Area churches will join to discuss sustainability of environment, world

ALBION – The Holy Family Parish in Albion, in cooperation with eight other local churches, will host an Ecumenical Sustainability Fair on Tuesday from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at Holy Family’s Lyceum, the upstairs hall at 106 S. Main St.

The event is titled “On Care for Our Common Home,” the subtitle of a message from Pope Francis, who has pressed Christians on their duty to care for nature.

The Sustainability Fair includes 22 exhibitors who will touch on recycling, composting, reducing consumption, caring for the environment and many other earth-friendly practices. Four groups will provide tastings of sustainable foods, including Leonel Rosario, chef-owner of Mariachi d’Oro Restaurant in Medina.

Some of the exhibitors include: Wegmans, Rochester Institute of technology, Catholic Charities, Pullman Universalist Church, Brockport First Presbyterian Community Garden, “accomplished gardeners,” Lift Bridge Book Store, Hospice, Boy Scouts, Christ Farm Market, G-O Ministry of Concern and several others.

Father Dick Csizmar, pastor of the Holy Family Parish, is pleased to see the pope lead on sustainability, and for the local churches to rally around the issue.

“With Pope Francis’ new encyclical Laudato Si’ evoking great discussion world-wide, it truly is a delight to see our pope addressing the issue of ‘our common home,’ our planet earth, and what we are called to do to make life more blessed for those around our globe today; for preparing for future generations to have opportunities to enjoy what God has placed in our hands; to help create a world where people truly work for the good of one another,” Csizmar said.

Sister Sharon Goodremote, an environmental educator in the Western New York Catholic Diocese, will be the featured speaker at 6:30 p.m. Goodremote is currently the chairowman of the Diocesan Care for Creation Committee whose “mission is to educate Catholics throughout the diocese about Catholic teaching on care for creation.

The committee’s focus is on sharing resources on Pope Francis’ encyclical and providing practical ways people to respond to the Church’s call to make care for creation not an Earth Day slogan, but something integral to our way of living.”

Bob Golden is co-organizer of the fair. He is pleased with the interest from so many exhibitors.

“I’m shocked,” he said. “We’d hoped for maybe six to 10 organizations who would display their sustainability efforts. We now have 22 exhibitors slated.”

Wegmans has provided a grant to help finance the event.

“Even though we’re frequent shoppers and fans of Wegmans, we were impressed by their commitment to sustainability,” Golden said. “Their initiatives in eliminating food waste, composting and using compost to generate electricity and recycling in many different ways have dramatically reduced what they send to landfills.”

There will be a roundtable discussion beginning at 8 p.m. that will include Sister Sharon Goodremote, Leonel Rosario (who also has worked as a farmworker), and Sheila Stone, who worked 20 years at Buffalo Catholic Charities and has been involved in Sacred Heart Center and Earth Heart.

The event is free and open to the public.