Serve the Community

At Ascension and St. Edmund Parish there are many ways to serve the community, whether that be serving our own parish community or the broader Oak Park and Chicago-metropolitan area.

 

Serving one another within our parish community is a cornerstone of parish life. Service to one another is witnessed every Sunday when parishioners serve in a liturgical ministry, such as Greeters, Ushers, Lectors and Liturgical Ministers. Explore our liturgical ministries to learn about the many ways you may join us in serving one another at Mass. Through sung prayer, over 100 adult parishioners gather on Sundays to serve fellow parishioners as a member of one of our adult choirs. Children also have the opportunity to offer their service in Choristers. The beautiful music offer each Sunday by our choirs is a hallmark of our parish. Learn more about how you can participate and serve the parish through our music ministry. 

 

Serving our children is an important aspect of parish life. A beautiful way to serve the children of our parish is by getting involved in our school or as a catechist or catechist aid in our religious education program. We also invite adults to serve our children by volunteering for the monthly Sunday 10:30 AM Children's Liturgy of the Word.

 

In addition, Ascension and St. Edmund Parish relies on community members to minister to fellow parishioners, providing comfort and solace in times of transition, illness, hardship or loss. Opportunities to minister to others are available as a Minister of Care, an Angel Cook, or participant in our Prayer Shawl Ministry. We invite you to explore our Minister to Others web page to learn more.

 

Parish fellowship groups further our mission to serving one another and the greater community. Ascension Women's Cooperative provides programs for women and families, the Knights of Columbus bring parishioners together for social, service, and prayer opportunities, and Parents of Little Ones (POLO) serves our families with young children. Multiple parish committees gather throughout the year to address topics ranging from domestic violence to maintenance. 

 

Ascension and St. Edmund Parish has long been considered a community of people that seeks through action and organizing to better our community and beyond. Peace and Justice initiatives at Ascension cover a breadth of issues including hunger and homelessness, the environment, immigration, and violence prevention. 

 

Parish teens continue a long-standing tradition of serving people in Appalachia through an annual summer service trip. Not only do they travel to Appalachia in the summer of each year, but they perform service projects around Chicago as part of their formation.

 

Explore our website, specifically Serve and Gather on our main menu, to learn the many ways to serve our parish and broader community.