Eucharist Minister

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (EMHC) assist the priest in distributing the Sacred Body and Blood of Christ at Mass. Their love for the Eucharist is reflected in their love for the members of the Body of Christ, the Church. The celebration of Mass as the action of Christ and the People of God is the center of the whole Christian life for the Church both universal and local, as well as for each of the faithful individually.

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion also take communion to the sick and home-bound, providing a link between all parishioners: those who attend Mass and those who are not able.

The requirements to be an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion are:

• Registered Member of St. Gabriel, St. Nicholas, or Prince of Peace.
• Fully initiated Roman Catholic (received Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist)
• At least 16 years old.
• If married, must be a validly married in the Catholic Church by a Priest or Deacon.
• Participating Catholic (attends Mass every Sunday and make regular confession).
• Attend required trainings as scheduled.

For more information about the EMHC ministry please contact the parish office at 360-876-2762, or email Mark McKibben, Director of Liturgy for Parish Family 52 at markmck@stnicholascc.org .

Your information will be given to the EMHC Coordinator, who will contact you and set up a training date.

Lectors

“The reader has his own proper function in the Eucharistic celebration and should exercise this even though ministers of a higher rank may be present” The ministry of reader, conferred through a liturgical rite must be held in respect”. (General Principles for the Liturgical Celebration of the Word of God, 51) “It is necessary for those who exercise the ministry of reader, even though they have not received are not institution be truly qualified and carefully prepared, so that the faithful may develop a love for Sacred Scripture from listening to the sacred readings. “The technical preparation should make the readers more skilled in the art of reading publicly, either with the power of their own voice or with the help of sound equipment. (General Principles for the Liturgical Celebration of the Word of God, 55). 

The requirements to be a Lector are:

Registered Member of St. Gabriel, St. Nicholas, or Prince of Peace.

Fully initiated Roman Catholic (received Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist)

At least 16 years old.

If married, must be a validly married in the Catholic Church by a Priest or Deacon.

Participating Catholic (attends Mass every Sunday and make regular confession).

Attend required trainings as scheduled.

For more information about the lector ministry please contact the parish office at 360-876-2762, or email Mark McKibben, Director of Liturgy for Parish Family 52 at markmck@stnicholascc.org .

Your information will be given to the Lector Coordinator, who will contact you and set up a training date.

Altar Servers

Being an Altar Server is not a requirement of every young person in the parish when they reach a certain grade, nor should it be the requirement of a family member. Altar Servers like all ministers serve God and their parish from the heart. It is something they want to do. Altar Serving is a commitment of both the server and his or her parents.

Altar Servers assist the priest with various roles throughout the mass. They are visible to the

entire assembly. Altar Servers should never be the center of attention or a distraction during any mass or rite of the church.

Requirements:

Registered Member in the Parish Family

Fully initiated Roman Catholic (Baptized and First Eucharist)

Altar Servers must be in at least the 4th grade or have prior permission. (We also encourage families to consider this ministry).

The Archdiocese of Seattle and St. Nicholas Parish allow both boys and girls to be altar servers. No distinction is made between boys and girls, so the term Altar Server is used for those assisting the Priest at the altar during the mass.

Participating Catholic (attends Mass every Sunday & makes regular Confession) with a prayerful devotion to the Liturgy and the Eucharist

For more information about the Altar Server ministry please contact the parish office at 360-876-2762, or email Mark McKibben, Director of Liturgy for Parish Family 52 at markmck@stnicholascc.org .

Your information will be given to the Altar Server Coordinator, who will contact you and set up a training date.

Prepares (Provides pregnancy and parenting support)

• PREPARES is a statewide initiative of the Catholic Bishops of Washington State. We provide pregnancy and parenting support and activities through Catholic parishes across Washington State, serving all families from pregnancy to their child's fifth birthday. All are welcome to participate in the free support that PREPARES provides.
• PREPARES supports the commitment to the sanctity of human life, especially in its most vulnerable early stages. It seeks not only to assure healthy births and avoid the tragedy of abortion, but also to provide emotional support to nurture healthy and flourishing relationships that uphold the vision of the family as the essential unit of society.
• PREPARES works with parishes to develop support for pregnant women and families and vary based on the parish. Please see our PREPARES ministry locator to find available support in your area. You do not need to be Catholic to receive anything through PREPARES. All are welcome.
• The Catholic bishops of Washington State enthusiastically created and launched the PREPARES initiative at the Cornerstone Conference in 2014. The first of its kind in the United States, PREPARES creates the capacity within Catholic parishes, other faith communities, and collaborating agencies across Washington State to assist pregnant mothers, fathers, and their families by walking with them on the journey from pregnancy to their child’s fifth birthday.
• Statewide PREPARES is provided and coordinated through Catholic Charities of Spokane, Catholic Charities Serving Central Washington, and Catholic Community Services of Western Washington. Statewide through each of these agencies, the Catholic Church has provided a centry of life-affirming proffessional supportive services for infant children and their mothers and families including prenatal care, counseling, adoption services, and housing and medical care referrals.
• PREPARES is now able to provide our PREPARES Orientation online! Our orientation is a three-part introduction to PREPARES and will offer you an in-depth overview of PREPARES, ways to volunteer, and how to get PREPARES started in your community. If you find yourself interested in volunteering with PREPARES call or email the Parish Office.

