News and Views from St. Patrick’s Catholic Church
By Your Pastor, Fr. Pete Jankowski

Over the last two months, six parishioners in our community have given their time to interview candidates for our job opening of Principal for St. Patrick's School. After much deliberation, the Search Committee is pleased to announce that Dr. Lonnie L. Hughes has been chosen to fill this position at our Church.

Dr. Hughes comes to us with an extensive resume, first serving as the Dean of Students at Lockport Township High School, then as High School Principal in the cities of Shabbona and Momence. As he advanced in his education and experience, Dr. Hughes served as Superintendent of the school districts in Reddick and East Peoria, and for the last ten years of his educational history served as superintendent of the Hamilton County School District No. 10. in Mc Leansboro, IL.

After his retirement in 2002, Dr. Hughes and his wife moved to Frankfort, IL where, for the last six years, have enjoyed their retirement years with their daughter Shelly, who works in the Chicagoland suburbs near her family. As he shared with us, Dr. Hughes felt the desire to come back to the educational forum in a setting reflecting of his Catholic background. Being taught in the Catholic School System, Dr. Hughes wished to give back to the Catholic Church the fruits of his work in the public school system and we are most glad to reap the benefits of his work in his ministry to St. Patrick's.

I also would like to take this time to thank our Principal Search Committee, who were very instrumental in making this selection possible. The members of our committee were Cindy Harvey, Alicia Tocwish, Carol Ann Heineman, Kurt Kambic, Tom Magolan, and David Spesia.

Finally, I wish to thank Mr. John Garvey for his over fifteen years of service here at St. Patrick's School in the role of School Principal. As John moves forward to his new assignment at St. Joseph's Parish in Manhattan, he always is welcome back as alumnus and friend to the St. Patrick's Community. John is a treasure to our parish and we are most grateful for the investment he has made to our school.

May God Bless All of You.

Fr. Pete

Gloria Dei Vivens Homo (The Glory of God is Living in Man)
- St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Each week, St. Patrick's Vocation Cross travels from home to home throughout the parish as we pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life. This week,

will care for the cross. If you would like to participate, please contact the office (815) 727-4746.

Everyone needs to be fed by spiritual experiences. Every Monday at 7pm until 8pm we experience the presence of Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration and the Rosary. Come and join us in church for one hour. All are welcome - Come and be fed! Come and experience the Eucharist every FIRST FRIDAY beginning after morning Mass and ending with Benediction for the Repose of the Blessed Sacrament at 5pm. It would be very fitting to have at least three persons committed to Eucharistic Adoration for each hour from 9am to 5pm on each First Friday. There will be a sheet in the vestibule of the Church for you to sign your name and the time you prefer. Please consider this hour with our Lord a privilege!

Thank you for the wonderful celebration the children and I experienced at St. Patrick's on April 19th. Your gifts to our mission show true signs of friendship that have touched us all. When I see the joy on the faces of the children as they graduate and achieve success, I know that their happiness is only made possible through the continued generosity and concern of caring people like you. We are grateful for your support. Keep us in your hearts and prayers, as you are in ours. May God love and bless you all!

Fr. Ron Hicks - Director,
Friends of the Orphans

NOTE: Even with a seating capacity of 600, the 4:30pm Mass on April 19th was standing room only. The Dinner afterwards, served some 250 people. Thank you St. Patrick's!!!

Dear Father Peter and St. Pat's Parishioners:

I can't thank you enough for all the wonderful things you have done for all of us from St. Elizabeth's. I wish we could thank each one personally. Know that the dishes, silverware, pots and pans, vacuums, etc. are so very much appreciated along with spices and food items. Also, a special thanks to all those who helped in the move. We could not have done it without each of you. May God shower His Blessings on all of you! Many, many thanks to all the wonderful St. Patrick's pa rishioners form the ladies of St. Elizabeth's Residence.

-Helen Lawson.

Spring Cleaning? Why not spruce up those closets and cabinets. Clear your home of all that extra clutter! We are having a collection for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. They are looking for clean gently used clothing, shoes, cookware, linens, dishes, knick knacks, toys, books, lamps, etc.

Your donations will benefit the needy!

We will have bags in the church on April 26th and April 27th. Please fill these and/or your own heavy-duty bags and boxes with clean gently used items and bring them with you when you come for Mass the weekend of May 3rd & 4th, 2008.

Our St. Vincent de Paul volunteers will be there to help you with your donations.

For donations of furniture and other large items please call 630-231-4658 to schedule the truck to come to your home. Furniture will not be accepted at the clothing drive.

No Hangers Please!

Thank you for Helping Us to Help People! Receipts are always gladly given.

Diocese of Joliet
2008 Catholic Ministries Annual Appeal

Sign-Up Weekend, April 12/13, 2008 Your pledge continues the good work of the Catholic Church in seven counties that comprise our diocese. We ask that you give prayerful consideration in making the most generous gift you can. Please make your gift today.

