Parish Administrator’s Notes
Phil Grant, Pastoral Administrator and Safe Environment Coordinator
October 25, 2026
Preparing for Heaven (PFH) - 2
Last week, I wrote about the recent PFH workshop at Community of Saints Regional Catholic School. I covered Fr. Paul Treacy’s talk, which involved our Catholic faith’s teaching. Then I summed up estate attorney Sam Nelson’s advice.
After Fr. Paul and Sam spoke, we heard from Liz Boo Neuberger of the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota (CCF). Giving ideas to consider:
• Stocks
• Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) from your IRA, which you may start at age 70 ½. QCDs can count towards your Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), which begin in the year you turn 73. QCDs are tax-free.
• Beneficiary designations, e.g., to your favorite parish, school, or other worthwhile organization.
• Bequests
• Donor Advised funds
Some of these strategies can get technical; CCF can help you figure things out.
Liz summed up with two questions: How can we share God’s blessings today? How can we share God’s blessings in the future?
I’m put in mind of Fr. Thomas’s homily last week, saying much the same about what we should render to Caesar and what to render to God.
As Father Thomas put it, everything we have is a gift from God. In a sense, we don’t “own” anything. We’re simply stewards.
As stewards, we have the opportunity to use God’s gifts during our lifetime, so as to promote love, compassion, creativity, justice and peace in the world. Those gifts might be financial; they can also be your time and talents.
If you are able to share God’s financial blessings with St. Matt’s, thank you. If you’re able to contribute to the current Lord, Renew Your Church (LRYC) capital campaign, thank you.
Note that our November “Giving Thanks” raffle is another way to support St. Matt’s. Tickets are available after this weekend’s Masses. Ticket sales end at 1:00 p.m. this Monday, October 26.
Have a great week!
Phil Grant, Administrator
Safe Environment Coordinator
pgrant@st-matts.org
651-224-9793
