forward, united with our parish family, seeking to become the people of God that our Heavenly Father has envisioned in us.

We'll see you all next Saturday! RSVP soon so that we know how much food to buy.

March 2008 Breakfast Meeting - Saturday 03/08/08

Please join us on Saturday, March 8th, for the 8:00 Mass, breakfast, fellowship, and Fr. Thomas Rausch, S.J. of Loyola Marymount University's Department of Theological Studies.

Rev. Thomas P. Rausch, S.J., Ph.D. in religion from Duke University (1976), is the T. Marie Chilton Professor of Catholic Theology at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. A specialist in the areas of ecclesiology, ecumenism, and the theology of the priesthood, he has published 13 books and over 100 articles. He is co-chair of the Theological Commission of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles; he is also a member of the Editorial Commission for The Tidings and serves as co-chair of the Los Angeles Catholic-Evangelical Committee.

Fr. Rausch will talk to us about understanding and living the Apostles Creed as a Catholic Man. All men are welcome, as this is sure to be a great Lenten experience. Please RSVP Steve Shanklin at 562-505-8238 or email at olrcmenf@ourladyofrefuge.org.

February 2008 Breakfast Meeting - Saturday 02/09/08

In honor of our spouses and with deep respect for the Sacrament of Matrimony, OLR Catholic Men's Fellowship is teaming up with World Wide Marriage Encounter to host an introduction to the Marriage Encounter Weekend. Ginny & Boon Hazboun will be our guest speakers, representing Marriage Encounter in the Los Angeles area. There are many couples in our parish who have benefited from this very powerful experience and many more who have not. All couples are invited to learn and to share how the Marriage Encounter movement is helping to turn good marriages into great marriages. Please join us on Saturday, February 9th, starting with the 8:00 am Mass, followed by breakfast and a presentation on the Marriage Encounter Experience. RSVP to Steve Shanklin at 562-505-8238 or email at:
sshanklin@verizon.net

January 2008 Breakfast Meeting - Saturday 01/12/08

For our January gathering, we will be hosting an open forum discussing a wide range of topics concerning our Catholic faith. The world we live in grows more complex each day. The fields of science, politics, economics, ethics and the environment present each of us with new and challenging decisions and choices which impact our lives and the lives of our families. What answers does our shared faith have for these questions? How should our Catholic faith inform our choices? Where is God in the mix? We have assembled a panel to respond to the questions you have submitted. The panel consists of Monsignor Bill, Dr. Nick De Los Reyes, and John McGlynn. This will be an open forum, which means that all of the gathered will have the opportunity to add their voices to the insights provided by our panelists. As always, we will start with Mass at 8 AM, and follow up with breakfast at 8:30 AM. Chef Lawrence will again be heading the Breakfast Crew. Come hungry, and bring some friends. Please RSVP to Steve at sshanklin@verizon.net including the number of guests you will be bringing, so that we can plan properly for food.