Daprato Rigali Studios of Chicago has been selected to repair the Prodigal Son window that was broken during a break in at the church in December. The company has done many repairs of this nature around the archdiocese, and they have removed the window for repair.

The National Catholic Society of Foresters, a member-based fraternal organization established in 1891 at Holy Family, provided the parish with a very generous Christmas gift of $7,000. This gift will be used to support the food pantry, parish projects, and for emergencies. The National Catholic Society of Foresters helps its members secure their future by making available life insurance products and retirement products along with valuable member benefits that support the growth of strong communities. For more information on the Society, click the title link above.

The Food Pantry ministry once again did amazing work before Christmas. The number of families in need continues to be large, but thanks to our dedicated food pantry volunteers, items for the Christmas table were distributed to people from the neighborhood with a special Christmas wish. This year, 1,600 chickens were given out to families to help round out the Christmas meal. Thanks again to all our wonderful volunteers for their dedication not only during Christmas, but during the entire year.

This year's Children's Christmas Party was attended by over 300 neighborhood and parish children. The children all had a wonderful time, and the room was filled with smiles. Thanks to the kindness of the parishioners at our sharing parish, St. Raymond de Penafort in Mount Prospect, and the organizers of the Kandy Kane Ball, all children left with a Christmas gift and many wonderful memories.

On December 16, 2017, the 15th Annual Kandy Kane Ball was held at Joe's on Weed. The Kandy Kane Ball provides toys for Chicago children in need. This year, the goal was to raise 2,500 toys to distribute during the Christmas season. This year's ball was a huge hit and was attended by Fr. Mike and several parishioners.

We have just received good news - our insurance company will pay for the window repair.  However, the parish will be responsible for paying a deductible of $5,000.  Several news stories about the window have generated an outpouring of generosity from our friends and supporters.  A YouCaring page was established and has raised a total of $3,795.  We have also received other donations from around the country that will be applied to the deductible.  With these funds in place, we have deactivated our YouCaring page, and will use any donations received that are in excess of the $5,000 deductible toward the repair of the wooden window frame. We thank all friends of Holy Family for their generous support.  The outpouring of love and kindness has been overwhelming and greatly appreciated.