The festival had all kinds of food, games, and entertainment!
On Saturday, St. Patrick Parish in Kankakee, IL, held its Parish Festival, gathering parishioners and neighbors for a day of fun and fellowship around the church grounds.
“We had a wonderful number of volunteers helping us to set up the grounds, cook and serve the food, sell tickets, run the games, and organize parking,” Pastor Bishop Christopher Glancy, CSV, said. “It was also a great joy to see so many of our parishioners, their families, and our neighbors enjoying themselves with music and family-friendly fun.”
Bishop Chris settled in for a precarious shift in the dunk tank.
Parishioners Teri Worth and Bob Bond led the committee, and Mike Spilsbury led setup and takedown. Associates Michelle and Ken Barrie, who direct youth ministry, coordinated their teens in leading games in the kids’ tent and fun in bounce-houses.
Two rounds of live music entertained the crowds. First, a garage band comprised of Kankakee County Judge Bill Dickerson and a few retired educators played a set. Later, music ministers from the weekly Sunday afternoon Spanish-language Mass at St. Patrick performed, too.
The festival also had bingo games, a cake walk, lots of food, and even a dunk tank, with Bishop Chris taking a shift as the sitting duck.
Michelle (left) and Ken (right) were out leading kids’ games with their youth ministry teens.
With rainy forecasts and rising temperatures, the parish was hoping for nice weather in town for the festival – but with plenty of rain for their farmers, too. “I give thanks to God for giving us such a beautiful day for our celebration,” Bishop Chris said. “I also want to thank everyone who gave their time, talent, and treasure to make our festival a great success.”
As Viatorians continue to raise communities of faith, this focus on both cultivating belief as well as belonging helps strengthen our parishes and the discipleship of our parishioners. “I hope that the great success of this year’s festival will help us to continue a tradition of events that gather our parish for celebration and enjoyment,” Bishop Chris said. “Let us build a community of faith with a mission to proclaim Christ in all that we do.”
Thanks to parishioner and festival committee member Julie Anderson-Roy for her photos!
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Nice form, Bishop Chris!