St. Joseph the Worker

Parish Giving

MISSION STATEMENT

VIBRANT & ACTIVE
We are a Roman Catholic faith family in Chatham Illinois committed to proclaiming the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We live our faith with our words and through our actions.  Nourished by the Word of God and the Eucharist, we seek to become a place of mercy and hope where everyone is welcomed, loved and respected.

Parish Pastoral Council

The role of the St. Joseph the Worker Parish Pastoral Council members is to serve the pastor, provide channels of communication and cooperation to the pastor, staff and members of the parish, and provide support to the pastoral work of the parish.   By working together in community we grow in faith and fellowship.

If you have questions, concerns or requests about St. Joseph the Worker Church, your parish stewardship or activity committee, or as a parishioner, you are encouraged to contact the Pastoral Council Chairperson, or Vice-Chairperson.   

Chairperson, Pat Kornfeld,  kornfeld.pat@comcast.net

Vice-Chairperson, Debbie Shawgo,  debbieshawgo@gmail.com

BULLETINS

April 17—Holy Thursday ~ Mass at 6:30pm

April 18—Good Friday ~ Liturgy at 3:00pm

April 19—Easter Vigil ~ Mass at 7:00pm

 April 20—Easter Sunday  

Masses at 8:00am & 10:30am

The Parish Office will be closed on Friday, April 18^th and Monday, April 21^st.

Come and join us for an afternoon of games on Wednesday, May 7^th, 12:30-3:30pm in Kollross Hall.  We will be offering card games, dice and board games.  You can bring a friend, learn a game, teach a game, or just sit, watch and visit.  Drinks will be provided. 

Our next gathering will be on Wednesday, April 23^rd at 11:30am.  We will meet for lunch at Casa Real,   1121 W Lincolnshire Blvd. (near Scheels) Springfield.

If you plan on joining us, please sign up in the Gathering Space by April 20^th. 

If you have signed up to attend and find you cannot come, please contact Jodi Kos at 217-622-3715 or Mary Lynn Yates at 618-315-2975 in order to give the restaurant an accurate reservation count.  Thank You! 

Faith Formation and Parish-Wide Pizza & Movie Night

Please join us on Saturday, April 26^th, following the 4:30pm Mass, to celebrate completion of another wonderful year of Faith Formation...and to kick off our count down to True North VBS!

 Pizza, Salad, Fruit, Dessert and Drinks will be provided  from 5:30-7pm, with “Brother Bear” playing on the big screen at 7pm. Bring your sleeping bags, pillows, bean bag chairs, and get comfortable. Popcorn, S’mores and drinks will also be available. Be sure to sign up in the gathering space for attendance and to volunteer to help clean up after the movie.

Adults—feel free to bring your favorite card or board game for fellowship in O’Hara Hall if you‘d like.

Sign-up is now posted in the Gathering Space.

YOU’RE INVITED

 On May 1^st, the National Day of Prayer, the Mayor’s prayer breakfast will be held at 7:00am at the Chatham Baptist Church.  The speaker at that gathering will be Fr. Joe, our pastor.  This breakfast is an opportunity to come together to celebrate our Christian faith with our brothers and sisters of other denominations.  Please mark this on your calendar—the event will end around 8:00am.  If interested, call the parish office to sign up by April 27^th.  Any questions, you may call Fr. Joe.

Annual Chicken Dinner and Silent Auction

 This year there will be a meatless lasagna option!

Pick–up is May 4^th from 11:30am-4:30pm

in the east parking lot, preschool entrance

of St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church.

Tickets are pre-sale only and cost $13.00.

The Silent Auction will be online starting May 3^rd and ending May 7^th.

Senior Graduation Mass and Breakfast

On Sunday, May 18^th, we invite our graduating High School Seniors and their families to join us for the 10:30am Mass, with breakfast in their honor to follow in Kollross Hall. Please RSVP with your family name and how many will be in attendance to Janice Anderson, no later than Friday, May 9^th.

17^th Annual Fr. Franzen Memorial

Golf Outing

June 8^th, 2025

Edgewood Golf Club

For detailed information go to the Parish Life tab on the website and click Fr. Franzen Memorial Golf Outing.

