Swedish NorthShore Hospital & Heart to heart events

Swedish NorthShore Hospital and our Heart to Heart Ministry Center’s staff are sponsoring a vaccine drive on Saturday, October 3 from 11:00 am-2:00 pm, with both Pfizer and Johnson &Johnson vaccines administered by medical professionals from Swedish Hospital in the Ministry Center courtyard. You must register for the vaccine event at https://events.juvare.com/IL-IDPH/qqvjg-545/.

Please call Jane Callahan-Moore Monday-Friday from 10:00 am-5:00 pm on her cell phone at 773.595.9992 or at the Ministry Center at 773.973-5464 if you have questions. 

Featured below is an update from our busy Heart to Heart Ministry and our very active Lending Closet:The Lending Closet loans durable medical equipment such as shower chairs/stools; tub transfer benches; bedside commodes and toilet seat risers; knee scooters; rollators, wheelchairs, and transport chairs; walkers; canes; bed trays and “grabbers”. These loans are free of charge and can be used for as long as they are needed.

August’s Durable Medical Equipment Lending Closet saw activity from Edgewater to Alsip, as we are the only known free Lending Closet in the City of Chicago. Last month, we dispensed 33 pieces of equipment and six large boxes of incontinence supplies such as Depends and bed pads. We served individuals, medical institutions, and insurance companies from zip codes 60660, 60640, 60641, 60645, 60622, 60625, 60610, and 60601. Inquiries and requests were fielded from medical social workers, caseworkers, registered nurses, and other healthcare professionals (including a pediatric social worker from Journeycare Hospice). Thank you to the twelve individuals/families who donated equipment their loved ones no longer needed, as well as unopened incontinence products and/or other medical supplies such as a blood pressure cuff, an oximeter, etc.

The Center for Disability and Elder Law (CDEL) provides free legal services to low-income seniors and persons with disabilities. Attorneys from CDEL will host a workshop at St. Gertrude on Friday, September 17. They will assist participating parishioners with creating Powers of Attorney, Living Wills, and Wills. Please call 312.376.1882 to schedule services and be sure to mention your interest in an in-person appointment at St. Gertrude Parish. 

If you need to contact us, please contact Laurie Hasbrook, our Lending Closet Manager, at the Ministry Center on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 am-2:00 pm at 773.973.5464 or lhasbrook@stgertrudechicago.org. Or you can call Jane Callahan-Moore, our Heart to Heart Director at 773.595.9992 during the hours of 9:00 am-5:00 pm, Monday through Friday. 

 Fr. Bradley will NOT run another marathon. Last weekend, Fr. Bradley hurt his back and was in some serious distress for a few days. His doctors have helped him get back to feeling good, but prudence leans in the direction of caution. It doesn’t seem wise to pursue the next month of training for the marathon while his back is still healing from whatever happened to it. So, no marathon for him this year! 

If you would still like to make a contribution to the parish Heart to Heart Ministry, donations are always welcome. And please say a prayer for Fr. Mike’s continued healing and good health! 

Per the new recommendations of the CDC, please wear masks when at Mass, stopping by the Rectory office, or when visiting other indoor Archdiocese spaces. This is required of both vaccinated and unvaccinated visitors.

Click here to read the July 30, 2021 communication from the Archdiocese.

St. Gertrude's Heart to Heart Ministry is looking for wheelchairs to loan to those who need them. Currently, there are none to share. 

Contact Laurie Hasbrook at the Heart to Heart office at 773.973.5464 on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm or call Jane Callahan-Moore at 773.595-9992 Monday through Friday between the hours of 10:00 am and 5:00 pm. 

Did you know that there is a special and valued ministry that needs participants, particularly our homebound and physically-restricted parishioners? There are no meetings or dues required, yet the members have a valued connection to parish life by enriching others and themselves through their own dedicated, daily prayer time!   

It works like this—we provide our committed participants with a prayer book and a monthly guide sheet reflecting some of the prayer requests taken from St. Gertrude Church’s Prayer Wall. Our prayer angels become an unseen blessing for so many! We welcome anyone’s interest in this caring ministry. Call Jane 

Callahan-Moore at 773.973.5464 for more information.