History of Divine Mercy Project
How it got started:
By celebrating the Feast of Divine Mercy and reading about it from St. Faustina, several parishioners realizing just how great this gift of His Divine Mercy really is, not just to each of us but to all mankind. At the same time, our Bishop taught us to be good disciples and stewards and spread the word about the Good News. Pictures of Divine Mercy were already displayed in our churches, but these parishioners decided it was time to do more than that. So, with the support of our pastor, Fr. Maurice Yonta and our Pastoral Councils, a joint “Divine Mercy Committee” was established.
The Committee’s first initiative was to educate and share the good news of His Divine Mercy with our parishioners. So, we purchased “Divine Mercy Novena and Chaplet” pamphlets from Marion Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M. in Stockbridge, MA, and placed the pamphlets in the pews and the back of church and encouraged people to take them, read them and start saying the Divine Mercy Chaplet. (The cost of these pamphlets was donated by members of the committee.) We also decided to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet before Masses during Lent.
The Committee also decided to put a “Divine Mercy Corner” in the bulletin whereby quotes or information relative to Divine Mercy would be inserted each week, especially using the Diary of St. Faustina as a source.
Expanding outside our churches:
In order to share this good news outside our church and beyond our parishioners, we decided to have yard signs made (18 in x 24 in) and encouraged parishioners to take one and place it in their yard. Permission to use the Divine Mercy image was obtained from the Marions Father (and was so noted on the bottom of the sign). The office of “Properties, Buildings and Cemeteries” at the diocese was also contacted to approve this project. The yard signs were made up by SVS Graphics in Petersburg at a cost of $8 per sign. The signs were free to the parishioners, but most of the cost was covered through free will donations, while any small remaining cost was covered by the parish. It was interesting to note that some “non-parishioners” saw the signs and asked if they could get one for their yard.
Expanding to our community:
With the words of our Lord, “go out to all the nations and tell the Good News”, we decided to expand this project throughout Menard County. To do this, we decided to make large signs (4 ft. x 8 ft.) and place them along well traveled roads, with solar lighting so they can be seen at night also. The signs consisted of treated wood framing around treated plywood, then a vinyl banner (with the DM image) placed on the plywood. Again, permission to use the image was obtained from the Marion Fathers and the banners were made by SVS Graphics.
The material cost of the framing was about $160-$180 (depending upon the size) and the cost of each banner was $120/banner for a total material cost of $400 for a sign with a banner on both sides. The cost of a sign was primarily covered by donations, some of which came from the landowners themselves. The sign that was placed on the Holy Family Church property was donated by parishioners. The labor to make the sign frames as well as installing the signs was donated by parishioners.
Landowners, some parishioners and some not, were contacted to ask if a sign could be placed on their property. If they said yes, we then worked with Joe Crowe at the Menard County Zoning Commission to assure we meet regulations and got the appropriate approvals and paperwork. Once approved, we contacted “JULIE” before digging and installing a sign.
By the end of August 2024, we will have place 9 signs in the following locations primarily in the Menard County area:
– On Holy Family Church grounds in Athens.
– Along Clemens Road on the west side of Athens community.
– Along South Athens Blacktop just outside of Athens.
– Along Rt 29 just east of Athens.
– Along Athens Blacktop by the Sangamon River.
– Calvary Cemetery in Petersburg.
– Curtis Blacktop -1/4 mile North of Jellystone Ave.
– Along Rt 123 on East side of Petersburg.
– Tice Road and Sunny Acres intersection close to the Tice watertower.
As a side note, we are starting to see results as evidenced by a few comments we have received:
“Whoever put the Jesus sign on Jackson Street, the kids loved it” (On Facebook)
“Every time I drive by the Divine Mercy sign I take a deep breath and say to myself, “I can get through this””. (From a parishioner)
“When I drive by the Divine Mercy sign, it gives me peace and hope”. (From a parishioner)
What’s Next?
The Divine Mercy Committee feels we are not done spreading the good news and that we need to expand beyond the county. So, we are looking at the possibilities of even busier roadways such as I-55 and I-72, and surrounding churches or communities.
As a final note, the Committee is extremely grateful to Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, our pastor Father Maurice Yonta, SAC, currently Fr. Varghese Puthussery, SAC, our Pastoral Council and Finance Council and parishioners for all their support.
Divine Mercy Committee at Holy Family and St. Peter Churches are Deacon Ben Hoefler and Leona Hoefler, Carol and Chuck Muller, Ken and Kay Tasset, and Tom and Debbie Walsh. If you can make a donation or would like more information, please call the Parish Office at 217.632.7118.
