Although the secular calendar recognizes Christmas as December 25th as Catholics we continue to celebrate the Birth of Jesus for the next seven days in our liturgies and prayer. For most people, the significance of events like Easter and Christmas cannot be absorbed in one day. It’s like trying to comprehend the grandeur of the Grand Canyon in a brief visit or St. Peter’s Basilica in one walk-through. It’s not possible. We have to return. So it is with the Nativity and the Passion of Christ. We need more time to comprehend that Resurrection morning, more time to understand the virgin birth and God coming down to earth as man. As a result, the Church gives us seven additional days to contemplate these divine mysteries. These extra days on the liturgical calendar, eight in total, are the octaves.

Congratulations Joseph Mundhe Employee of the Month – November 2015. We are delighted to have Joseph as part of the DPD family and are inspired by him and his dedication to the most vulnerable among us.

“You are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21 The third week of advent begins with “Gaudete Sunday” and the lighting of the rose colored candle. Gaudete means “rejoice” or “joyful” in Latin. We prepare this week by feeling the joy. We move through this week feeling a part of the waiting world that rejoices because our longing has prepared us to believe the reign of God is close at hand.

Let's get ready ruuuumble.... You asked for it and here it is: DPD KARAOKE NIGHT! Details are HERE!

Being the sibling of someone with a profound disability often asks much of the sibling. Though they feel great love for their brother or sister, much is also expected. Supportive Initiatives for Brothers & Sisters will be meeting on January 6, 2016

"The birth of Christ is the central event in the history of the earth -- the very thing the whole story has been about." -- C.S. Lewis SECOND WEEK OF ADVENT: HOPE We light a second purple candle on the second Sunday of Advent to represent the hope of Christ coming to the world. The word "hope" has two meanings in the Bible. The first contains the sense of eager anticipation or waiting. The second depicts a sense of confident expectation based on certainty. Biblical hope is secured by God's faithfulness to His promises. For the Old Testament leaders, their hope was in the Messiah's arrival. For us, it is the hope of the Messiah's return.

The New Jersey Association of Community Providers (NJACP) selected Lynne Rockstroh as the recipient of the distinguished 2015 Leadership Award. At a recent dinner of statewide providers of services to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Lynne was recognized for her years of service to the DPD and to the most vulnerable among us.