Helping Hands
Father Vinh Van Vu, CRM, pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Fort Worth, shows his Pandan honeycomb cake on February 3, 2026, at his rectory. Fr. Vu enjoys cooking and loves to bake desserts to thank his parishioners. (NTC/Juan Guajardo)
Parishes flourish when members contribute their time and talents to serve the Church and each other. In the Diocese of Fort Worth, scores of North Texas Catholics are using their God-given abilities to provide hope, spread joy, and touch the lives of others with faith and friendship.
Here are some ways people — skilled at knitting, sewing, carpentry, and cooking — are building the Kingdom of God by sharing their gifts with others.
When Carlos Cornejo came to the United States in 1986, he spoke no English, had no formal education, and was only 17 years old.
But what the native of Mexico lacked in schooling, he made up for with a desire to learn and an innate talent to craft functional and decorative objects from an ordinary piece of wood. The Krum resident considers his self-taught skill a gift from God.
“I’ll never forget the co-worker who taught me how to read a tape measure,” Cornejo said, recalling his first job in construction trimming houses. “I’m from Mexico, and we used centimeters there, so it was different for me.”
Today, when the woodworker isn’t making custom cabinets for his employer, he’s helping transform the sanctuary at St. John Paul II University Church in Denton. Founded in 2012 to accommodate the growing spiritual needs of nearby university students, the parish moved into a new church building in 2019. Since then, Cornejo, a parishioner, has created two side altars, an ambo, and kneelers from the beauty of white oak timber. His latest project is fashioning a corner platform to house a hand-carved Divine Mercy statue from Italy donated by a parishioner.
“Everything I make — everything I do — is for Him,” he remarked, explaining his stewardship of time and talent. “Whenever you give something, the Lord returns it to you a hundred times more.
I thank the Lord for everything He’s given me.”
Cornejo doesn’t sign any of his pieces, but he takes satisfaction knowing they’ll remain part of the church when he’s long gone.
“When I die, everything I’ve built will stay here,” he added. “As long as my family knows my work, and the parish likes the job I do, I’m happy to make whatever they need.”
Cornejo’s donated furnishings enhance the interior of the sanctuary, according to Robert Black, the parish’s business manager.
“The side altars he built are very similar to the high altar we have,” he observed, commenting on the very detailed craftsmanship. “We don’t have a lot of room so when we add items to the church they have to fit in aesthetically.”
His humility, carpentry skills, and desire to serve the parish earned Cornejo a comparison to another talented woodworker: St. Joseph.
“We call him our St. Joseph,” Black enthused. “It’s wonderful that we have parishioners with God-given skills who are willing to share them with others.”
Hearts speaking with hands
Formal prayer can strengthen faith and express concern for others. For a group of women at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine though, the proverb, “our hearts speak best through our hands,” rings true.
Using their sewing, crocheting, knitting, and quilting skills, the needleworkers make prayer shawls, lap robes, and baby blankets for those needing physical and spiritual comfort.
“It’s tangible proof that people are thinking and praying for them,” explained Linda Bean, who started the ministry in September 2024 with Barbara Warnke. “It’s not just for sick people, but also those going through a rough time. What we make is something they can hold onto.”
In the last 18 months, 32 members of the ministry made 90 prayer shawls and lap robes along with 39 baby blankets for Loreto House — a pregnancy and parenting resource center with locations in Denton and Flower Mound.
Each piece of handiwork is delivered with a sewn-in label stating it was “prayerfully created” along with an attached Miraculous Medal, greeting card, and laundry instructions. Father Sojan George Puthiyaparampil, pastor, blesses the handiwork collectively in November. People can request a shawl or lap robe by contacting the parish.
“The beauty of this ministry is that it can involve homebound people,” said Bean, who meets with members on the second Monday of each month in the morning and again in the evening to accommodate different schedules. “I go in periodically and find shawls left on the shelves for me by people who don’t attend the meetings.”
Some parishioners participate in the prayer shawl ministry by leaving bags of yarn in the office. Another patron sends a check to the parish office for the purchase of material.
Bean, a New York native whose grandmother taught her how to make doilies at age seven, said the ministry is a way of sharing your creativity and expertise to benefit others.
“It’s an action thing — a way to do something for somebody else,” she continued. “It’s a way of serving our community with faith and love.”
Food and fellowship
Always an active ambassador for Christ, Rita Cooper spent most of her 73 years on Earth loving, praying, and cooking for people.
“She was a cook for years. That’s all she ever did,” said Denise Clemons, explaining that her mother was a longtime employee at the old El Chico Restaurant and also worked at other businesses downtown. “She loved to cook and feed people.”
The deceased St. Thomas the Apostle parishioner always kept food in the car in case she came across a homeless person.
