New ministry at St. Patrick – In God’s Image Special Needs Ministry
This ministry team along with our clergy is dedicated to care for those with special needs and disabilities. The ministry will work to ensure that people with special needs and disabilities of all ages are fully included in all aspects of church life. Our goal is to help cultivate relationships and belonging within our St. Patrick Community, promote a culture of inclusion where we celebrate diversity and highlight the value of every person in the church body. We hope to accomplish this by engaging the congregation on disability awareness and adapting existing ministries in our faith formation and sacramental preparation programs. In God’s Image Special Needs Ministry seeks to elevate, grow, and adjust as needed as we celebrate as a community. We hope that by sharing success stories of impact, we can inspire further growth.
Over the last several years, St. Patrick Faith Formation program has been providing sacrament prep for those children with special needs. A growing awareness of the struggles our families are facing is prompting the need to begin this ministry. We are blessed to already have a ministry team eager to serve those now and committed to grow the ministry that will serve those who will come in the future.
We have been blessed to be invited to participate in the Community of Disciples Initiative of the Diocese of Dallas. This is the initiative that is the reason for the recent grant that was recently awarded to the Diocese of Dallas from the Lilly Endowment and is designed to help children with disabilities and their families deepen their faith and relationship with Christ through Eucharistic worship and community participation. St Patrick will be a part of the first Cohort (which will be made up of 5 parishes in Dallas). It is a very exciting time for St. Patrick and be a part of this groundbreaking new journey in the City of Dallas for disability awareness.
For any questions please contact Amy Vitek, Director of Evangelization, amy@spccdallas.org or 214-348-7380
