Prince of Peace Catholic Church, Taylors, SC

Under the direction of Dr. Gaye Douglas, Assistant Professor of Nursing at Francis Marion University, we were blessed with 13 Senior II nursing students who prepared and served the Blessed Angela Meal at our Center. The students did an excellent job with the preparation of the meal and served with generous and compassionate hearts. Thank you Dr. Gaye and the students. I know they will be nurses with generous hearts and respect for the dignity of each person in their care. God bless you all!
A very special Thank You to Father Chris Smith, Pastor of Prince of Peace Catholic Church, Taylors, SC and all of the Parishioners for their very generous donations of book bags, knapsacks, socks, T-shirts, school supplies and boys’ and girls’ underwear. What a great way to help us get children ready for the new school year. A very special Thank You to Gary and Brenda Weakley for making the trip from Taylors to Kingstree with all of the goods. They are special folks! We are very grateful for their generosity to us. God bless you all!

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“power to the powerless.”

Be it resolved that we, as persons of faith in relationship with all of Creation, and in a privileged position of faith leadership within our society as members of the Franciscan Federation, are called to personal and communal reflection that leads to action to sustain our one planet Earth, so that all Creation may share in the generous gifts of Earth provided by our Creator and Sustainer God. Climate change, especially those changes caused by human ignorance, indifference and greed, calls us to be prophets of change-to act in prophetic ways to halt human-induced abuse of Earth’s resources that are given to be shared by all.  As followers of St. Francis of Assisi we are called to right relationship with our Sister Mother Earth, our home.

SM Francis Lewandowski was among the 27 honorees at the Franciscan Federation Banquet on Sunday evening.  This year’s honorees were sisters who reflect  the beauty and goodness of God through artistic expression–music, poetry, drawing, flower arrangements, etc., and who, with artistic expression, bring “power to the powerless.”

Sister Francis was chosen because, through her ministry, she disseminates pertinent information to community members and uses her gift of artistic expression as she designs program booklets for provincial and congregational chapters and assemblies, prepares and publishes cards, monographs, and books, and creates settings for major functions. She currently is coordinating a ministry of presence project in the city of Detroit. After visiting Felician missions in Kenya, Brazil and Haiti, Sister Francis created a photo display to foster awareness of the people, their living conditions and the challenges poverty poses for them. In Jacmel, Haiti, in 2013 and 2014, Sister Francis conducted week-long art classes for youth. The students self-organized into “The Felician Artists of Haiti” and continue to use what they have learned to produce art pieces, placemats, coasters and trays to sell,and are learning basic business practices they can use for future employment. This endeavor is one way to “bring power to the powerless” and hope for the future!

He sat quietly and unassumingly

by Manuel Casias

He sat quietly and unassumingly. Although he had a limited vocabulary, his shivers on one of the coldest days of the year spoke volumes.

A wandering little pilgrim at St. Felix Pantry in Rio Rancho, NM, named Juanito was cold, and the thin wind-breaker he was wearing was hardly sufficient enough to keep him warm. I just happened to walk by when I noticed him and immediately called out. “Who does this child belong to?” I asked. His mother, who spoke broken English, told me that he was her little boy. I did not ask if he had another coat at home; rather, I simply smiled and told her that a coat had just come in for little Juanito and we were waiting for him to come in and get it. Confused and surprised, Juanito’s mom said, with incredible humility, Gracias.

This story is not uncommon at St. Felix Pantry where clothing is also provided to many families in need. In fact, just as many families who get food weekly from the Pantry also receive much-needed clothing from the Pantry’s clothing bank. From my perspective, it is hard to imagine little Juanito and other children like him in our neighborhood being cold, especially if they live just down the street from the Pantry.

This event reminded me of one of New Mexico’s oldest stories about the Santo Nino De Atocha (the infant child of Prague, the wandering little pilgrim) who sits in an old historic pilgrimage site in Northern New Mexico. Throughout the years, people from all over this great state have brought the small statue of Jesus shoes, coats, and a variety of things to wear as he goes out into New Mexico’s countryside performing miracles nightly. In ministry, we often tell people to accept strangers as though they were friends. You never know when Jesus will pay a visit. Warm and smiling, the wandering little pilgrim Juanito is indeed a new friend of Felix.

Was it Jesus visiting the Pantry’s clothing bank, cold, shivering, and hoping that we would tend to his needs? We will never know. What we do know is that St. Felix Pantry reaches out to all of its neighbors, big and small, during their neediest moments.

