Catholic Community of Saint Jude
75th Anniversary Celebration
In 2009, the Catholic Community of St. Jude will celebrate its 75th anniversary. The first Mass offered at the original St. Jude building was on a cold Christmas morning in 1934 and was attended by approximately 100 people. It 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.
Today’s St. Jude church building holds about 1100 people and our four Augustinian priests celebrate 5 Masses each weekend.
The 75th Anniversary Committee is working on a number of events to mark this very special year. The first event will be a Kick-Off weekend January 10 & 11. Refreshments will follow each Mass that weekend. We will have a limited number of 75th Anniversary coffee mugs availalbe to purchase at that time. Mugs will cost $5 each. If you don't get yours that day, you can place an order for one.
A special Anniversary Mass celebrated by Bishop Peter Sartain will be held on Sunday, December 20, 2009 with a reception following.
In between these two dates, there are a number of events being planned specifically for the anniversary. Some other annual events will be held as usual with the 75th anniversary as their theme.
On February 21, St. Jude PSA will hold their Dinner Dance, "Diamonds are Forever". All parishioners are invited, with a special invitation extended to all those who are graduates of St. Jude School, no matter where you now live. If you are an alumnus and/or know where to locate other school alumni you are encouraged to call a PSA member or the church office. Look for the SJS Alumni title under Press Releases on the homepage of this website for an alumni form that will help us locate you.
The Dinner Dance will be held in the SJS gym from 6:30 pm-12:30 am. This is meant to be a very special event as we reflect on the years our school and parish have served the families of New Lenox and the greater community.
One of our major events will be an Anniversary Dinner in October. At this event, we plan to honor the Franciscans who founded St. Jude’s as well as other religious who have been instrumental in the life of our parish and school since 1934.
There are various other activities to celebrate our 75th which are still in the early planning stages.
Planning a series of events that span an entire year takes a lot of ideas and help. The 75th Anniversary Committee will meet again on January 5, 2009 at 7 PM, in the conference room of the church office. If you would like to be a part of the planning for the celebrations, please join us at that time or contact the church office (485-8049) to offer your help.
Be sure to keep checking the website for further information on all the anniversary events as well as their dates, times, and locations. And be sure to join us for as many as possible.