Letter from the Pastor

Last March 30, at the Easter Vigil – the first Mass of Easter – 16 men and women, including two children, became members of the Catholic Church. Some were new to Christianity and received Baptism and Confirmation. Others were baptized Christians of other denominations who felt called into the fullness of Truth in the Catholic Church and were confirmed. One was a member of an Eastern Orthodox church who made a Profession of Faith in the Catholic Church. All received Holy Communion for the first time as new Catholics. This joyful process and celebration culminated seven months of formation and education in the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults.

This process and celebration are at the heart of our mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ and to be His disciples. Our formation as disciples continues in the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit through the Church, particularly in St. James Parish. Our proclamation of the Truth, who is Jesus, and our reverent worship of God at the Church’s liturgy strengthen us by God’s grace and empower us to carry out His mission.

This annual report provides a snapshot of our parish, highlighting not only our financial position but also our spiritual health and vitality. Amid tremendous growth in our apostolates, formational and educational events, and works of mercy and love, God is raising up saints. Our dedicated clergy and staff are here to carry out these important works. I am grateful to them, and especially to all of you, the people of St. James.

Sacraments & Mass Attendance

Number of Baptisms

215

Number of First Communions

182

Number of Marriages

29

Number of Confirmations

150

Number of Funerals

59

Fiscal 2024 Average Mass Attendance

3,191

Percent Increase from Fiscal 2023 Average Mass Attendance

+20.01%

Percent Increase from Fiscal 2020 October Mass count

+16.41%

18% Increase In School Enrollment Over The Past Five Years

489 enrolled students in 2019-2020

vs.

576 enrolled students in 2024-2025

Misericordia Homes
Viator House of Hospitality
Little Sisters of the Poor
Family Forward
Knights of Columbus #4483
Sarah’s Circle
Connections to Care
Brewing Opportunities DBA Gerry’s Café
Kolbe House

Fiscal 24 Financial Update

Actuals

St. James School

St. James School is thriving with enrollment growth, new programs, and exciting updates for the upcoming school years. We’re committed to making St. James the best Catholic school possible, nurturing children in faith and intellect.

SJS has added 100 students since 2019. With a current enrollment of 576 students for the 2024-25 school year, we’ve achieved an 18% growth over the past five years. 85% of students are at or above grade level in reading, 83% in math, with growth metrics at or over 100%. Financially stable, we provided $180,000 in tuition assistance last year and committed $90,000 for this year. Safety has been enhanced with new systems, cameras, and more improvements projected working toward our 5-year plan.

Following the departure of Principal Mike Kendrick, we are pleased to announce the joint appointment of Mrs. Mary Brinkman and Ms. Kathleen McGinn, who will serve as interim co-principals for this school year. We look forward to continuing the growth and success of St. James School.

Mary Brinkman & Kathy McGinn –
St. James School Interim Principals

Religious Education and Youth Ministry

Our Children and Youth Formation team continues to explore new ways to encourage the youth of our parish to be disciples, growing in their personal relationships with Jesus and building authentic friendships and community with one another. This community not only invites others in but also encourages our youth to go out and share the Gospel. We are grateful for the Catechists and Core Teams who dedicate their time to accompany our children and teens in discipleship as they learn and rediscover who God is and who He created them to be. Here are some highlights from this past year:

Children’s Formation

Children’s Formation continues to grow at St. James. In addition to Tuesday night classes, children gather once a month for Joyful Noise, a pep rally filled with songs, games, and fun. Children’s Formation also offers families opportunities to come together through various events and sensory experiences, such as understanding the life of Jesus at his birth in One Holy Night and walking with Jesus by praying the Stations of the Cross.

This year, Children’s Formation held its largest First Holy Communion workshop for parents and children, launched a new ministry based on Catholic Social Teaching encouraging children to take action, and continued to bring families to the feet of Jesus at Encounter. The Children’s Formation Team is grateful for a fruitful year.

Youth Formation

EDGE and Life Teen continue to impact our parish by encouraging our youth and teens to dive deeper into their faith and grow in their relationship with Jesus. In preparation for Confirmation, our EDGE youth focused on the Ten Commandments, helping them understand God and the Church, and recognize how to live out their faith both during middle school and as lifelong Catholics.

