Hi Faith Formation Families!

The overall consensus with many families, the staff, and the catechists is that we miss in-person classes! But, the reality is that we are not able to meet many of the proposed guidelines outlined by the CDC to keep everyone safe. With that in mind, thank you to all of the families that took the time to fill out the survey letting me know what you wanted next year. By a margin of almost 5 to 1, families indicated they would prefer an online curriculum with nothing to pick up or turn in. So, I went looking for a good solution for us and I found it with My Catholic Faith Delivered! HOWEVER, for those families that were experiencing screen fatigue or that indicated their children learned best with a textbook, we have a plan to accommodate you too!

We will continue to offer monthly talks from our priest, deacons, and lay leaders. Each month will have a faith theme and I will record these talks for families to watch together. They will be posted online for easy access. These family sessions will form the backbone of our program and could allow for future in-person meetings if and when we feel comfortable holding large gatherings again. 

In addition to monthly talks, students will use a curriculum called Faith and Life published by Ignatius Press. They will have the choice of getting this curriculum delivered as a textbook/workbook combo or as an online class. If you choose the textbook/workbook you will be required to turn in work periodically. If you choose the online class, everything will be completed online and there will be nothing to turn in.

*EDGE students (Gr 7-8)... your core team and I are working on something a little special to add to the above to keep your awesome community together! We will have more info in the fall on just what that will look like.

High School:

As for high school, you too now have a choice to make. Students are welcome (and encouraged) to register for YDisciple and journey with a small discipleship group or they too will have an option for an online class!

Students that choose YDisciple will begin by meeting via Zoom but as restrictions are lifted, it will be up to the discretion of the students, parents, and mentors as to whether they will add small group gatherings and other activities.

Students that choose the online program will complete one online lesson per week, including a quiz, but the work can be done ANYWHERE, ANY TIME on ANY DEVICE.

Sacraments:

1st Eucharist 2020 has been scheduled! We are offering two dates: 6/27 OR 9/12. So far it is split pretty evenly between the two options (check your email for the separate Flocknote).

For next year, we will be changing the timing of our sacraments (slightly). We are moving 1st Eucharist back to 2nd grade. So, 2nd-grade students will study for 1st Reconciliation during the first half of the year and will study for 1st Eucharist during the 2nd half of the year. This also means that we will have a double 1st Eucharist class next Spring with both 2nd and 3rd graders receiving the Sacrament of Eucharist at the same time. This change is being made solely because that's how it is presented in the curriculum and we didn't see any good reason to force them to wait another full year after the material was presented. And, I was reminded that this is how they did it several years ago, so we are just returning to that tradition.

Confirmation 2020 is on track with no changes to the dates in the red folder. The only unknown is if the classes will be in person or over Zoom. We will make that decision as we get closer. We have a tentative Confirmation date of November 8th and it's looking like Fr. Gene may be the Celebrant!!

Fees:

We know that times are tough for many families so I have taken the time to go through the budget and streamline or eliminate many of our usual expenses so that we can offer faith formation to everyone for $50 per class. And, we have waived the fees for all of our Sacramental Prep classes. Additionally, we have a limited number of scholarships available for families that need extra help during this difficult time. We do not want any child to miss out on faith formation due to financial hardship! No student will ever be turned away.

If you need a little more information on any of these options, please check out our website:

Stay safe and healthy. Enjoy your summer and see you all in the fall!

Peace,

Melissa Weisenburg