Welcome to GIFT

(Grow In Faith Together)

We have a unique name for the Children’s Faith Formation at Bellarmine Chapel. We call it GIFT. We believe that in order for children to grow fully into their faith, we need to do it together, with the parents as the primary teachers. We provide many opportunities for families to find the support that works for them as we move together through their Sacraments and faith formation. We include First Communion and Reconciliation preparations within the GIFT program so that it flows through and is an integral part of the process.

Below you will find information on the weekly classes for this school year as well as links to an on-going library of ideas to use independently.

Our Mission Statement

I am a beloved child of God who created me and loves me. I am a member of the Bellarmine parish family community who believes in the teachings of the Catholic Church, worships together each Sunday, and celebrates the sacraments. I am a disciple of Jesus, inspired by the Holy Spirit and the life of St Ignatius to keep growing in God’s love on my lifelong faith journey. I care for those in need in my family, my neighborhood and the world. I work for justice and welcome all.

Join Us for In-Person GIFT 2022-23

For the 2020-2021 School year we will use the Finding God series from Loyola Press for our lessons. We will have in-person instruction on Sunday mornings from 10:15-11:15 a.m. You may also choose to use this program at home.

Let’s Grow In Faith Together.

We created one registration form for families this year. Register once and then you are set with medical and contact info for all of our programs.

Family Registration

Content updates and overviews from the 2020-21 school year can be found below. We will create new material for 2022-23 but have left this as an example of what to expect. No matter when you join us we have links below to allow you to review the lesson guides. The curriculum is created for grade level content that is used by our catechists and family catechesis overviews of the themes. This allows parents to follow and support what their children are learning in class so that no matter what age, everyone is studying the same theme. The exception to this is in our PK classroom. Our preschool is a Montessori program with themes that update every couple of weeks.

Family Catechesis Review

Below is a Powerpoint presentation from our Unit 1 Family Catechesis for grades K-6th. There is also an audio clip from our family catechist Kristen Hundemer who will be leading and inspiring these classes. The theme for this unit is “God, Our Creator and Father”. The next class for parents October 23rd. This is when we will launch the next theme. It’s a good opportunity to meet other parents and get background on what your children are studying.