Save your Ultra Foods and Strack and Van Til receipts! Receipts from March 3rd through June 1st will earn 5% for the parish! When the School collected these last fall, they raised $400! Contact the Rectory for details.

• May 3^rd at 11:00am in Church: First Communion Mass for St. Patrick's School and Religious Education Students
• June 15^th: Heartland Blood Drive 8am to 12noon
• June 23-27: Vacation Bible School
• August 18^th: Joliet Jackhammers!

St. Patrick's CCW will host their Spring Luncheon on Wednesday, May 14th. Activities that day:

• 11:00am Mass at St. Patrick's. We are joining in the "World Day of Prayer" along with the World Union of Catholic Women Organization. Intentions will be said around the world.
  
  
• After Mass, we will follow with a delicious lunch at Truth Restaurant. We will have Stuffed Chicken Breast with Risotto at only $20 a person.
  
  
• Honoring our Woman of the Year, Joan Bannon, and our nominee for the Bishop Blanchette's Scholarship, Emily Kambic.
  
  
• Installation of CCW Officers for 2008-2009.
  
  
• Having fun and friendship and spirit all day! Call Judy Valek at 815-725-1528 or Sharon Kolodziej at 815-741-0146 for reservations.

The Catholic Woman's League of Joliet will hold its annual Spring Luncheon on Saturday, May 10^th, at Al's Steak House on Jefferson Street in Joliet. We will gather at 11:30am followed by a noon luncheon and a 1:00pm program from the Joliet Dulcimer Society. Your check for $12 made out to Catholic Woman's League is your reservation. Please send it before May 1st to Mrs. Margaret De- Salvo, 704 Madison, Joliet, IL 60435.

Natural Family Planning Classes are available throughout the year at St. Patrick's. Please contact John and Barbara at 815-727-3018.

For over 20 years, St. Pat's volunteers have been providing dinner once a month at Daybreak Center. This easy but rewarding community service is much needed in today's economy. Can you add your name to the list of volunteers that occasionally help by grocery shopping or cooking food at home or serving dinner? Call Mary Mattson at (815) 726-2150 to get more details. Daybreak Center is sponsored by Catholic Charities, but recently experienced budget cuts, so they really appreciate St. Pat's help!

St. Patrick School Mission Statement

St. Patrick School embraces a mission to provide the finest academic environment for all of our children. We emphasize achievable goals and high moral ethical standards. We instill in our students a lifelong commitment to excellence and dedication to their Catholic Christian faith. Saint Patrick School is marked by a spirit of hospitality, a parent-school and parish partnership with a nurturing atmosphere in which our children develop in mind, body and spirit.

As a youth I attended Catholic schools in the Sterling-Rock Falls area, graduating from Newman Central Catholic High in 1963. It was my good fortune to be named an Illinois State Scholarship winner and have the option of a full tuition, room and board monetary award at the Illinois college or university of my choice. While the U of I and other state universities were tempting, I opted for a smaller Catholic school where I would be more than a name or number on a list. The result was four years with the Christian Brothers at Lewis College where I majored in English and minored in education.

I student taught at Lockport West High School, where I later was hired as teacher and eventually Dean of Students during my twelve-year tenure in the district. I assumed my first principal's position at Shabbona, Illinois. This became a golden opportunity, providing both valuable administrative experience as well as the close proximity of Northern Illinois University where I engaged in studies leading to the superintendent's endorsement.

After several years as principal in the Momence School District, I was selected to be superintendent at a small rural district west of Kankakee. I also served as elementary principal in this district which encompassed the communities of Reddick, Union Hill, Campus and Essex. In 1987 I was honored to receive a doctorate in Educational Administration from Illinois State University. In the same year I was named superintendent/principal in the East Peoria High School district where I grew in experience for several years. In 1992, I made my final career move in public education, assuming the position of superintendent of Hamilton County Unit 10 schools in downstate Illinois. In addition to the milder winters and congenial people in Southern Illinois, I experienced, with our board of education, the thrill of providing youngsters in the district with a new school. Horace Mann suggested the perfect classroom is a log with a student on one end and his teacher on the other. That may be true, but there is something very special about providing youngsters who are used to a school built in part during the 1920s with a beautiful new state-of-the-art learning facility.

Since my retirement in 2002, my wife and I have traveled abroad as well as visiting a number of areas within the United States. Our greatest thrill during those travels has been the unimaginable good fortune of being present in the Vatican in April, 2005, for the first papal blessing of Pope Benedict XVI. It has also been wonderful to have more opportunity to spend quality time with our daughter, Shelley, and other family and friends in the Chicago area.

I know St. Patrick's School has a long and proud history. I know it also places academic excellence and dedication to the Catholic faith as its primary mission for the young people it serves. My intent will be to do whatever I can to assist in the continued success of St. Patrick's in achieving those lofty goals.