Rose and Joe were awarded an service award from out parish last evening. It was great honor because we have served for 40 years in a large number of ministries. Here is the talk that Rosalie gave at that event:
Spirit Award Presentation..
Good evening. My name is Rosalie Cook, and it is my great pleasure to introduce my parents for tonight’s St. John Vianney Spirit Award.
You may know my dad as Deacon Joe, with his joy-filled smile on the altar. From serving at Sunday mass to leading Lenten Stations of the Cross, to acting as Master of Ceremonies for the Holy Week liturgies, Deacon Joe always brings his unique joy and enthusiasm to brighten our church.
Perhaps Deacon Joe officiated at your wedding or baptized your baby. Since his ordination 31 years ago in 1994, Deacon Joe has performed countless weddings, baptisms, and wake services to journey through life with your families at SJV.
You may know my mom Rose from her many years as a CCD teacher, bringing her expertise from a lifetime of teaching 2nd grade in Woodbridge public schools to the children of SJV. She adored her little 7-year-olds, and especially loved helping them receive their first communion.
Maybe you served with Rose during her many years as a Eucharist minister. Rose even became the leader of the Eucharist ministers, responsible for training and coordinating schedules.
Maybe you are one of hundreds of couples that met with Rose and Joe to prepare for your upcoming wedding. Together, they dedicated many weekends to the PreCana marriage prep program, sharing their spirituality with young couples. Building on their years of PreCana, Rose introduced the FOCCUS program to personally coach couples preparing for marriage. She loved meeting with couples, and she had a gift for listening compassionately to their stories and helping them overcome obstacles before marriage.
Perhaps you are one of over 200 people who attended Rose and Joe’s adult faith formation and bible study classes over 15 years. Deacon Joe’s diaconate formation included 4 years of theology coursework at St. Elizabeth’s College, which sparked his passion for helping others to understand our Catholic faith. Similarly, Rose participated in the diocesan Partners in Ministry program in 2001 and later, when Rose retired from teaching, she earned her certificate in Parish Life Ministry from St. Elizabeth’s college in 2010. Together, Rose and Joe brought their love for our Catholic faith to the people of SJV. For many years, they hosted over 20 different series of adult faith classes including “A Quick Journey Through the Bible” or specialized studies like “The Gospel of Matthew”.
Maybe you attended RCIA with Rose & Joe, where they brought their adult faith formation to candidates entering Catholicism. Or perhaps you remember Rose and Joe from their years of leading the Decision Point program to inspire our 8th grade CCD students to understand and live their Catholic faith.
When you think of Deacon Joe, maybe you think of him managing the technology in the school or rectory. Bringing his expertise from his electrical engineering degree and career as a computer expert, Deacon Joe has dedicated countless hours of engineering & tech support to SJV. From managing the network, the church bell system, and the security cameras, to fixing computers, building our first website, and still acting as webmaster to this day, Deacon Joe has been essential to the technology at SJV. Over the years, he has literally saved the parish hundreds of thousands of dollars by providing free tech support. Technology combines his profound love for his craft and dedication to serving his parish.
As soon as you enter the gathering area of SJV Church, you feel the impact that Deacon Joe and Rose have had on SJV. Have you ever explored the parish library that they introduced and still coordinate today? Did you know that Deacon Joe and his father built the beautiful wooden stand for the Last Supper wooden sculpture? Have you ever read the news on the TV screen? Did you know that Deacon Joe does that?
And he is still working behind the scenes to make SJV financially successful. Have you signed up for Online Giving? Deacon Joe introduced that technology and still manages it today. Deacon Joe sits on the parish finance committee, managing the parish and school annual budgets and reporting at finance meetings.
Honestly, my parents have done so many different things for SJV over the past 40 years, that it would have been faster to list the things that they hadn’t done!
This may be how you think of my parents, Deacon Joe and Rose, but here’s what I see.
They are better together.
Since the day they got married at St John Vianney over 55 years ago, they have dedicated their lives to using their unique gifts and talents to serving God. They do everything as a couple. My dad Joe’s analytic and logical approach complements my mom Rose’s intuitive and people-oriented approach. Their love for each other shines through in everything that they do.
Combining their unique gifts, they have inspired so many SJV parishioners throughout their phenomenal 40 years of service. They have dedicated their lives to learning about our faith and serving God and his people, and their Catholic faith truly comes alive in their service to our church.
They embody the words that my dad says at the end of each mass – “go forth to love and serve the Lord and each other.” Together, they are a powerful team in bringing the message of God’s love to the people of our parish, through their love for each other.
It is my honor to introduce the greatest inspiration in my life, my amazing parents, Deacon Joe and Rose Ragucci.
