It was standing room only Dec. 11 at St. Damian Church in Damiansville to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe as parishes did locally and around the world to celebrate Our Lady’s Dec. 12 feast day.

A record crowd gathered Oct. 12 at St. Joseph in Marion to pray, share fellowship, listen, learn and celebrate at the 90th annual convention of the Belleville Diocesan Council of Catholic Women.

Editor’s note: For a number of years, The Messenger has asked readers to send in their favorite recipes so that we can publish them before all of the holiday bakers have finished their labors. This year is no exception. We have received recipes from all over the diocese.