Summer updates: NPM in Reno and summer gatherings
Dear NPM Chicago Membership and Friends,
I hope that this summer has been a time of relaxation and rest for you and your ministries. It cannot be said often enough that we give so much to our parishes and to our ministries that we must, whenever possible, take time for ourselves to rest and recharge. The scriptures over the past few weeks have had the famous parables about the Kingdom of God from Matthew 13: We are of no use to the building up of the Kingdom here on Earth if we burn ourselves out and prevent ourselves from sowing good seeds. As many are getting ready for the upcoming “choir season” and the start of a new school year, may the Holy Spirit inspire your planning and help your preparation to be as stress-free as possible!
I know that some of us were able to attend the NPM Convention in Reno a few weeks ago. I am grateful to the staff at the national office and to all those who were a part of the planning of the convention. It is always a grand undertaking, but it felt especially grand this year having to do so in a new part of the country for our organization. The content this year was outstanding, and I was proud to see NPM Chicago so well represented in attendance, as presenters, and as performers throughout the week. Take a moment today to mark your calendars and plan to attend next year’s 47th Annual Convention, Fountains of Faith, in Kansas City from July 8-11, 2024.
I’m excited to announce the return of our successful summer gatherings! Last year we made an effort to try and visit all Vicariates in the Archdiocese. This year, in light of the realignment of Vicariates and possible events planned regarding those, we are going to simplify our summer gatherings a bit to allow your schedules time to attend events in your Vicariate. Two social gatherings will be held—one in the city, and one in the western suburbs. Most of the NPM board will be attending both events, and it would be great to see you at one (or both!) of these events. Our city gathering will be held on Tuesday, August 29, while our western suburbs gathering is still being finalized. Registration is absolutely free, but please RSVP here to allow us to prepare appropriately for snacks and drinks. And, please help spread the word by inviting friends and colleagues who may not know about NPM Chicago, or haven't participated in an event in the past several years—all are welcome.
Speaking of registration, you’ll notice that our website npmchicago.org has undergone an update. We’re excited to launch this refresh which simplifies the navigation, makes event registration more intuitive, and allows us to provide new features—such as a blog—to the membership as a whole to make communication both easier and more consistent. There are also easy-to-find links to direct you to the NPM National Website, the dedicated NPM Chicago Music Room within the NPM Website, and any job openings that we have been aware of around the Archdiocese of Chicago and beyond. We will continue to roll out new updates over the next several weeks as well. As always, please feel free to provide any feedback and questions on this to our Communications Coordinator, Matthew Merz, at matt@matthewmerz.com.
I hope to see you at one of our gatherings next month, and stay tuned for more updates, including our 2023-2024 event schedule.
Beautiful St. Mary of the Lake, the host of our Chicago Summer Gathering on Tuesday, August 29.
—Mike