Sunday's Mass will be the last at Our Lady of the Brook

Due to declining attendance and contributions, Our Lady of the Brook Catholic Church, on Dundee Road on the northwest side of Northbrook, will have its final Mass at 11 a.m. Sunday.

The church officially opened in 1968 before its building was completed two years later; it merged in 2017 with the larger St. Norbert parish, which has a school and is just south of downtown Northbrook.

Amy Principi, communications manager for the Catholic Community of Northbrook, which encompasses the merged St. Norbert and Our Lady of the Brook, said a combination of changing demographics, a decline in religious attendance for all denominations, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic made its future unsustainable.

The Rev. Christopher Gustafson informed parishioners of the decision to close Our Lady of the Brook with a letter in June.

Mass has not been celebrated inside the church since the initial pandemic shutdowns in March of 2020. The Archdiocese of Chicago directed churches with more than one worship site use a single location, and since St. Norbert was the larger worship site, it remained open, Principi said.

There were "Car Masses" in the spacious parking lot: An altar was set up at the top of the church steps and parishioners tuned in on their car's AM radios. Those continued through Christmas Eve, but when the weather turned bitterly cold, that ended, Principi said.

Gustafson will be the presider at Sunday's Mass, alongside five cocelebrants who served previously as pastors and associate pastors at the church.

A handful of parishioners who were there when Our Lady of the Brook opened in 1968 are expected to attend Sunday's Mass as well, Principi said.

"It's kind of sad that, within a single lifetime, they built something and are seeing it closed," Principi said. "The property goes up for sale, and we're hoping that another church will buy it and keep it standing."