Catholic Community of Saint Jude
75th Anniversary Celebration
Click here to see the 75th Anniversary Prayer
written by Fr. Mike Schweifler
The Catholic Community of St. Jude began 2009 with a very special celebration. The weekend of January 10 and 11 we held a Kick-Off Weekend to begin our 75th Anniversary year.
We have come a long way since the first Mass was offered on a cold Christmas morning in 1934 with approximately 100 people in attendance. The first worship space was heated by a pot-bellied stove that had to be stoked early in the morning in order for the building to be warm enough in time for 8 AM Mass.
The original St. Jude building stood at the corner of South Cedar Rd. and Fourth Ave. in New Lenox. It was a house that had been obtained by an early parishioner and was transformed over time into a worship space with the help of many parishioners.
Today’s St. Jude church building holds more than 1100 people and our three Augustinian priests celebrate 5 Masses each weekend.
The high point of our year took place on Sunday, December 20th when we celebrated the anniversary of our
parish's first Mass. Bishop J. Peter Sartain was the main celebrant of the 11:00 am Mass. He was joined by our pastor, Fr. Don Lewandowski along with Frs. Bill Sullivan and Fr. Don Bates as concelebrants. In addition, there were other guest priests including those who were formerly assigned to St. Jude who also concelebrated with the Bishop for this very special occassion. Our three parish deacons, Deacons Bill Ciston, Bob Fitt and Dennis Theriault also took part in our anniversary Mass.
Bishop Sartain, priests and deacons
(Photo Courtesy of Megan Holba, 22nd Century Media)
A beautiful reception in Franciscan Hall followed the Mass.
This event officially marked the closing of our anniversry year. 
Our parish 75th Anniversary Dinner on November 22nd was a delightful event. Nearly 300 parishioners spent the afternoon visiting, eating a wonderul meal and reminiscing about our parish's past and looking forward to our future. The Franciscans who founded St. Jude’s, our previous Augustinian 
priests as well as those who 
have been instrumental in the life of our parish and school since 1934, were acknowledged during the presentation given by Fr. Lewandowski. A copy of the 75th Anniversary Book with the history and photos of St. Jude's was given to each family attending. If you were unable to be at the dinner, you may purchase a copy of the book for $10. Contact the parish office to purchase one. 
Anniversary Banners: Fr. Don Bates along with parishioner Judy Mudore, created a 75th anniversary banner which was introduced at the Kick-Off Weekend. This first of three special banners hangs in the narthex between the doors to the church.
It depicts the St. Jude Parish logo, the outline of four people from the four directions in which we draw our parishioners, all reaching into the heart of Jesus, from where we draw our strength as individuals and as a parish. The number 75 is in the background.
At Easter, a second banner was hung on the wall above the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. Again it depicts the work of Judy Mudore and her team of Mary Lee Gustafson, Dorothea Hanna, and Julie Tillman.
Beginning in the bottom right-hand corner of this banner, the baby or catechumen has the waters of Baptism poured from a shell over the forehead, while being received into the Church community, shown huddled around the cross of salvation. Through continued adherence to the words of Scripture, each Catholic Christian opens themselves to faith-filled incorporation in Christ in the Eucharist.
The final banner was revealed on Pentecost Sunday and hangs on the back wall behind the choir area. The funds for the materials for all three banners were donated by the Augustinian Community serving St. Jude Parish. All of the banners were made from the same fabrics, thus creating a unity among the three banners, even though each has its unique design.
The 75th Anniversary theme “Soaring at 75” is readily captured in the exuberant, exultant exclamations rising above the dove symbolizing the Holy Spirit hovering close to us, the St. Jude Parish community. The white segment of a circle at the top of the banner represents God the Father.
The summary of the three banners: the first is between the doorways to the church and announces the anniversary; the second banner, over the tabernacle where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved, tells the story of each parishioner’s journey through Baptism (the white shell in the bottom right hand corner with the blue Baptismal water flowing out of it), to meeting God’s Word in the Scriptures and then coming to the table of the Eucharist; the final banner celebrates the presence of God’s Holy Spirit in every baptized parishioner.
