Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish

Blessing of Prayer Shawls and Knitters at Mass on Sunday, November 10, 2024.

The Prayer Shawl Ministry at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish dates back to 2014. The mission of the ministry is to bring together people who have the compassion and love of knitting and crocheting, and combine it into a prayerful ministry and spiritual practice which reaches out to those in need of comfort and solace, as well as celebration and joy.

Prayer Shawl members knit and crochet in a group as well as in their homes, praying over the shawls and blankets as they create them. They are then blessed by our priest or deacon. Shawls are given to those individuals experiencing challenges in their lives, like chronic illness, surgery, death of a loved one, cancer treatments, etc. Shawls also can be offered in joyful times, like a baptism. The individual(s) are wrapped in the comfort and warmth of the prayer filled shawl as they face their challenges and/or joy. Prayer Pockets are available in the Church and Chapel vestibules to hold rosaries, holy cards, and other items. At each baptism a Blanket is presented as a tangible reminder that they are loved by God and loved by Our Lady of Perpetual in Help Parish .

In one year, the OLPH Prayer Shawl Ministry makes and distributes approximately 450 prayer pockets, 45 baby blankets and 25 shawls. They currently have 15 active members. It takes approximately five skeins of yarn and approximately 20 hours to stitch and complete one prayer shawl.

The Prayer Shawl ministry volunteers invite ALL members of OLPH to assist in this endeavor. They need Knitters and crocheters, regardless of skill level or age!  You can also help by making  a donation to help offset the costs of supplies.  Currently the members supply yarn themselves and use donated yarns.  We also need you to be our ambassadors by identifying someone you know who is lonely, frightened, suffering or who might be comforted by a  shawl and our prayers. To get involved, make a donation, or to requested a shawl for a friend of loved one, contact Dottie Kostyk at 610-329-5958.