Sunday, August 26, 2001
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Sunday, August 26, 2001 |
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St. Gabriel coming into its own
By CAROLYN CARY
Mass has been conducted for members of The Catholic Church of Saint Gabriel in some diverse places. It counts among former meeting places the American Legion building in Fayetteville, the Fayette Presbyterian Church and finally its own facility in 1995. Situated on 23 acres on Antioch Road, just south of Ga. Highway 92 south, Saint Gabriel enjoys a membership of 700 families. The Rev. James Patrick Adams, a.k.a. Father Jimmy, has recently come on board and brings with him a background in the corporate world, the Army and serving in foreign missions. Born in upstate New York and reared in Florida, Adams enrolled at Georgia Tech working toward a degree in civil engineering. The draft came along and he found himself in the United States Army, serving two years in Texas. He returned to Tech and obtained his degree in 1971. Working in the corporate world until the age of 30, he realized that God wanted him to head in another direction. Entering Saint Vincent de Paul Seminary in Florida, he emerged four years later and was ordained June 5, 1982. He has served congregations in Sandy Springs, Washington and Buford, Ga. Spending a year in Nicaragua has provided him with a personal mission. Father Jimmy realized when he returned that so much work remained to be done that he formed Amigos for Christ, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. It focuses on improving the lives of the destitute poor in Latin American, the Caribbean and here in Georgia. In October, a boys choir from Amigos will be in the Atlanta area. They are in the 10 to 15 age group and will be performing religious and folk music to raise awareness of this mission need. Members are looking forward to the parish picnic Sept. 16 for more reasons than good food. The last check has been sent to the mortgage company, which begs the question, what can they do next. Life Teens are gearing up for another year. These ninth to 12th graders come together in a faith formation program and to bring teens into a relationship with God
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