Dear Parents & Guardians,

Hope everyone is having a blessed week.

We look forward to seeing our Kindergarten–7th grade families this Sunday, October 4, at 10:00 am at Saint Andrew School! Our students and teachers will be walking through our required Safety Curriculum together during class.

8th grade program will meet for their Confirmation Retreat on Sunday, October 4 at 9:30am-3:00pm at the Shrine of Saint Mother Cabrini in Lincoln Park.

While the purpose of this note is really to prepare for this Sunday's session on safety, I don't want to ignore the information that we reviewed with the parent meeting this past Sunday. Since the content of the meeting and follow up for parents who did not attend is a bit unusual, please also read the special note below and how it impacts the parent meeting on October 18.

Blessings,

David Heimann

SAFTEY CURRICULUM

Every year, the Archdiocese of Chicago mandates that parishes review with children a set of approved material which contributes to the prevention of child sexual abuse and develops a culture of safety. We use the "Empowering God's Children" series provided by the Virtus safety education curriculum. I have included the video below that will be shown during the classes for K-5th grade and the 6-8th grade classes.

As parents, I encourage your constant vigilance and open dialogue about keeping children safe. I also understand that parents may have their own reasons for opting out of the viewing of the "Empowering God's Children" with their children. In compliance with our mandate and our audits before civic authorities, any parent opting out of this curriculum must complete an "opt out" form for us to keep on record. The form is found below and can be downloaded, signed, and returned to me at your earliest convenience.

Parent Opt-Out Form

Installation of Fr. Hank

We are pleased to announce that on Sunday, October 4, 2026 at the 11:00am Mass, Bishop Siemianowski will be at Saint Andrew to preside over the Mass where Fr. Hank Lyons will be formally installed as pastor.

Several unique rituals take place at an Installation Mass and all parishioners are invited to attend.

First the representative of the Archdiocese (Bishop Siemianowski) will read the official letter of appointment naming the pastor. Then Fr. Hank will publicly recite the Nicene Creed and take an oath of fidelity promising to carry out his duties in communion with the Church. Then there is an introduction to the important symbols of the church building symbolizing the responsibility the new pastor has to teach, govern and sanctify the parish.

We hope you will be able to join for this important celebration and witness one of the unique and important customs of the Catholic Church.

Mark Your Calendars:

Our next Parent/Child Joint Formation-Session will take place October 18, 2026 at 10:00am in the Auditorium after dropping off your child(ren) for their in-person classes at St Andrew School. These sessions are integral to the program to allow you to facilitate the at-home portion of our program.

Kinder thru 7th grade will have their in-person class on October 18, 2026 at 10:00am-10:50am at Saint Andrew School.

8th grade program will meet on Sunday, October 18, 2026 from 3:30pm-4:45pm as part of their religious ed class and will cover Chapter 3.

7th grade program will meet on October 25, 2026 at 3:30pm-4:45pm at the auditorium for the Confirmation Parent & child Meeting.

Information about RE 26-27

Make a Tuition Payment

Amoris Laetitia and Parent Meetings

As was discussed in the parent meeting on Sunday, September 27, there is a special meeting happening in the Church next week led by Pope Leo XIV. The meeting is on the document "Amoris Laetitia" which I encourage you to read. The document is available to read online.

Part of the excitement for us at Saint Andrew is that I personally know one of the participants who will be in the meetings and she has asked me a series of questions to ask you... What message do you want sent to the pope? What is challenging about raising children and sharing faith with them? Does Amoris Laetitia bring encouragement or discouragement? How has the Church accompanied you in your marriage and what should it do differently?

If you have any response to these questions, you can still submit them to me at david@standrew.org and I will pass them along to be shared at the meeting. Please email those responses by Saturday, October 3.

Beyond the excitement of offering your input to my friend, there is the matter of participation and receiving your parent packets to do chapters 2, 3, & 4 at home from October 19 - November 15.

Here is the guidance for parents:

1) If you attended on September 27 and have your packets, you are NOT REQUIRED to attend the next meeting on October 18 although you are invited to do so. We will be following up from the Pope's meeting on Amoris Laetitia and discussing more about the role of the church on family and relationships

2) If you did not attend on September 27, then you have two options:

a) Attend the parent meeting on Sunday, October 18 at 10:05 am and at the meeting pick up your child's packets or
b) Complete your parent preparation through the prepared webinar which goes over Unit 1. You can find the webinar here.

Let me know if you have any questions. By all standards, it is exciting to be involved with this portion of the Church's work on families and relationships and to hear what the Pope has to say.