Father Artur Gruszka, representing St. Francis of Assisi parish located at 1048 Ventura St., received a certificate of appreciation from Vision 2020, Civic Pride Committee for their generous support of our downtown Central replanting project. Father Barney Gatlin had submitted the donation to sponsor 4 pots before his retirement.

Father Gruszka has served 4 years as priest and one year as administrator for the church. He was born in Glogow, Poland & began his studies in law for 3 years before feeling that God was calling him to seminary. He began with a study of philosophy and then transferred to Cyril & Methodius Seminary in Michigan to complete his studies.

When asked about their involvement in our project, Father Gruszka said that the parish likes to serve in the community in different ways. Their biggest outreach is to the poor through their St. Vincent de Paul distribution of food on Tuesdays at 9am. They receive donations from various local stores for this ministry.

The church consists of a mix of ages with a high concentration of youth and they offer services in both English and Spanish, as well as faith based Bible studies and RCIA (Rite of ChristianChristian Initiation of Adults). The website with service times & further information is www.stfrancisfillmore.com.

Father Artur Gruszka has been in the United States for 8 years and recently returned to Poland to baptize his niece, the first new baby in his family.

Civic Pride Committee appreciates the blend of individuals, businesses, and this local church that have gotten involved in beautifying our Fillmore community for everyone’s enjoyment.