True North Vacation Bible School

This year’s theme is “True North: Trusting Jesus in a Wild World.”  VBS is open to all children age 4 (by 9/1/25) to present grade level 4 (entering grade 5). Registration closes Friday, May 30^th, 2025.  Registrations after May 30^th, 2025 will be accepted as space allows.

 VBS is $10.00 per family.

Forms can be found HERE or in the Parish Office; Monday-Friday, 8:30am-4:00pm

True North VBS Station Leaders Needed

Our Vacation Bible School program runs June 23^rd-27^th from 9:00-11:30am each day. We are still in need of an adult leader to head the following area—Imagination Station Leader. Contact Janice Anderson     for more information.

Registration for the 2025-2026 Faith Formation year is underway.  We look forward to working alongside families to help them grow strong in their faith.  If you have a child ready to enter kindergarten or are new to the parish, please let us know so that we can be sure to get you on our registration list.  

All children, grades K-8, will attend Faith Formation on Sunday mornings from 9:15-10:15am.

Tuition for Grades K-8 is $60 for one child and $100 for two or more. Fees are due by August 1, 2025. Please note: no child will be denied due to inability to pay.   Please contact Janice Anderson with questions.

Forms can be found HERE  or in the Parish Office; Monday-Friday, 8:30am-4:00pm.

From the Preschool Board

Do you always shop at the same stores or fast food locations?  Why not consider  purchasing gift cards through RaiseRight, our Preschool fundraiser.  When you do this, you are helping our Preschool who receives a rebate from the retailers.  You only pay the price of the card you are purchasing!  Orders are placed on the 1^st of each month, or more often, depending on number of orders received. 

You can find the order form HERE

Please check-in at the office before entering the building during work hours.  We need to know who is in the building in case of an emergency.

Preschool Registration for Fall 2025

Preschool registration for the 2025-2026 school year is open to all!  Parents of current students will receive first priority; then, alumni families; then, parish families; and then, the general public.  Please be sure to register soon to guarantee your spot for the next year.  You can visit our webpage or come into the parish office for a Registration Form. 

Knights of Columbus 4179 News

If you are interested in joining the Knights of Columbus, please contact Sean Fink at 217-415-1147. 

Rosary Group

St. Joe’s Rosary Group Prayer Session is available to all parishioners who want to praise and worship God, to pray for St. Joseph the Worker Church, family, friends and loved ones or to intercede for others.  We start praying the Rosary on Zoon at 4:15pm and finish all prayers around 5:10pm.  You can join through the Zoom Meeting ID: 509 233 2302  Passcode: Prayer, or you can call Pam Branham at 217-652-0246 for more details. 

Important News for Parents!!!

The Cry Room, or Quiet Room, in church is there for a very worthwhile purpose.  It is for a child who may be restless, crying, etc.  This space enables the child and parent to still be able to hear the Mass, yet not disturb the people around them in the main church proper.  But, this space is limited in size and in the number of people able to be accommodated.  Therefore, please do not use this space for any other purpose than stated above.  It is not a space for multi-members of a family to reside during Mass.  This limits other people from using the room.  Thanks for understanding. 

One of the beautiful ways we can keep a deceased loved one’s memory alive is through having a memorial set up at the time of their death.  A very nice example of such a memorial would be to have one for St. Joseph the Worker Parish.  People would then have the opportunity to designate SJW for a memorial gift.  At the time of a loved one’s passing, please consider having our parish as one of the memorial options. 

Please Note

If you are over the age of 21, are still living with your parents, and are gainfully employed, you should register as a member of the parish instead of continuing to be a part of your parent’s household.  This will make our records more accurate.

St. Joseph the Worker Preschool offers a 4/5 year old class that meets on M/W/F from 9:00am - 11:30am and a 3 year old class that meets on T/Th from 9:00am - 11:30am. Mrs.Jackie Viste is the Preschool teacher and provides fun, faith-based enriching activities to all of our students. She is assisted by her aides, parish members Mrs. Judy Gartland and Mrs. Melody Clark.

More information and all forms can be found HERE

To learn more about our Preschool Fundraisers click HERE