SPECIAL NEEDS AWARENESS

The parish of Saint Luke the Evangelist is a welcoming faith community which celebrates the gifts that every member brings to the Body of Christ. The Special Needs Awareness Committee seeks to fully include individuals with special needs in the life and ministries of our parish community. 

For more information about our Special Needs Ministry please contact [email protected]

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SPECIAL NEEDS MINISTRY OR TO SIGN UP FOR SPECIAL NEEDS MASS CLICK HERE FOR FAITH FORMATION AND SACRAMENTAL PREP FOR THOSE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

Hearing Assistance devices are available for use during Mass. Hearing devices are located in the ushers’ room in in the back (near the narthex) of the church. If you would like a hearing device from the ushers’ room, please see an usher.

Accessible Seating is available on the outside aisles of the first 4-5 rows of each of the front center rows and in the first row of seating in the rear sections of the Church.

If you prefer to receive communion at your seat, please alert an usher.

1. Accessible Entrances – SSJP church has accessible entrances and ramp entries at multiple locations to both the upper and lower entrances to the    Ramps are available at the front entrance to the right of the steps and the right side of the church near the wheelchair accessible parking. The door on the right side of the church and the lower level entrance near the office is accessible with a door opener; all other doors are accessible but manual.

2. Elevator – SSJP has an elevator in both the main church and the Cardinal DiNardo Center.

   1. Church: The elevator is in the front right of the church (as you enter from the parking lot)  in the Narthex behind the door.   From the lower level:  If you are entering at the Parish office, go right at the Chapel.  At the end of the hall, go left  (Follow signs for the  Elevator )

   2. Cardinal DiNardo Center: The elevator is in the front Right of the building in the Narthex (front left from the lower level).

3. Handicapped Parking – SSJP has reserved numerous handicapped parking spaces available on the right side of the Church with additional handicapped parking in the rear left of the church and additional parking in the Cardinal DiNardo Center Parking lot.

4. Bathrooms – Accessible bathrooms are available in the narthexes and lower level of the Church and in the Cardinal DiNardo Center.

5. Family Bathroom – available on the Lower Level of the church.

Autism Connection of Pennsylvania
 

Children’s Craniofacial Association
 

Christopher and Dana Reeves Foundation
 

Community Living and Support Services (CLASS)
 

Multiple Sclerosis Service Society


PSC Partners Seeking A Cure
 

Spina Bifida Association of Western Pennsylvania


Three Rivers Adaptive Sports (TRAS)

 
Visiting Angels
 

Woodlands Foundation, Inc.

Servant of God, Father Bill Atkinson, O.S.A 
(photo: augustinian.org)

The church has begun the process of investigation for the Sainthood of Father Atkinson. William Edward Atkinson, O.S.A., entered the Order of St. Augustine as a novice on September 9, 1964. In 1965, while still in formation, he was injured in a near-fatal tobogganing accident that left him paralyzed from the neck down. Nevertheless, he endured in his desire to continue as an Augustinian.

With a special dispensation from Pope Paul VI, Bill was ordained to the priesthood on February 2, 1974, almost nine years after the accident that left him a quadriplegic. Father Atkinson compared life to a card game, saying, “You either play with the cards that you have been dealt or you fold, and I am not ready to fold.” He described his disability as allowing him to witness Jesus in the care he received from others, which assured him “of the Father’s love, turning a stumbling block into a stepping stone.”

CLICK HERE for more information about Father Atkinson.