The three banners will remain throughout 2009.
The anniversary picnic on August 30th was a great success. Well over 400 people attended and enjoyed lots of hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, soft drinks and desserts plus a special treat of sno cones and cotton candy and stayed to play various games, both young kids and old kids alike! 
They also showed up for fellowship with other parishioners.
The weather was perfect for an afternoon outdoors, on the church grounds!
A large group continued the fellowship
with a trip to the Joliet Jackhammers
game that evening.
Fr. Bill at the Jackhammers game
Our annual renewal of marriage vows for all married couples in the parish took place on Sunday, June 7th. In honor of our 75th Anniversary, there was a special reception with wedding cake and coffee following Mass. This lovely event was co-sponsored by the Knights of Columbus and the Junior Women's Club. All couples, especially those married for many years, were celebrated and honored for their years of commitment.
Fr. Don Lewandowski blessing couples at the renewal of marriage vows Mass on June 7th.
We introduced some 75th Anniversary mementoes early in the year as a way to offset the cost of the anniversary year events. On our Kick-Off Weekend in January, a coffee mug was offered for sale. The black mug has the 75th Anniversary logo (which also appears on the anniversary banner) imprinted on it along with the theme for the year, “Soaring at 75.” The cost of the mug is $5. A few mugs remain and can be purchased by coming to the parish office during office hours.
We then offered t-shirts, sweatshirts and ballcaps featuring the 75th Anniversary logo and the theme "Soaring at 75".
A Christmas ornament, inspired by Fr. Mike Schweifler and designed by Fr. Don Bates was also offered as a memento of our 75th year. Only a couple of ornaments remain available for purchase for $10 with an optional ornament stand for an additional $3. Items can be purchased by coming to the parish office on weekdays between 8 am-4 pm.
On Sunday, May 3, St. Jude participated in the New Lenox Annual Loyalty Day Parade. It was the first float in many years the parish has entered in the parade. We wanted to use this opportunity to celebrate our 75 years of service to the New Lenox Community as a parish and a parish school. Many thanks to Doug Slusarski and his construction team including his wife Val, Rich & Lisa Solava and the Utter family for a great job on the float.
It was great fun 
to see our float
coming down the street
and gave us a lot of pride
to see our parish part of such
a special community-wide event.
Thanks to all who participated!
An update on the Holy Cow Raffle: The drawing was held at 12:30 pm on Sunday, February 15th.
Father Lewandowski drew the winners with the help of 2nd grader, Maddie White.
The winners are:
1st Prize: Laura O’Shaughnessy
2nd Prize: Ron Pilon
3rd Prize: the Augustinian Community of St. Jude, New Lenox
The 75th Anniversary Committee would like to thank everyone who participated in the raffle. A special thanks to those that purchased a ticket and all those who helped sell the tickets. The proceeds for this raffle will be used to defer the costs of the opening and closing Masses and Hospitality for the 75th Anniversary Year celebrations. Please continue to look for all the upcoming events planned for our Diamond Anniversary.
A SPECIAL THANKS TO FATHERS BATES, LEWANDOWSKI, SCHWEIFLER AND SULLIVAN FOR CONTRIBUTING THEIR WINNINGS TO THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY EVENTS.
On Saturday, February 21, 250 parishioners, school parents and friends of St. Jude came together to attend the Parents' Club annual Dinner Dance. In honor of our 75th year, the theme of the evening was "Diamonds are Forever.” The decorations in the school gym certainly reflected that theme well. The ceiling was draped in yards and yards of black and silver fabric with a borrowed chandelier in the center. Black and silver balloons adorned the stage area and diamonds were strewn about the silent auction tables--okay, fake diamonds, but they certainly added to the festive mood! Dinner was catered by Ambrosino's of Frankfort and the evening's entertainment was 
provided by Chicago Dueling Pianos followed by a DJ; both played lots of favorite songs to sing and dance by. Those attending declared it a delightful and successful evening. The money raised from ticket sales, and the silent and live auctions went to our parish school.