• The Boutique will be open every Monday morning from 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM, except on National Holidays when the church is closed. 
  
• The Boutique is located downstairs in the education wing of St Gabriel Church.
  
• The Boutique will offer free gently used clothing sizes birth to five years!
  
• We also offer many other new items that are helpful to parenting; diapers, wipes, bottles, sippy cups.
• Please come benefit from our services!

Can you Help the Ministry of PREPARES? Consider a donation of one of following: 

• Toddler bed and mattress
• baby shampoo
• Diaper Ointment
• Larger children clothing sizes (2-6, boys and girls), and 

Dire Needs

• Sippy Cups
• Baby Bottles
• Diapers (Diapers sizes New Born & #4.)

St Gabriel PREPARES Baby Boutique serves families and children in the greater Port Orchard region. 

Thank you for all of your most generous donations!

PREPARES Mission Statement: sponsored by the Catholic Bishops of Washington State and open to all people, provides services to pregnant mothers, fathers, and their families by walking the journey from pregnancy to the child's fifth birthday. 

FAMILY COMPANIONS
Have the opportunity for you and your family to be connected with a trained Family Companion volunteer or team that is there to support you during your time of parenthood.

PARENT GROUPS
Some communities statewide offer parent groups that come together on a consistent basis for an evening of fellowship, discussion, and support.

PREPARES BAGS
PREPARES Bags are a gift from the Catholic church, assembled through donation, and distributed to families just like yours, offering support and comfort to your growing family.

PARENT/CHILD GROUPS
Join a group that is facilitate by a volunteer for parents and their children. Groups are offered on a regular basis to focus on fun activities with children and parenting support.

PREPARES EN ESPAÑOL
In some areas, PREPARES also offers support and activities in Spanish! Check out our PREPARES locator below for the closet PREPARES en Espanol.

... AND MORE!
PREPARES continues to grow based on the many talents of our volunteers and hopes to support your family in any way we can. Reach out to us today to see how we can help you and your family!

Homebound Ministry

Route (Communion to The Home Bound) Ministry 
Canon Law and the Lay Minister of Holy Communion

Ideally, Catholics should approach the Eucharist during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Nevertheless, it is not always possible for Christ’s faithful to do so without grave inconvenience. In the case of sickness, this grave inconvenience may be physical or it may be moral. If the sickness deprives the individual of all his energy and thus he lacks the strength to get out of bed, then the grave inconvenience is physical. If the person is able to get out of bed and move around, but his illness is a highly contagious disease, then the grave inconvenience is moral in that he ought not risk the health of the general public.

Regardless of whether the illness causes moral or physical impossibility, the Church is still obliged, insofar as it is possible, to meet the spiritual needs of her faithful. From these needs arise the Church’s ancient pastoral practice of visiting the sick. This practice includes taking the Eucharist to the elderly, the sick and the infirm. It involves sharing in prayer and the word of God during these visits. These eucharistic visits may take place in the home, at the hospital bed, or in any institution that provides basic care and day-to-day living arrangements to the elderly, the sick and the infirm.

A minister of Holy Communion typically encounters three types of situation when taking Communion to the sick:

1. The first is a regular visit to someone suffering from the effects of age, illness or infirmity.
2. The second concerns a visit to someone who is dying. In this situation, the Church refers to the Holy Eucharist as Viaticum. This last word means “food for the journey,” keeping in mind that death is a journey into the afterlife.
3. The third situation concerns a sick or dying child. A lay minister of Holy Communion should be aware of how to proceed in each situation.

Route Ministry at St. Gabriel Catholic Church

This fully rewarding ministry serves the home bound, the infirm, the residents of nursing homes, retirement centers, and the Retsil Veterans Home by taking the Eucharist to them on primarily on Sundays.

Requirements:

• Confirmed Roman Catholic
• Registered at St. Gabriel or Prince of Peace
• Background check and completed the Safe Environment Program Live Training
• Compassionate and respects the worth and dignity of the individual being served

Time requirements:

• Be available to pick up the Communion host after the 8 AM Mass.
• Committed to faithfully visit those on their Route for their scheduled month.
• Each Route is on a rotation Schedule with other Route Ministers.

Training

• Undergo training by an experienced Eucharistic Route Minister.
• Work with the Route Coordinator in understanding the needs and expectations of the Ministry.



For more information contact the Parish Office (360) 876-2762 / parishoffice@stgabepop.org

Rosary Makers

Even though our small but mighty group of Rosary Makers were unable to meet during this past year, we continued to make and send rosaries to those in need. 

This year a total of 5,304 rosaries were created. Because of the pandemic, many international locations would not accept packages this year. So many were sent to areas within the United States for bundling and forwarding to missions overseas, or distributed to prisons, hospitals or nursing homes in our country. 

We did send some directly to Rwanda, Zambia and Tanzania. Some of the bundled rosaries went to Kenya, Africa, Mexico, Canada, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and India. 

We received thank you notes from many of these missions and even received a video of a mission in Ghana distributing the rosaries. Despite the restrictions, there is more of a need for prayers than ever. 



Please continue to keep your rosary makers in your prayers that we can carry on this outreach ministry.

Would you like more information about this ministry? Contact Shirley Swenson at: shirl2@hcc.net