Life Teen maintained their Sunday night formation activities. Core Team members gave talks throughout the year, teaching the faith through their own testimonies of God’s work in their lives. Similarly, teen leaders participated in a discipleship group throughout the year, were given opportunities to lead their peers in small groups, shared their conversion stories, and served as leaders on the EDGE retreat. This year, we added a retreat for our upperclassmen, focusing on Christ-like leadership, in addition to our fall retreat.

Our youth ministers continue to be in awe of the transformative work the Lord is doing in the hearts of our youth through EDGE and Life Teen.

Christina Hudson – Director of Youth Ministry

Bethany Larson – Coordinator of Religious Education

Liturgy and Music

This year has been marked by several notable achievements in our music ministry. We successfully developed our program further and introduced a new middle school choir, Celestial Voices, which now performs monthly at our 8:30 am Mass. Our Bach and Vivaldi Concert was a major success, attracting more people to our church to experience beautiful music in a sacred space. Our incredible volunteers have gone above and beyond, dedicating their time and talents to liturgies, concerts, Holy Week, and more. Their efforts bring glory to God and inspire our community with their music.

Looking ahead to the coming year, we plan to host more concerts and expand our music into different mediums like Spotify and Apple Music. We aim to continue improving our sound, growing our choirs, and enhancing the reverence of our liturgies through the music we provide.

I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all our music ministers for their time and talent. We are truly blessed with an abundance of freely given talent. We hope to create more opportunities for volunteers to join our community and participate in our regular choirs.

Tamaron Conseur – Director of Music & Liturgy

Parish Operations

Our parish has experienced significant growth and achievements over the past year. Enrollment in the school, RE, EDGE, and Life Teen has surpassed pre-lockdown numbers, thanks to the dedication of our staff, volunteer catechists, and Core Team members. Mass attendance has also exceeded levels last seen in the early 2000s. This success is attributed to our vibrant liturgies, including music, Altar Servers, MCs, Lectors, EMoHCs, Greeters, Ushers, Environment and Art teams, and homilists.

Several capital projects have been completed or are underway, funded by the generosity of our parishioners. These projects include a new classroom in the school, security upgrades in the church and school, limestone quoins at the old church, rectory exterior doors, repainting old church windows, re-sealing and striping the church lot, rectory lintels, and the church roof. Upcoming projects include new exterior windows in the old church (north elevation) and re-sealing/striping the school lot.

Additionally, parishioners have contributed their time and talent to landscaping and gardening efforts, including planters near the church and school, turf repair, and maintaining the prayer garden. Our parish staff is nearly at full capacity, supported by the financial contributions of our parishioners.

We are deeply grateful for the commitment and generosity of our parish community, which has made these achievements possible.

Deacon Matthew Hahn – Executive Director of Parish Operations

Parish Stewardship and Development

As we reflect on this past fiscal year, we are deeply grateful for the incredible generosity of our parishioners, sponsors, and dedicated staff. Your unwavering support has enabled St. James Parish to continue to flourish as a community. One of our key highlights was the 29th Annual Jubilation, which raised over $211,000 and attracted 225 attendees. Special thanks go to our co-chairs, Steve & Patti Denten and Matt & Christi Marcheschi, as well as the 18 night-of volunteers who made this event a resounding success. Through the funds raised at Jubilation, we were also able to make generous donations to numerous organizations dedicated to improving the lives of those in need. We are honored to partner with them in their missions. You can see the names of these supported community partners above the financial reports of this annual report.

Additionally, we launched the St. James School Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) in response to the discontinuation of the Empower IL scholarship program, ensuring that no student experiences a lapse in funding. We have raised over $180,000 for the TAP program.

Furthermore, our focused efforts on grant research and applications have been instrumental in securing new grants to support our initiatives. These achievements underscore the collective effort and generosity of our community, enabling us to make a significant positive impact.

We want to extend our heartfelt thanks for your generosity over the past year, your active involvement in our parish, and, above all, your prayers. It is abundantly clear that when we work together and give what we can, we make a lasting positive impact on the lives of others.

Julie Jacobson – Director of Stewardship and Development