DYER – During a meeting on Dec. 9, members of the Halo Ladies met at St. Joseph to gather in fellowship and celebrate the Christmas season. A special blessing by pastor Father Leo Gajardo, a dinner and the sharing of holiday greetings were all part of the evening's festivities.
As the women arrived, they signed Christmas cards that would later be handed out to residents at a nearby nursing home. After spending some time catching up with one another and gathering a plate of food, they settled in to watch the film “30 Minutes B.C: A Nativity Play.” The short movie by G.K. Chesterton Entertainment explores the hardships the Holy Family endured before the birth of Jesus.
After the film, the women engaged in conversation, discussing what it was like for Mary and Joseph to be alive at that time, knowing they would become the parents of the Son of God. Before the evening ended, they took time to go over a few agenda items that included a bake sale scheduled for Dec. 13-14 and Christmas decorating on Dec. 20.
Since the COVID pandemic, the Halo Ladies have taken charge of the annual parish Christmas bake sale. The women supply the fundraiser with homemade baked goods, and others volunteer to staff the tables after each Mass during the weekend. A few gift baskets are also made available.
Emily Reichelt, a longtime parishioner at St. Joseph, made six batches of toffee and planned to bake a batch of cookies as well.
“They are all packaged up in my tray and ready to go,” she said.
Dorothy Piscitelli, one of the founding members, explained that the bake sale creates a nice fellowship between the parishioners as they get to come to get baked goods before Christmas. She noted the fundraiser has been very successful for the last three years.
Piscitelli stated the women’s group doesn't give any money away, nor does it collect dues. The bake sale supports its operational costs, and members are always welcome to offer suggestions for group activities. The funds pay for guest speakers, snacks at meetings, flowers for the May Crowning ceremony and support several trips.
The Saturday before Good Friday, the parish organizes a walk through the Stations of the Cross at the Shrine of Christ’s Passion in St. John, which sees about 75 church members participate, and the Halo Ladies pay for the club cars for those who are not able to walk the trail. Last year, members also attended a women's conference in Brookfield, Wis. The trip included an overnight stay and a visit to the St. Joan of Arc Chapel at Marquette University in Milwaukee.
“Anybody can join the group,” Piscitelli said. “You don't have to be part of our parish. Now that we're sort of merging with St. Maria Goretti, we've gotten quite a few new ladies.”
Melanie Gernauskas started attending the Halo Ladies events within the last three months. She was pleased to find she already knew several others who were part of the ministry, and continued to enjoy the camaraderie.
“I like just listening to women my own age talk about religion and what is going on with them and in the world,” Gernauskas said.
Piscitelli described the group as a fellowship of women who wish to grow in faith through Christ. At every gathering, they try to include a “did you know,” hoping to share information about the faith that perhaps not everyone knows. In addition, the group always opens and closes each gathering with a prayer.
The Halo Ladies meet September through May, on the second Tuesday of the month from 6:30-8 p.m. Each meeting includes a presentation and discussion on a different faith topic. Father Leo recently spoke to the women about the reasons why people choose not to attend Mass. Next month, Greg Alexander is going to talk about the sacramentals and the power that God gives people through them. Father Declan McNicholas is also scheduled to discuss evangelization in the near future.
Meetings are held strictly to an hour and a half so as not to be too impactful on anyone’s time, and easy on some of the senior members. The group also tries to assist those who may need a ride to the meetings. Piscitelli said the meeting has really helped to grow the community of the parish.
“One of the ladies said, when we do the sign of peace at Mass, it takes her so long, because now she knows the people that she's been going to church with, whereas before she never knew their names,” she said.
Piscitelli arrived in Schererville prior to living in Chicago. After attending St. Joseph for a while, she was asked to start a women’s ministry at the parish. She decided to talk to a few other women whom she saw at Mass, and asked them if they would be interested in helping her begin the ministry.
“The first thing we did was hand out cards to all the ladies and asked them what they wanted in their ministry, and what they thought they would like to do,” Piscitelli said. “We gathered all the cards, and then, in the next meeting, we went through all the cards, and that's how we came up with our mission statement.”
She added that the women were hungry for something to become involved with following the COVID pandemic.
Piscitelli does keep a contact list. She recalls the group started with about 12 or 15 people in attendance, which had grown to about 72, with approximately 30 to 40 regularly coming to the meetings.
“I keep a spreadsheet of attendance, and if somebody isn't there, I'll call,” she said. “I'll reach out to them and find out if they're okay, if there is anything we can do for them.”
“We're supposed to be a family through Christ,” she said. “You go to church with these people, you spend hours of your life with these people, and most of the time you don't even know their names. We should know everyone's name, and we should be there for each other. That's what the ministry is about.”
The Halo Ladies meet in the parish Gathering Room from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 13. For more information, contact the parish office or email Piscitelli at dorpisc@gmail.com.
