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M E E T S T. P H I L I P N E R I ’ S
Teresa Thompson: A N S W E R I N G T H E I N V I TAT I O N T O A S T E W A R D S H I P W AY O F L I F E
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personal invitation can make a huge impact on someone’s life. Parishioner Teresa Thompson knows that as well as anyone. Teresa moved to Rock Hill from Ohio in 2011 to become the “Granny Nanny” for her grandchildren. When the youngest started preschool about four years ago, Teresa was able to attend daily Mass on a regular basis. In doing so, she discovered a wonderful group of parishioners who inspired and invited her to get more involved in parish life. Now, you can often find Teresa at St. Philip Neri, helping with numerous liturgical and service ministries around the parish! Shortly after joining our faith community, Teresa began helping with the Italian Festival and Hospitality Ministry, as well as serving as a Eucharistic Minister and sacristan. Once she began attending daily Mass three times a week, her commitment to an active faith life grew even more. “Through my new-found parish friends, I was invited to become more involved in other ministries of the parish,” Teresa says. “Then the more I got involved and the more good Christian men and women I met who were involved,
I wanted to be even more involved.” In 2017, Teresa joined the Rose Garden Guild and the JOY in the Spirit charismatic prayer group. A year later, she became a funeral assistant and sacristan and began taking the Eucharist to the homebound and to Wellmore Assisted Living. Last year, she began helping with church flower arrangements. Teresa wasn’t always likely to step out of her comfort zone to try something new. She still remembers her initial hesitation to read at daily Mass. “My first answer when someone asked me if I wanted to read was ‘no,’” Teresa says. “I used to be one of those people who tried to get away before someone could ask me to do something! I have since asked a few people if they’d like to read during the weekdays, and if they say ‘no’ like I used to say, I just tell them to think about it and let me know if they change their mind. Sometimes, it just takes time to accept that you can step into a different role.” For Teresa, the value in the personal invitation is that others may recognize gifts in us that we have never considered. continued on page 7
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I have met so many wonderful friends here. Without the many mentors at St. Philip Neri, I’m not sure I would have stepped out of my comfort zone to grow spiritually or personally. It’s just a friendly, open-arms parish. They offer such diversity for involvement — there is nothing you can’t find to do if you want to be involved. I’ve grown probably 100 percent in my faith since I moved here.
TERESA THOMPSON
