On the Third Sunday of Easter this year, Dean arrived early at Blessed Sacrament and sat in a pew near the ambo with his mother. Assigned as the second reader, he looked over 1 Peter 1:17-21 in the Workbook for Lectors, Gospel Readers, and Proclaimers of the Word, and silently mouthed the words one more time. Then—noticing people starting to file into the church—Dean walked over to welcome them.

Listening to her son happily greet people walking into the Church, Jan smiled. Over the years, she’s asked him if he’s getting tired of the ministry. The answer is always ‘no.’

“He loves it,” she said. Dean has lectored for nearly 10 years and is now on the schedule once or twice a month.

A typical Sunday 11 a.m. Mass usually attracts about 350 to 400 parishioners, and on this Sunday, Dean stood at the ambo and read clearly and confidently to all the parishioners: “BE-LOV-ED, if you invoke as Father him who judges impartially according to each one’s works …”

Dean is part of the CARE (Catholic Adult Religious Experience) ministry that has successfully integrated parishioners with special needs into the life of the parish for the past two decades. Twice a year in May and October, the group serves in the ministries for a special Mass for the parish. They greet parishioners, serve at the altar, proclaim the Word, present the gifts, lead everyone in the Universal Prayer and hand out bulletins.

More than anything, the people in the CARE program deliver an important message.

“They belong,” Judy Stein said. “They are not invisible in our faith community.”

The program was started 20 years ago by Dean’s late father, Ron, along with Judy and a handful of other parishioners. CARE is based largely on the SPRED (Special Religious Education Program) that originated in the Archdiocese of Chicago in the 1960s to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities participate fully in the life of the Church. The SPRED program in Saginaw celebrated its 50-year anniversary in 2023.

The CARE program, which has a slightly different format, will celebrate 20 years in August.

“It’s a ministry, but also a gathering of friends,” said Father Rob Howe, pastor of Blessed Sacrament. “We would have a huge void if that program didn’t exist.”

Everyone is welcome, Father Rob said. “There’s not one part that’s more important than another.”

Initially, the group participated in one special CARE Mass a year. But after seeing the impact it had on the parish, Father Rob suggested they do a second Mass each October.

Ron had the opportunity to see his son, Dean, lector and see the impact of the CARE before he passed in 2019. Dean also happens to be the only one out of the group that is on regular rotation as a reader at the parish.

“I’m thrilled when Dean does the lectoring,” said Linda Allen, one of the parishioners who helped start the program. “I’m sure that Ron would be so darn happy that Dean has been as active as he has been.”

The CARE group generally has about 25 to 30 people who attend each month. It is designed for adults over the age of 18, and they don’t have to be Catholic. Each month, mentors meet to discuss the group’s business. The rest arrive about 45 minutes later for activities, sacred time and “party time” with snacks.

The monthly meetings provide a social outlet to people who attend. At the group’s meeting in early April, the evening began with an activity of decorating water bottles to use during sacred time. Sitting at a table with a couple of friends, Dan Romzick—who has attended the CARE program since it began—finished decorating his water bottle. One of the stickers read: “Jesus is my superhero.”

After a half hour, everyone filed into another room where Megan Marino—who teaches at the Midland Community Center—led everyone in chair exercises. Interspersed with Scripture passages read by people from the group, Megan led everyone in stretches for a half hour. Someone from the group read John 20:22: “Receive the Holy Spirit,” then Megan invited everyone to take a deep breath. Another person read Genesis 1:3: “Let there be light, and there was light,” then Megan told everyone to look up toward the ceiling. Someone else read 1 Corinthians 12:12: “As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ.” Then Megan encouraged everyone to do neck rolls.

At the end of the night, it was “party time.” The mood was festive with snacks, laughter, and conversation. Toward the end of the evening, everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Katelyn Pruiett, who was celebrating her 37th in a few days. And then there were a couple of announcements—reminders about upcoming practice for the May 16 CARE Mass.

Christy Granda, who volunteers with the program and is the Coordinator of Adult Faith Formation for Blessed Sacrament, said each monthly meeting features a different focus for sacred time and the activities that go along with it. They have dressed up in saint costumes as an activity to accompany sacred time when they learned about each saint. Another time they went in search of “lost” sheep hidden around the church grounds when learning about the Parable of the Lost Sheep. And they’ve also made blankets for local rescue dogs and written thank-you cards for the shelter.

“They like to do outreach,” said Christy, who also serves as a readers at the parish.

Dean is especially fond of Christy. Every time he sees her, Dean starts singing the hymn “Life-giving Bread, Saving Cup.” She’s not sure how it started, but “he just associates that hymn with me.”

Christy is grateful Dean and others in the CARE program help carry the Good News to the rest of the parishioners at Blessed Sacrament.

“God works through all of us,” she said. “Everyone can carry his message. Everyone can be his disciple. It doesn’t matter. We are many parts; we are all one body.”

After lectoring at the April 19 Mass, Dean sat at his mother’s kitchen table and considered his role as a reader. The 65-year-old said he’s glad his father started the CARE program. Lectoring, he said, helps him “learn about Jesus and Heaven.”

In talking about the readings and helping Dean practice all the pronunciations and pauses, Jan said her son and the CARE program have helped her grow in her own faith. And in an unexpected way, the program and her son have also catechized her. Dean’s lectoring, she said, “brings me closer to the readings to understand them . . . It’s really kind of opened up a door for me.”

Jan and Dean also have a lot of spiritual conversations. One of Dean’s favorite topics is Heaven and what it will be like when he gets there.

“Jesus is going to embrace me and take me on his shoulders,” Dean said. “I think of Jesus a lot. If I believe in him, I will be saved and get to Heaven.”