"If I can give you any advice, I beg you to get closer to the Eucharist and to Jesus... We must pray to Jesus to give us that tenderness of the Eucharist." - Saint Teresa of Calcutta

Preparation for First Holy Communion

Registration for First reconciliation & first communion now open for the 2025-26 year.

Children's Preparation for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion is offered in Atrium Level Two of the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Program (CGS). Children preparing for these sacraments participate in retreats and other activities later in the school year as determined by the CGS catechists.

First Reconciliation & First Communion Preparation at Sacred Heart Parish is a two-year program. Students who would like to receive these sacraments in 2025-26 should have participated in CGS or another Faith Formation program during school year 2024-25, all CGS sessions in 2024-25, all the sacramental preparation retreats/activities, and attend Mass regularly.

If Atrium Level Two reaches capacity, priority will be given to registered parishioners of Sacred Heart (Battle Ground) and St. Joseph the Worker (Yacolt) followed by our sister parishes St. Philip (Woodland), St. Mary of Guadalupe (Ridgefield), and St. John the Evangelist (Vancouver).

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd fees for 2025-26 are $40/student for parishioners of Sacred Heart/St. Joseph the Worker/St. Philip/St. Mary of Guadalupe/St. John the Evangelist and $50/student for non-parishioners; sacramental preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion is an additional $30 for materials. Please make sure to complete both the Faith Formation Registration form and the First Reconciliation & First Communion registration form. No Sacred Heart/St. Joseph the Worker family will be turned away from participating in our Faith Formation programs due to financial need; contact the parish office for more information.

If your child has not yet received these sacraments (including the Sacrament of Baptism) and he or she is over age 7, or if you are a baptized adult Catholic who has never prepared for First Reconciliation and First Communion, contact the parish office by email or call 360.687.4515.

*For those registering for the sacramental preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion, please provide a cope of the child’s baptismal certificate.