HSHS St. Mary's Hospital Chapel

About the HSHS St. Mary's Hospital Chapel

The Hospital Chapel at HSHS St. Mary's Hospital in Decatur, Illinois is described on the hospital's website as 'a place of peace and tranquility,' enhanced by the luminous beauty of its stained glass windows and a stately main altar. It is located on the 1st floor of the hospital and is normally open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, serving patients, families, visitors, and staff. The chapel is the spiritual and liturgical heart of Decatur's only faith-based hospital, which has been part of the Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS) since the institution's earliest days.

History of HSHS St. Mary's Hospital

HSHS St. Mary's Hospital was founded on November 17, 1878, when three Hospital Sisters of St. Francis arrived in Decatur from their motherhouse in Germany. The Hospital Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis had originally been founded in 1844 by Father Christopher Bernsmeyer, OFM, in Telgte, Germany, near Muenster in Westphalia. After Bishop Peter Baltes of Alton, Illinois, requested their help, the Sisters came to America fleeing the Kulturkampf — they sailed on the SS Maas on October 16, 1875, arriving in Alton on November 6, 1875. The hospital building in Decatur was constructed in 1881, and the institution has served the community continuously ever since, growing into a modern all-private-room health care facility on a 21-acre campus overlooking Lake Decatur.

• 1878 — Hospital Sisters of St. Francis arrive in Decatur to found St. Mary's
• 1881 — Hospital building constructed
• 1958 — Construction begins on the current main hospital building facing Lake Decatur
• 2023 — HSHS announces a $90 million campus modernization project including chapel renewal

Mass and Liturgical Schedule

Catholic Mass is celebrated in the chapel three days a week. The hospital also broadcasts Mass and services via its in-house Chapel Channel 73, and local Decatur Catholic radio station WDCR 88.9 FM often airs programming and services from the hospital chapel, extending the reach of the chapel's liturgical life beyond the building itself.

• Tuesday — Mass at 11:30 a.m.
• Thursday — Mass at 11:30 a.m.
• Sunday — Mass at 5:00 p.m.
• Chapel Channel 73 — live broadcast of Mass and services to patient rooms
• WDCR 88.9 FM Catholic Radio — Decatur, airs programming from the hospital chapel

Spiritual Care Department & 24/7 Chaplaincy

Since the founding of St. Mary's, the hospital has cared for patients in a holistic way — meeting the needs of their bodies, minds, and spirits. Professional chaplains are available 24 hours every day to offer spiritual and emotional support to patients, their families, and staff. Chaplains closely collaborate with religious leaders of all faiths to provide seamless support during times of uncertainty, serve as liaisons between the health care team and families during crisis, and assist patients and families in ethical decision-making, including applying the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services. A chaplain also serves on the hospital's Ethics Committee.

• Spiritual Care & Mission Integration — 217-464-2045
• Urgent chaplain needs — page through hospital operator at 217-464-2966
• Advance Directives assistance (Living Will, Power of Attorney for Healthcare, DNR)
• Organ and tissue donation discussions
• Interfaith liaison services

Sacraments and Sacramental Ministry

The chapel is the regular setting for the celebration of the Eucharist and other sacramental and ritual needs of patients, families, and staff. Chaplains provide opportunities for prayer, sacraments, and spiritual rituals that the patient and/or family may desire, working closely with local Catholic clergy and ministers of other faith traditions as needed.

• Eucharist — celebrated Tuesday and Thursday at 11:30 a.m. and Sunday at 5:00 p.m.
• Other sacramental ministry available on request through the chaplain

Grief, Loss, and Bereavement Support

The Spiritual Care department offers support groups and programs for those experiencing grief and loss. A specialized perinatal/infant loss program provides individualized support for parents who have experienced the death of a baby during pregnancy, at birth, or in early infancy. Grief support is also offered to help anyone navigate the pain of losing a loved one. Each year, a grief support series is hosted, often featuring presentations open to the public.

• Individualized grief support — call 217-464-2045
• Infant loss / perinatal bereavement support program
• Annual grief support series open to the public

Chapel Architecture and Stained Glass

The chapel is designed as a quiet space for reflection, distinguished by its luminous stained glass windows and a stately main altar. A particularly notable feature is the stained glass depicting the Prayer of St. Francis, which reflects the hospital's Franciscan heritage and the spirituality of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis who founded the hospital. As part of the ongoing campus modernization, the chapel will be relocated to the main lobby to improve access and visibility, with the Prayer of St. Francis stained glass preserved and incorporated as a focal point of the renewed space.

• Stained glass featuring the Prayer of St. Francis
• Stately main altar
• Planned relocation to main lobby as part of modernization
• Enhanced A/V equipment in renewed chapel
• Accessible, inclusive seating and kneelers in renewed chapel

Franciscan Heritage and Blessing of the Animals

St. Mary's carries on the Franciscan tradition of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, whose mission is to 'reveal and embody Christ's healing love for all people through our high quality Franciscan health care ministry.' One of the chapel's most distinctive community events is the annual Blessing of the Animals, held each year near the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi (October 4). The blessing, typically led by hospital chaplain Fr. Nick Husain, draws patients, staff, and Decatur-area pet owners — including dogs, cats, and even, on one occasion, a hamster — for the blessing in honor of St. Francis, patron saint of animals.

• Annual Blessing of the Animals (held near the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi)
• Led by HSHS St. Mary's Hospital chaplain
• Open to patients, staff, and the surrounding Decatur community

Prayer Requests

Visitors and patients can submit prayer requests to the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis through the Spiritual Care page on the HSHS St. Mary's Hospital website. This online ministry extends the prayer life of the chapel out to anyone who cannot physically visit but wishes to be remembered in the Sisters' prayers.

Campus Modernization Project (2023–2026)

In 2023, HSHS announced an approximately $90 million transformation project at the Decatur campus, approved unanimously by the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board. The project calls for the demolition of more than 200,000 square feet of the existing hospital's footprint (the main building dating from 1958) and major renovation including new state-of-the-art operating rooms with upgraded technology, redesigned clinical and non-clinical spaces, a robotic neurosurgery navigation system, a redesign of bed counts (reducing medical/surgical beds from 88 to 38 and ICU beds from 14 to six), and a renewed chapel relocated to the main lobby. The target completion date for the project is September 2026.

• ~$90 million modernization approved in 2023
• Target completion September 2026
• Chapel relocation to main lobby as part of project
• Preservation of Prayer of St. Francis stained glass as focal point

Visit the Chapel

The chapel is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, on the 1st floor of HSHS St. Mary's Hospital at 1800 East Lake Shore Drive, Decatur, Illinois 62521. The hospital's main number is 217-464-2966. For more information about Spiritual Care & Mission Integration, call 217-464-2045; to reach a chaplain for urgent needs, dial the hospital operator and ask to have the on-call chaplain paged.

• Address — 1800 East Lake Shore Drive, Decatur, IL 62521
• Hospital main phone — 217-464-2966
• Spiritual Care office — 217-464-2045
• Urgent chaplain — page through operator at 217-464-2966
• Campus — 21 acres overlooking Lake Decatur