GIFT 2026-2027
Walking in the Footsteps of Christ
Generations In Faith Together (GIFT) is our intergenerational religious formation program at Our Lady of Lourdes that gathers children, teens, parents, grandparents, and other adults for shared prayer, learning, and service. Over the coming year, our theme, “Walking in the Footsteps of Christ,” will be explored through the lens of Franciscan spirituality — emphasizing humility, joyful simplicity, reverence for creation, solidarity with the poor, being instruments of Christ’s peace by fostering reconciliation, compassion, and harmony in our everyday relationships and living the Gospel values.
Registration
Register online using one of the forms below.
If you prefer to print out a registration form and fill it out on paper,
click here to download the printable version and return it to the Parish Office.
New GIFT Households
If you are new to GIFT, use the button below to fill out a registration form for the upcoming GIFT season.
Returning GIFT Households
If you are returning to GIFT, use the button below to fill out a registration form for the upcoming GIFT season.
Major Themes in Franciscan Spirituality and Why They are Still Relevant Today The life and ministry of St. Francis of Assisi offers our Church so many important talking points related to justice, peace, community and the care for creation. We will share an overview of these themes and envision a way to participate in them in today’s world. Bio: Lisa Metz is a Theology teacher at Divine Savior Holy Angels High School and Jon Metz is a Teaching Professor in the Theology department at Marquette University. Together, they belong to St. Sebastian Parish in Milwaukee and are raising two teenagers. Sacred Stewardship: A Future Sustained by Faith As stewards of creation, faith communities are rising as a profound force for healing our wounded Earth. This presentation explores how diverse religious traditions are uniting—both with one another and with secular partners—to cultivate a more resilient, life-sustaining world. By sharing stories of hope and intentional action, we will illustrate how our sacred duty to protect the planet fosters deep collective responsibility and a legacy for future generations. Bio: Dean Muller serves as President of Wisconsin for Environmental Justice, where he leverages a distinguished 39-year career in institutional investment management to address complex infrastructure and sustainability challenges. A Milwaukee resident committed to responsible governance, Dean employs a rigorous, data-driven approach to advocate for solutions that shift the financial responsibility for environmental remediation from taxpayers to the entities responsible for industrial impacts. Through his leadership and community engagement, he champions proactive, common-sense strategies designed to secure long-term resilience and a prosperous, sustainable legacy for future generations. Following the Path of Christ: My Journey with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and the Catholic Worker with Clare Houston. Walk With Me as I Journey At Baptism, the presider asks the parents if they are willing to accept the responsibility to teach their child the practices of our Catholic faith. The godparents are then asked if they are willing to share in this task. Lastly, the presider turns to us, the community, and says “Community, this child will also need the support of our faith and love. Are we, the community of God’s people, ready to give that help?” And we respond with a resounding “We are!” Most Catholics know how to do this with young children, but many feel ill-equipped to fulfill this call with adolescents. We will take some time to explore this challenge and talk about what it means to become a more youth-focused community and how to walk with youth on their faith journey. Bios Tanya Gross is the current Director of Formation Ministries at Our Lady of Lourdes. She has spent nearly 40 years volunteering to work with youth and young adults as they walk on their faith journey. She worked in Campus Ministry in college leading retreats, worship and prayer services, and social events. She also has experience as a retreat director, Confirmation catechist, mentor, and chaperone at youth events. Joe Schmidt has over 35 years of experience working with youth as a former youth minister, retreat director and father of five children. As a member of Our Lady of Lourdes parish, he has spent much of his time volunteering to work with the youth as a catechist, mentor, Confirmation sponsor, and chaperone at youth events. House of Peace Holiday Food Boxes—Fall Service Session Our Lady of Lourdes has been part of this wonderful ministry for a number of years. This year, we are again going to pack the food boxes as a community during our Saturday, November 14, GIFT session, which will take place from 1:00 pm-3:30 pm. This will allow people to attend the 4:00 pm liturgy immediately afterwards. Our goal is to fill 275 boxes, as the need is great in our community. Donating items: There will be tags on a bulletin board in the south hallway with items that are needed for the boxes. We combined them in such a way that we believe each set of groceries costs about the same for each tag. Select however many tags you would like and purchase those items. NO GLASS JARS, please, and check the use by dates. Dropping items off: Please bring your items to OLOL through Wednesday, November 11, and leave them on the cart in the hallway. Packing the boxes: We appreciate that many people love packing the boxes. If you would like to join us at GIFT to pack the boxes, you are more than welcome to come and be part of this process! Please call the office to let us know if you will be attending.
