Family Mass on February 24 - sign up to participate  
Tax Credit Scholarships will be available
Religious Ed Fish Fry on March 15
St. Emily and St. Thomas Becket Parishes
February 19, 2019
Dear Families,

As of this writing, we might have another icy night and day coming.  I will keep close tabs on the weather.  On the one hand, I hate to cancel class. On the other hand, if it looks like it is unsafe on the roads, we don't want to risk it.  If we do find it necessary to cancel, we will email you, so stay tuned.

As you can tell, winter isn't quite finished, you might want to subscribe to the Emergency Closing Center notifications in the event that we need to cancel.

Please note that the liturgy committee at St. Emily invites all families in the parish to participate in the next Family Mass , taking place on this coming Sunday, February 24 at 9:30 AM.  There is more info and the opportunity to sign up below.

A committee has been working on putting on a Fish Fry to benefit our Religious Education program.  See below for the details about the food, the fun and how you can be involved.

safedismissalLastly, I must speak once again about our dismissal so that we can keep it safe and orderly.
  • You must come inside the gym, wait until all the classes have been able to line up, then come up to the line and let the catechist know that you are picking up your child.  Don't just nod and expect your kid to run to you.  The catechist needs to know where the kids are going.
  • Please don't give your child contrary instructions.  You put your child in a very uncomfortable situation that causes them a lot of stress - when adults here are telling them one thing and you are saying another. Kids cry. Why provoke that?
  • Please follow the guidance of David and Rick as they keep order in the lot.
Thank you to everyone who is already up to snuff on these procedures.  We don't want to have a child lost or injured. The cooperation of all insures that.
fishfryWe're Having a Fish Fry!
Friday, March 15 from 6:30 to 9:00 PM
To benefit the Religious Education Program

Come and join in the fun. 
There will be fish, mac'n'cheese, coleslaw and lemonade. $12.00 for adults and $8.00 for kids. ($5.00 for the mac'n'cheese plate only.)

It will be BYOB.

There will also be games for the kids.

In Hajdu Hall at St. Emily.

All the proceeds will go to benefit the Religious Education program.  (Your tuition pays only a portion of the total costs.)

Ways to be involved:
Helping Children
Do you know a child with emotional or behavioral difficulties?

There is a free six-week course offered for parents or family caregivers of school-age
children and adolescents with mental health issues. 

Classes include:
  • Understanding the illnesses that are causing the behavioral difficulties
  • The biology of mental illness; getting an accurate diagnosis-, anxiety disorders, depression, ADD, ODD, OCD, childhood bipolar disorder, and others
  • Taught by trained teachers who are also the parents of children with emotional or behavioral difficulties
February 21 - March 28, 2019 from 6:30-9:00 PM
Thursday evenings at Holy Family of Nazareth in Des Plaines
Call 847-716-2252 for info and to register.

familymassFamily Mass
Join us on February 24 at 9:30 AM

Family Mass is a great opportunity to not only worship together, but to minister together.

We hope that each month, different families will sign up to be the greeters, readers and gift bearers for our community.

The first mass of the year is Sunday, February 24 at 9:30 AM. You can sign up here.
  • The greeters will welcome parishioners upon their arrival to mass and hand out bulletins as they leave. 
  • For readers, the children of each family can divide the reading amongst themselves with their parents accompanying them to the ambo.
  • The gifts of bread and wine can be brought to the altar by the whole family.
stjosephtableSt. Joseph Table
March 10 at 12:00 PM

Gather in the St. Emily gym for a wonderful, traditional celebration of the St. Joseph Table.

The table will feature meatless dishes and wonderful desserts.  Your free will offering will benefit our St. Vincent de Paul Society.  (According to the custom, a St. Joseph table is for the sake of the poor.)

ExodusProject Exodus
Help a family begin life in the United States

Project Exodus is an outreach project we have done the last four years. We collect the items that a family needs to begin life in the United States.  (We don't take care of furniture - but all the rest, including linens, towels, and kitchen equipment.) We do this in conjunction with Exodus World Service.

On the day they land to begin their new life, we meet them at their apartment and set it up so that they can settle in quickly.

We have helped families from Syria, Iraq, Myanmar, and Congo.  We don't yet know who we will help this year. 

There are 62,000,000 refugees in the world today.  It takes between five and twenty years to apply for and receive refugee resettlement status in the United States.

How can you participate?
  • Come with us the day we move them into their new apartment.  Because we don't know when refugees will be arriving until about a week to ten days prior, this date is not yet set.  Kids have a fantastic time meeting the arriving family and doing the work to set up.  "It is like playing house, but with real stuff!" Let Cathy know if you'd like to be included.
taxcreditApplying for a Tax Credit Scholarship
A way to afford a Catholic School education for your child

Through the "Invest in Kids Act," tax credit scholarships are available to Illinois children, in grades K-12, from low-income households who want to attend private schools, including our 209 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Chicago.

This program started during the 2018/19 school year and many families in our Catholic schools are benefiting. The scholarships are funded by donors who receive a 75 percent credit on their Illinois state income tax as a result of their donation.

The scholarships offered through the program could cover up to 100 percent of tuition and eligible fees for one year and they are awarded on a first come, first served basis, subject to the availability of funds.

To find out more about eligibility and application, go here.
euchFirst Penance / First Eucharist News
Celebrating First Penance

After the Reconciliation Family Event this last week, the next occasion is the celebration of the Sacrament of Penance.

It will be celebrated on Saturday, February 23 at 1:00 PM.

emergencyclosing
Emergency Closing Information
Know how to be informed

We hope that all our Wednesdays are sunny and dry, but it is Chicago and we realize that winter weather is no joke.

If we find it advisable to close, we will send a blast email to all families that day.

We will also post any closings at the  Emergency Closing Center.  Please check there to make sure.   You can also sign up there for email alerts that tell if and when the Religious Education program cancels.

Dates to Save
  • February 23 - First Penance Celebration
  • February 24 - Family Mass at 9:30 AM
  • March 6 - Ash Wednesday. Class time includes mass at 7:00 PM.
  • March 10 - Parish St. Joseph Table
  • March 15 - Fish Fry sponsored by the Religious Education program
Quick Links
St. Emily Parish
Catherine Crino, DRE
847-299-5865
St. Thomas Becket Parish
Renata Sosin, CRE
847-296-9051
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