Before I get to questions and answers, just a reminder that Masses on August 5-6 will be at SSP Church at 4 p.m. on Saturday, at IHM Church at 7 a.m. on Sunday, and at SJB Church at 10 a.m. on Sunday. We’ll have refreshments after each Mass. Please plan to make time after Mass for some delicious food and meeting new friends!

Will servers have to come to church to practice what you want us to do?    Yes, please! The first time you come to serve after Aug. 1, please arrive 30 minutes early and talk to Deacon Dana, Fr. Aaron, or Msgr. Bommarito. We’ll let you know our plan for serving.

I am a Eucharistic Minister (or Lector or Hospitality Minister or Sacristan). What do I do?    We’ll send you a short description of your role at Mass. During August, please check in with our leaders 30 minutes before Mass. If you are a Lector or Eucharist Minister, check in with Debbie Gartner, our Ministry Manager. If you are a Sacristan, check in with Deacon Dana or the priest. If you are a Hospitality Minister, check in with Karen Garcia at 4 p.m. Mass, Debbie Gartner at 7 a.m. Mass, or Elizabeth Cassmeyer at 10 a.m. Mass.

I really like the paper prayer books used at mass. Will you continue using them?    We plan to use worship aids instead because they are easier for people just starting and restarting faith. Worship aids also save money. One disadvantage of worship aids is that they don’t have the Eucharistic Prayers. If having a book helps you pray, Catholic Supply sells beautiful personal Missals and subscriptions to personal paper prayer books.

What is the best way into each church for the handicapped?    We have paper maps available this weekend and on the SSP website (www.sspstl.org) to help you!
Where are the bathrooms in each church?   You can also find that information on our maps. Each church has a bathroom near the vestibule. IHM also has a bathroom near the organ, SSP has a bathroom in the cry room in the west transept, and SJB will have the parish center open; ask one of our Hospitality Ministers for help.

With our aging population, how will they be able to attend worship beyond 2023?    Several wonderful volunteers have agreed to help with rides for those who will have trouble getting to Sunday Mass! To respect the time of these volunteers, please call Sr. Ellen Orf (314-481-7543) by noon on Monday if you want a ride for the coming weekend. So, if you’d like a ride for Aug. 5 or 6, make sure you call by noon on Monday, July 31 — this Monday. Right now we have a limited number of volunteers; they will help people on a first-come, first-served basis. If lots of people need help, we’ll try to expand this ministry. If you want to volunteer, talk to Fr. Aaron or Debbie Gartner!

What will be the office hours for our parish office?    It will take a little while for all staff to move into the SSP rectory. Once we do, office hours will be 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Thursday. We’ll also have office hours around weekend Mass times at the IHM rectory (7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m.) and at the SJB rectory (9:30 a.m. to noon). Would you like to volunteer so we can have office hours 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Saturdays at SSP? If so, tell Fr. Aaron or Debbie!

Who can answer my questions if there is something I need to know in the meantime?    Contact Debbie Gartner, our Ministry Manager (presently at the IHM site), Stephanie Wobbe, our Communication Manager (presently at the SSP site), or Bridget Judge, our Administrative Assistant (presently at the SJB site).

Due to the complexity of the SJB campus and our leases, could you petition the Archbishop to delay the closure of SJB parish?    The SJB church and site is staying open. A delay does not sound like a good idea to me; we need to start learning how to make a combined parish work. We love the organizations renting space at SJB. We have been in contact with them, and we are looking forward to working with them in the future.