“Now, I do the same,” her daughter admitted. “I had a great mom and I’m grateful for her example.”
Following in her mother’s footsteps, Clemons is continuing a ministry Rita Cooper started decades ago at St. Thomas Parish in Fort Worth to raise money for the parish’s building fund. What started with breakfast burritos made and sold by the longtime cook and her sisters for $1 eventually turned into a monthly fundraiser known as the Saturday Supper Social.
Clemons and a team of other volunteers use their culinary and hostess skills to offer food and fellowship to worshippers once a month after the 4 p.m. Mass. Spaghetti and tacos are menu favorites and cost $10 a plate. Ingredients for the entrees and desserts are all donated.
“In 10 years, we’ve raised over $50,000,” the organizer said. “It’s not a large amount of money, but we want to keep the plates affordable so people can have that social time.”
Promoting fellowship is an essential part of the ministry. Many senior citizens, and parishioners grieving a spouse, look forward to the monthly post-Mass gathering.
“We want to make sure people can have a meal with their church family,” Clemons pointed out. “It’s rewarding not only financially for the parish, but it’s nice to see church members spending time together. As the parish grows, we don’t want to lose that.”
A recipe in discipleship
At Our Lady of Fatima Parish, no social occasion is complete without a cake baked by Father Vinh Van Vu, CRM. The pastor, who celebrated the silver jubilee of his ordination last year, is known for making special Vietnamese confections for Christmas, Tet, and other festivities.
“I started baking cakes when I was in the Diocese of Amarillo to raise funds for the church,” said the native of North Vietnam. “Since then, I’ve always baked cakes for the parish I was in.”
The self-taught pastry chef relied on YouTube and internet videos to master the art of baking and explore recipes. Over the years, the 73-year-old became more inventive by adding unusual flavors and ingredients to a basic recipe.
“I always make them a little different by adding some rum or coconut cream,” explained the priest, who bakes as many as 20 cakes for parish events. Cakes are also his standard hostess gift when visiting a parishioner’s home.
“I don’t make them to raise money. Now I just give them to people for free,” he said. “I just want them enjoyed.”
One cake flavor Fr. Vu avoids is chocolate because “the Vietnamese don’t like chocolate. It’s too sweet.”
For Fr. Vu, making cakes is a recipe in discipleship.
“My hobby is another way to serve people,” he said. “When I have a day off, I like to bake. I make a cake every week for our kitchen volunteers.”
Crafting for Christ
Creativity is making a difference at St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Roanoke. Almost as soon as Bishop Michael Olson established the faith community in 2022, a small circle of artisans offered to host a fundraiser for the new parish, and Crafters for Christ was born.
The group’s first sale in October 2024 featured all quilted items — table runners, Christmas tree skirts, blankets, and stuffed animals.
“After that first sale, people got to know us,” said Kathy Smith, one of the original organizers. “Parishioners came up to tell us they didn’t quilt but could crochet, knit, or make cards, and the ministry grew from that.”
Crafters for Christ has hosted several more craft sales since then — the most recent in a new building that serves as both a parish hall and worship space. It was the first time members had the room to actively advertise the fundraiser to the public.
The December 2025 Christmas craft bazaar offered wreaths, scarves, ornaments, and dolls dressed in winter garments. A parishioner who recently returned from India sold handmade saris she brought back.
Not only did the ministry double its earnings from the previous sale, but residents in the area got to learn about the new Catholic parish.
“They would have otherwise just driven by, but the sale brought them in, and they asked questions about the parish,” continued Smith, who considers the interaction a form of evangelization. “It was a way of reaching out into the community. So many people told us they didn’t know there was a church here.”
Along with donating items for sale, the crafters pieced together quilts for raffle, made rosary pouches for first Communion recipients, created palm crosses for confirmation candidates, and provided baby blankets to new moms.
When the new parish hall/worship space was dedicated in November 2025, members created altar linens and banners in liturgical colors and made a signature quilt to hang in the narthex.
The ministry, which touches many lives, is multi-focused.
“It lets people know who we are as Catholics,” Smith suggested. “We’re reaching out to the community while supporting our parish and each other.”
Deacon Daniel Zavala loves the ministry’s name, Crafters for Christ.
“That’s what Jesus was all about — using your time, talent, and treasure for the good and building God’s Kingdom,” said St. Teresa’s coordinator of parish life. “That’s exactly what they’re trying to do.”
Even the smallest gifts of stewardship make a huge difference.
“Getting involved is a wonderful way to help the parish and honor God,” the deacon added.
Members of Crafters for Christ, from St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Roanoke, make Valentine’s Day cards on Feb. 11. The cards were distributed to nursing home and care facility patients. (NTC/Juan Guajardo)