Like many area churches, St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church, 122 Union St., Catasauqua, had a tumultuous 2020 and early 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite virtual Masses and major curtailment of social and fundraising functions throughout this difficult period, the church made exemplary efforts to demonstrate resiliency.

Church members held drive-thru dinners, a reimagined OktoberFest and other socially distanced activities, which all had limited attendance. Hours of operation were also shortened to preserve the safety of the congregation.

St. Mary’s held its basket raffle March 26-28 with palpable optimism, thanks to the dissemination of vaccines the past couple months and continued virus mitigation efforts like masking and social distancing. There was a sense among volunteers and attendees that things are finally changing for the better.

Baskets filled the tables in the church hall. Basket raffle director Susan Paone was excited at the prospect of a large turnout of parishioners. The baskets contained a wide range of items, including cooking tools, bath and beauty products, household goods and kids’ toys.

Sharon Hontz and Kathy Moyer staffed the ticket selling table. They were organized in anticipation of a busy day. Another volunteer was at the entrance to help guide patrons and make sure everyone was properly masked.

The goal of these types of events are to raise funds, as much as possible. But this year, to be sure, holding this event was important for the social component of togetherness and a sense of victory over the COVID-19 virus.