What they do
Ministers of Care bring the Eucharist to those who are unable to come to church for Mass.
They visit people in their homes, in hospitals and in care facilities, and they visit the ill and the handicapped. It is quiet work and most of the parish never sees it happen.
The parish describes its Ministers of Care as compassionate, with gentle demeanors and non-judgmental mindsets, and with a commitment to their own spiritual development. They are thanked once a year at an appreciation dinner, which is nowhere near enough.
If someone you love cannot get to Mass
Call, and a Minister of Care will come.
This is available to any parishioner: at home, in the hospital, or in a nursing facility. You do not need to be a long-standing member and you do not need to explain yourself.
- Also available
- Anointing of the SickA priest will come
Eucharistic Ministers
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion serve at Mass, and several also carry the Eucharist out afterward.
Serving at Mass and serving at a bedside are the same ministry pointed in two directions. Many parishioners do both.
Training is provided by the parish. If you have wondered about it, the honest answer is that they need people.
Fall 2026 training for new Ministers of Care
Two Saturdays, October 17 and October 24, 8:30 am to 1:00 pm.
Chaplain Rick Nash and Jim Vlazny, Coordinators of the Ministry of Care at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, will facilitate the training. Attendees must attend both Saturday sessions to be mandated as a Minister of Care in the Archdiocese of Chicago.
- When
- Saturdays, October 17 & 248:30 am – 1:00 pm, both days required
- Where
- Our Lady of Perpetual HelpHickey Hall, Glenview, IL
- Facilitators
- Chaplain Rick Nashand Jim Vlazny, Ministry of Care at OLPH
Are you called to this?
The ministry is always looking for people, and it will train you.
If you have ever sat with someone who was sick and not known what to say, you already have the only qualification that matters, which is that you went.
