We are the Norris family and we are an ordinary family. When I had to ask the question, “What do we do to lead a life of stewardship?” I realized just how ordinary we are. We don’t have any great acts of service or charity to share. Stewardship to us is taking advantage of the many opportunities life gives you every day to serve others. It is trying to do the right thing and make a positive impact on others.
John and I were married 33 years ago at Holy Rosary Church in Lowellville and joined St. Patrick’s when we moved to Hubbard in 1992. We have 3 daughters Shelby, Rachel and Georganna. It was important to us to instill in them the Catholic faith and the importance of family. We wanted going to church to be something the girls wanted to do and not something they had to do. St. Patrick was the perfect place for us. We always felt welcome even when Georganna was in the middle of the aisle saying Mass with Father Tim or when we have to stop Rachel from high fiving Father Mike when he wishes us a great week ahead. Going to Mass is our time to refocus our lives back to God and reconnect as a family.
Stewardship begins at home in the way you treat your own family. It is the simple things you do because you care. It is baking Granddad his favorite pumpkin dessert and then making brownies too so dad has a treat in his lunch. It is making sure Papa gets to his favorite Chinese buffet even though you don’t like Chinese food. It is listening to Grandma tell the same story over and over again.
We have tried to serve the church. The girls were altar servers and CCD aides. They participated in Celebrate and Rachel served as an adult volunteer. We are Eucharistic ministers and are honored to share the Body and Blood of Christ with others. One of my most cherished memories is having the opportunity offer the cup to each of my girls at their First Communion.
The sacraments and the traditions of the Church have made us a closer family. Going to church to have our basket blessed, attending midnight Mass and Mass at Geneva are favorite memories. We have all been baptism and confirmation sponsors for cousins, nieces, nephews and friends. Each time, we were drawn closer to God and each other.
One day Rachel said to me that she was glad that they weren’t raised to believe they were the center of the world. At first I was taken back, but she went on to say that some people just can’t put others ahead of themselves. This ordinary family value is how we live a life of stewardship