Aging Ministry

Our Aging Ministry seeks to provide sunshine into the lives of the elderly of the community, most notably in our own community at Little Sisters of the Poor St. Mary's Home on Lakewood, and Symphony on Fullerton & Southport. We welcome your help to put smiles on the faces of our senior neighbors!

Our Ministers of Care bring the eucharist each week to those at Symphony who may not be mobile enough to attend our Masses. Interested? Contact Kelly Smith.

Volunteers like you are always appreciated to help brainstorm ways to serve this ministry. You can volunteer as much or as little as you like (even just once is helpful)! Every week we need a Minister of Care to deliver the eucharist to our friends at Symphony. Each month we need someone at Symphony to call the numbers at monthly Bingo, assist in bringing the residents treats and helping them find the numbers on their cards. On occasion we help Little Sisters to wheel their residents outside for BBQ. The more volunteers we have, the more we can plan be of service and enhance the lives of our aging friends. For more info about our Aging Ministry or to volunteer, please contact Mary Gallo at [email protected]

Little Sisters of the Poor

Each year, the Little Sisters of the Poor will visit our Parish to share their vocation of hospitality to the elderly. In our neighborhood, at 2325 N. Lakewood, St. Mary’s Home in Chicago is one of 167 Homes for the elderly poor operated by the Little Sisters in 31 countries around the world.

Their need for financial support continues to be acute and considerable. Virtually all of the current Residents of St. Mary’s Home qualify for Medicaid, and a few receive meager pensions. But these modest funds cover, at best, about half of the annual expenses. The Little Sisters have ministered to thousands of elders in Chicago for 145 years. Your support will enable them to continue their mission of caring for the neediest seniors of every race and religion in a spirit of reverence and of humble service. God bless you!

(Click here for) July 4th, 2023 Little Sisters BBQ Recap & Thank You

THANK YOU FROM THE AGING COMMITTEE!

I recently reached out to the St Josaphat community to ask for volunteers to join the Sisters and staff at Little Sisters of the Poor at their July 4 BBQ. My initial efforts got 5 dedicated people, but I knew we needed more. I put the request in the bulletin and had it announced at Masses and here....and 20 incredible people showed up to give of their time and help make the event a huge success!

Attached is a picture of this amazing group of caring people. I am so grateful to each of you. If you volunteered for the first time, I'd love to have your email to thank you personally - so please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected].

The events we do at Little Sisters of the Poor and Symphony are so appreciated by the residents and the staff of both facilities. Thank you to all who help Spread Sunshine to Seniors!

Mary Gallo

(Click here for) Memorial Day, 2023 Little Sisters BBQ Recap & Thank You

Once again, the parishioners of St. Josaphat step up and show up!

The aging community offered to assist the Sisters and staff of Little Sisters of the Poor with their Memorial Day picnic and BBQ. Three weeks before the event, we had only 3 volunteers available to assist, but after a few announcements in the bulletin and during Masses, our parishioners stepped up and 12 people came to help out!

Our group helped bring the residents outside, serve them their meal and clean up afterward. Perhaps the biggest gift they gave was to sit at tables with the residents and chat with them. Some residents rarely have much to say, some are reserved because they don't hear or see well, but many are truly delighted to have someone to listen to them.

Days in a nursing home can be very long and lonely, especially for those residents who don't have family or friends visit. Being able to brighten up their day and assist the Sisters and staff who work so hard on a daily basis was truly a blessing. Our mission is to Spread Sunshine to Seniors and in doing so, we all get far more joy than we give. Thank you to all who were able to give their time!

Mary Gallo

The Vistas (formerly Symphony) Residences and Rehabilitation

You might recognize some familiar faces of The Vistas residents at our Masses. For those who have more difficulty getting around and those in rehabilitation - we take our services to them.

Eucharistic Ministers from our Liturgical Ministry visit Symphony weekly to offer communion services and our pastor visits monthly to offer Mass onsite.

We organize activities for this lively group and don't know who has more fun at Bingo; the residents or our volunteers! We collect and deliver gifts through our Giving Tree ministry and lead a rousing Christmas caroling event in December and our students and volunteers deliver handmade greeting cards throughout the year.