LAWRENCEVILLE—The Care for Creation Ministry of St. Lawrence Church hosted a trio of events Oct. 3, honoring the spirit of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’, “On Care for our Common Home.”

The ministry kicked off the Saturday events with an electronics recycling drive after morning Mass, followed by a blessing of the animals and blessing of the new St. Francis garden in the afternoon.

A young parishioner holds her hamster during the annual blessing of the animals at St. Lawrence Church in Lawrenceville to honor St. Francis’ feast day. Photo by Julianna Leopold

At the pet blessing, ministry leaders sold homemade pet treats and toys to raise money for beautification of church grounds. A future project includes a Pastor Pollinator Garden outside of the priest’s office window.

The ministry coordinators, Amy Mock and Mary Raterman, are UGA Extension Master Gardener volunteers. The Lawrenceville church first started the ministry as a book study of the papal encyclical led by parishioner Diane Maguire. After a break during the COVID-19 pandemic, Father Henry Atem asked Mock and Raterman to re-launch the ministry in the Winter of 2024.

Current projects include quarterly electronics recycling drives on the church grounds, open to the public; participation in the Adopt-a-Road initiative in Gwinnett County for roadside cleanup and placement of an aluminum can recycling trailer on church property.

The ministry uses free mulch from arborists used to help erosion areas and for beautification, and hosts scheduled workdays so all parishioners can pitch in with gardening chores.

The ministry helped the Knights of Columbus move away from use of Styrofoam products at its annual fish fry dinners. The ministry sponsors speakers on composting, monarch butterflies and other topics.