Last week’s bulletin included information about moving out of “Ordinary Time” into the Advent season. Today, on the First Sunday of Advent, we hear the Gospel message to wake up and tune in. This first week of Advent is the time to stop our normal routine and listen for the signs around and within us. The Sunday readings proclaim that the Day of the Lord is coming. How will we prepare ourselves?

A few weeks ago, some members of the Liturgy Committee and Parish Pastoral Council got together to plan for this Advent season. It was decided to purchase two documents from Novalis in order to help parishioners prepare themselves:

1. A booklet called “Gather Round the Christmas Tree”, included with this bulletin
2. A one-page Advent Calendar for Teens, Tweens & College-Agers.

The Calendar is on the table at the entrance of the church. Please take home the Calendar for yourselves, your children or your grandchildren. Also on this table you will find various reflection documents - please take whichever one meets your needs.

Lions Club	$   4,000
Brookfield Renewable Power	3,000
Tom & Isabelle Laframboise	2,000
Les Soeurs de la Visitation d’Ottawa	2,000
Valentine's Dance	1,640
Estate of Lowell & Rose Carriere	1,000
Caisse Populaire de la Basse-Lièvre	1,000
Anonymous Donor	1,000
OLV Society	800
Knights of Columbus	800
Hugh McFaul	500
Kathy Carriere Horton	500
Phillip D'Aoust (Junior)	300
Heart and Soul Gospel Choir	300
Anonymous Donor	300
Ladies of the Country Club 2000	200
Anonymous Donor	200
Anonymous Donor	200
Anonymous Donor	200
Anonymous Donor	200
Arlene Brunke	100
Résidence Sérenité J.D.K.	100
Paul Jeffrey	100
Betty Bisson	100
Agnes Ducharme	100
Anonymous Donor	100
Anonymous Donor	100
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Total Donations to Date:	$ 20,840
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Amount Needed:	$ 18,000
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The month of December will see plenty of musical activity at Our Lady of Victory designed to meet different musical tastes. The first concert is scheduled for the 9th of December and will feature the styling of the Heart and Soul Gospel Choir. The theme for the evening will be a Gospel Christmas celebration. The admission price is only $ 5.00, with children under 12 admitted free. The concert will commence at 8:00 pm. Tickets can be obtained from members of the Choir, from Alma or at the door.

The second concert will be our annual Christmas Concert with La Chanterelle and will provide a completely different repertoire with a traditional bilingual flavour. This concert will be held on December 15th, with the ticket price being $10.00, children under 12 will also be admitted free and the concert will start at 7:30 PM. Tickets can be obtained from members of La Chanterelle, the Wardens, from Alma or at the door. Tickets will go on sale on November 22nd.

Following both concerts, coffee and desserts will be served in the church basement. Profits resulting from the concerts will be shared with Our Lady of Victory and will go to support our roof project. The wardens are encouraging as many parishioners to assist in these two events. While we recognize the proximity of both concerts, these concerts meet OLV’s fund-raising objective of bringing our community together through very affordable activities. Bottom-line is for a total of $15.00, parishioners and friends can enjoy and support local artists, and at the same time help our funding drive and enjoy fellowship with family and friends.

Every year, the various media organizations join forces to have a fund-raising drive, “La grande guignolée des medias”, or the “Big Media Food Drive”, with a view to helping local community organizations. This drive is in the form of road-blocks in the very early hours of one morning and local media celebrities don Santa hats and stand on street corners asking for motorists’ donations.

One hundred media and hundreds of volunteers will join, anywhere in the province of Quebec, to collect non-perishable food and cash donations in order to help the poor. For the last few years, the proceeds of this road-block have been donated to the food banks. Our local food bank, La mie de l’entraide, has organized three road-blocks for this year’s Grande guignolée to be held on Thursday, December 2nd from 6:00 am to 9:00 am. One is at the corner of MacLaren and Belanger in the Buckingham sector, one at the corner of Georges and Filion in the Masson sector, and one at the corner of Laurentides and Neuville in the Angers sector. All monetary and non-perishable donations will be accepted at these three road-blocks. If you are on the road and see these early-morning Santas begging for donations, please be assured that your generous donation will be used locally at our food bank.