St. Anne Church in Crest Hill will hold its final Mass on Sunday

Crest Hill — St. Anne Church in Crest Hill will host its final mass this weekend before it is “extinguished” as part of the Diocese of Joliet’s targeted restructuring initiative.

Bishop Ronald A. Hicks will celebrate the final Mass at the church with parishioners at 10 a.m. Sunday, which will be followed by a ceremony to officially lock the church.

St. Anne’s Parish, 1800 Dearborn St., is being combined with fellow Crest Hill parish, St. Ambrose, 1711 Burry Circle Drive, and the St. Anne’s building is being permanently closed.

The merger will take effect, along with several others in the Joliet and Crest Hill area, July 1, although the two parishes already have combined some resources, including their parish website.

Parish staff noted that there are plans to create parish memory books for members of the St. Anne community, although they have not been finalized.

The Herald-News reached out to Deacon Dick McCowan, who serves the combined parishes, for more information about the planned memory books and what will become of the relics and artwork housed by St. Anne’s church. He did not respond, however.

It is possible traces of St. Anne’s parish will be brought to St. Ambrose church in order to make the parish communities feel more unified.