As of May 28, 2022, St. Joseph Church in Mantua, St. Ambrose Church in Garrettsville, St. Joan of Arc Church in Streetsboro, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Aurora officially became a collaborative region known as Portage North.
The weekend of June 1/2, 2024, is the debut of a new logo for the Catholic parishes of Portage North. In the new logo, each parish is represented in one of the four elements it contains, with a clear symbol and a color that reflect the patron saints:
When all four of these symbols appear together in the square logo, the cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ is implied in the white space between them, as the force that unites our four parishes and all members of the Church. These individual symbols can also appear separately to easily identify information and activities in each of the parishes. You may even see some variations of the logo for different liturgical seasons and specific occasions.
This logo highlights the collaboration of our four parishes and the individual identities that each community brings to the work of the Church in northern Portage County. It does not indicate that there are any plans for the four parishes to merge.
Please also have a look at the helpful visual explanation provided by Aimee Crane, a parishioner at Our Lady in Aurora, who completed the graphic design work of the new logo.
Acknowledging that each of our parishes have specific routines of gathering for liturgies and prayer, Fr. Francis has made some changes to weekday opportunities at the parishes of St. Joseph, St. Ambrose, St. Joan of Arc, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The idea is to have something offered each weekday and utilize our Lay Leaders of Prayer. An updated liturgy and devotion schedule can be found below. Please refer to each parish’s bulletin and/or website for more details of the schedule throughout the Portage North region.
As of May 1, 2023, Fr. Chris Luoni will become a Sacramental Minister for all of Portage County with residence at St. Joseph Parish in Mantua. His role will include being available to assist priests of the county for anointings, funerals, and for times when they are unavailable due to other commitments, vacations, illness, etc.