We provide pastoral care for our members that ranges from rides and meal preparation to delivery of prayer blankets and cards. Our Rector and trained members of the parish provide pastoral and Eucharistic visits for our parishioners and family members living in assisted living or nursing homes, as well as those in hospitals.
Our senior high youth group regularly prepare meals for shut-ins within the parish. Parishioners may also use those meals for friends and neighbors in need.
The Altar Guild prepares for the sacred worship at each liturgical celebration by coordinating the linens and implements used at the altar. Membership is open to any member of the congregation. Members are divided into four teams each serving one week of every month. Teams prepare the linens and vessels used for all liturgical services at the altar, coordinate banners and hangings for each liturgical season, display flower arrangements, and provide continuing care for vestments and linens.
Meetings are held throughout the year to discuss and plan for liturgical celebrations. These meetings are an opportunity for status reports on supplies, condition of linens, vestments and altar implements as well as discussion of potential future purchases. Altar Guild depends for its funding on thanksgiving and memorial gifts given by members of the congregation.
To donate for flower memorials on a specific Sunday, parishioners may use the memorial chart hanging in the entry hall. Suggested gifts of $40 can be submitted by using envelopes in the pews. Special envelopes specifically for the Christmas and Easter seasons are available at those times. Although it is generally known as the “flower” fund, the contributions must also maintain the supply of wine and wafers, linens, candles, and vestments. Major purchases of new vestments, altar frontals, and banners are generally made through memorial donations. A wish list of items that could enhance the collection is available from the guild.
The Order of the Daughters of the King is a lay order of Christian women, founded in 1885 by Margaret J. Franklin at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Sepulchre in New York City. Transfiguration has its own chapter, St. Monica’s, of this international sisterhood. Daughters follow a Rule of Life, which commits them to a ministry of prayer, service, and evangelism.
Although we gather for fellowship and encouragement, Daughters of the King is not a club. DOK empowers women to reaffirm their baptismal vows and explore their spiritual gifts for the glory of God and the spread of Christ’s kingdom. Lifting up our community of faith in prayer helps us to know and love each other. St. Monica’s Chapter meets regularly during the program year for reflection, prayer, and at least one group service project, finishing with a luncheon co-hosted by the Altar Guild and a more informal potluck dinner. The Diocesan, Regional, and National branches of DOK offer opportunities for quiet days, retreats, and a triennial convention. Interested women are invited to attend scheduled meetings.
Our music ministry includes both Sunday services and special events. Our choir loft instruments consist of a one manual, eight rank Roederer tracker pipe organ, a three octave set of chimes, a piano and a keyboard. Transfiguration can boast of owning a very large music library from which to draw upon. Any combination of organ, piano, chimes or guitar is often presented. Under the leadership of our interim Music Director, a small but dedicated group of adult singers perform at the 10 am service. Additionally, there has also been an emphasis on outreach to the community using music as the medium with programs including: Christmas concerts, choral groups, ragtime piano artists, Spanish guitar and mandolins.
The Children & Youth Ministry Committee (CYMC) at Transfiguration oversees our church school programs (preschool – Sr. high), Children’s Chapel, and Sunday morning nursery. The committee assists the rector with Solemn Communion and Confirmation and organizes “extra-curricular” inter-generational activities for the entire congregation. The CYMC is committed to serving the children and families of Transfiguration by providing opportunities for fun, fellowship, service, and learning on Sunday mornings but also outside of our regularly scheduled time together.
The committee plans the Back-to-Church-School Luncheon in the fall and the Annual Church Picnic at the start of summer. Movie nights, game nights, bowling outings, talent shows, and craft luncheons are just a few of the CYMC-sponsored activities that parishioners have enjoyed. Throughout the year, this committee also organizes several outreach projects; the most recent project being the “Give ‘Em a Break” gift card collection for our local service men and women and their families.
The Palos Park Episcopal Day Care Board is a committee of the Vestry. In addition to overseeing the business operation of the Palos Park Episcopal Day Care and Learning Center (DCLC), the Day Care Board works with the Rector and the DCLC Director to shape the vision and ministry direction of the DCLC. The Board recommends a budget for the Vestry’s approval, reviews and approves major operating initiatives and financial expenditures, and works to advance the mission and purposes of the DCLC within the congregation and the larger community.
Members are elected by the parish and will serve a three-year term beginning and ending at the Annual Parish Meeting on the last Sunday of January. At any one time, there are a total of nine members on the Board, including a representative of the Vestry. Meetings are held at the church for five months out of the year on the fourth Tuesday of that month. Additional meetings may be scheduled as needed. Board members are also invited to attend the Palos Park Parade in the fall, the Annual Art Show in early spring and graduation in late spring.