Saturday, November 14, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Followed by liturgy at 4:00 pm
Advent Spirituality As we approach the Advent liturgical season, Advent Spirituality will look at how our lives echo some of the biblical lives that surface during this season. Some paths for prayer will suggest ways of maintaining peace in the busyness of these coming days. Fr. Joe Juknialis is a retired priest of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. He currently lives at the downtown parish of Old St. Mary and regularly helps out weekends at the various eastside parishes. He occasionally writes a Sunday scripture column for the Catholic Herald. St. Francis, The Little Poor Man from Assisi, Model for Many St. Francis is being followed by so many today! What values did he live by that drew people to him in his life and still stir in our hearts today to help us to create the “kindom” of God here on Earth? How does Francis view all of creation? Sister Diana De Bruin is a Sister of the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi of over 50 years and a member of Our Lady of Lourdes. Sister Diana says, “I have tried to walk in the footsteps of Christ through the lens of being Franciscan. I have been a teacher, pastoral associate, credit counselor in the inner city of Milwaukee, on the Leadership Team of our congregation and now Archdiocesan Vicar for Religious. I have tried to pattern my life on the values of St. Francis through whatever ministry I have had.” St. Francis of Assisi: God’s Troubadour It’s been said that St. Francis of Assisi was like a “second Christ,” because he so closely imitated the simplicity and humility of Jesus. Learn about this most beloved Catholic Saint – and his dear friend, Clare – and be inspired by his continuing legacy of peace and joy. Bio: Al McCauley is the Director of Adult Faith Formation at St. Anthony on the Lake Parish in Pewaukee. He taught Theology and History at Pius XI Catholic High School in Milwaukee for 24 years and was a Religious Studies adjunct for Cardinal Stritch University. Al is the creator and host of the weekly Catholic YouTube web series Fish on Fridays, and he is a frequent speaker throughout the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. He earned his master’s degree in religious studies from Cardinal Stritch University in 2009. Al is married, has three children, and two grandchildren.
Guest Presenter: Al McCauley
A Franciscan Path to Greater Mental and Emotional Health In this interactive presentation, we will discover that living life with a Franciscan focus will lead us to greater relational and emotional well-being. Bio After extensive graduate study in philosophy and theology, Mike Woyach received a Masters degree in Social Work. He became a certified Trauma Specialist and spent his entire career as an individual, marriage, family and group psychotherapist. Mike and his wife, Cindy, have been members of Lourdes since the 1980’s. They are eternally grateful to the community for helping them raise their two daughters in becoming vibrant, strong and faith-filled individuals. Spring Service Event: Milwaukee Riverkeeper Spring Clean Up (Please note, this session is from 9:00 am-12:00 pm) In honor of Earth Day, GIFT is joining with the Social Justice Committee and Milwaukee Riverkeeper in urging OLOL members to join in the annual spring clean on Saturday morning, April 24. Milwaukee Riverkeeper provides gloves, trash bags, and amazing FREE T-SHIRTS. You provide the people power to pick up the trash that finds its way into our beautiful river system. Together, we can help restore our waterways. After beginning at Jackson Park for cleaning up, we will return to OLOL for a pizza lunch. Participation requires registering with Milwaukee Riverkeeper. Details on how to register will be provided as the date approaches.
GIFT FAQs
Our gatherings include: The GIFT Core Team assists, plans, and evaluates each monthly GIFT session. Some experience in planning processes and our Catholic teachings is helpful. A sincere desire to explore and plan for the whole community is necessary. This team meets five time each year. Adults (21 and older) are needed to teach our faith for K4-K5 yr. olds, Gr. 1-2, Gr. 3-4, Gr. 5-6, Gr. 7-8, Gr. 9-10, and Confirmation. Guide plans and materials for each session are provided. Catechists are asked to work together to implement and evaluate each session. In-service training, safe environment training and continuing education are needed. The catechist should be a person of faith actively involved in the liturgy and life of the parish. If you enjoy working with children and youth and desire to share your faith, you are invited to call our faith formation directors for more details. Teens and adult helpers are needed to assist the catechists with the activities and needs of the children and youth. For all inquiries to the above information contact: Steve Szymanski | Grade K4-Grade 6 | (414) 545-4316, Ext. 127 Tanya Gross | Grade 7-Grade 11 | (414) 545-4316, Ext. 115
GIFT Core Team
GIFT Catechists
GIFT Aides