For Juanito, he spent the rest of that day warm and well-fed as all children should during these cold winter days. This is the hope that St. Felix provides to individuals like Juanito and families in need throughout the neighborhoods it serves all year long. The miracle provided us this day was the assurance and confirmation that St. Felix Pantry continues to respond with compassion and the work we do every day has sacred purpose.
Annually, St. Felix Pantry makes clothing available to nearly 6,000 families whose households range from one member to several members where many of them are children. Just recently, St. Felix Pantry partnered with the Rio Rancho Baptist church, sending clothing to 60 families in Juarez, Mexico, which is approximately seven hours south of St. Felix pantry.
We serve a God without borders and boundaries. Some of the neighborhoods we serve are seven hours away.

“This is an event of family,”

More than 300 people gathered at the Laurel Manor Banquet and Conference Center in Livonia, MI, on Wednesday evening, May 20, to bid a fond farewell to  S Rose Marie Kujawa.

After serving 14 years as President of Madonna University, Sister Rose Marie will retire at the end of June 2015.

The reception offered University administrators and staff, Board members, Felician Sisters, and friends the opportunity to share memories and rejoice in the many blessings and accomplishments that have been a part of Sister Rose Marie’s legacy.

Following the opening prayer, Andrea Nodge, vice president, University Advancement, welcomed the crowd to “an entertaining program about one of our favorite people.”

In her remarks describing Sister Rose Marie’s legacy of achievement, SM Christopher Moore, provincial minister, said, “Sister Rose Marie’s ministry here at Madonna is a beautiful incarnation of the spirit of our beloved foundress, Blessed Mary Angela, whose boundless love of God and surrender to God’s will in compassionate service and total availability is what each Felician Sister strives to imitate.

The Honorable Michael Talbot, Chair, Board of Trustees, said he came to know Sister Rose Marie as the principal and chief cheerleader of Madonna University. He noted the challenges facing higher education across the country and said, “Sister Rose Marie has been living her prayer life and it’s been a lesson for me.” He announced that a rose garden outside the Franciscan Center–The Sister Rose Marie Kujawa Rose Garden–would be dedicated in her honor.

In a video entitled “Remember and Rejoice,” individuals and groups from various segments of the University community expressed their appreciation to Sister Rose Marie and also took advantage of the opportunity to say goodbye.

Jack Kirksey, mayor of the city of Livonia, was last but certainly not least among the individuals expressing gratitude, not only for Sister Rose Marie’s accomplishments at Madonna, but also for her innovative community outreach programs, building partnerships and alliances.
Just before the conclusion of the program, when Sister Rose Marie took the podium, she said “These accomplishments are not mine alone. Rather, it is about all of us working together.” She continued, “This is an event of family,” and then credited her birth family, Felician family, Madonna University family, and Livonia family for the blessings of the past 14 years.

For more than two decades, if not much longer, SM Ramona Borkowski, founder of the Felician School for Exceptional Children in Lodi, NJ, has hosted a mid-summer crab feast/pizza party for the sisters of the Immaculate Conception Convent Complex.

This year’s party took place on Wednesday, July 16, following Evening Praise. Five bushels of crabs and approximately 25 personal pizzas–plain, pepperoni, sausage, white, white with pepperoni–brought extraordinary dining delight to the sisters of Immaculate Conception Convent, Holy Spirit Convent, Saint Felix Convent, and Our Lady of Lourdes Care Center. Dinner accompaniments included beer, soda, seltzer, and lots of candy bars.

SM Virginia Tomasiak said “Our wishes of gratitude cannot be expressed adequately to Sister Ramona who is a model of generosity, kindness and compassion. Throughout the year she remembers us in countless ways. We always promise our prayers for her and we want the Felicians of North America to hear about her goodness.”

Distribution of food and a touch of love … the Felician Way!

Under the direction of SM Eliana Remiszewska and two other adult Teen Leaders from St. Turibius Parish in Chicago, IL, members of the St. Turibius Teen group worked after school to assist the St. Vincent De Paul Society.

The teens prepared packages of Easter goodies for the children, helped carry hams and food packages, and assisted in setting up Felician Hall in preparation for the food distribution to the needy.

The teens were also on hand to help families carry food and kept the children busy with art projects as they waited their turn to receive treats from the Easter Bunny.

Before the food distribution began, the teens joined hands in a circle with members of the St. Vincent De Paul Society to pray for God’s blessings upon all those who are in need and for all those who assist them.

SM Francine Lagocki, SM Eunice Olbrantz, SM Barbara Ann Bosch, S Mary Beth Bromer, SM Eliana Remiszewska, members of the St. Turibius Parish’s (Chicago, IL) St. Vincent De Paul Society, gathered with other Vincentians in the parish’s Felician Hall to distribute food to needy parishioners on Tuesday, April 15.

In addition to distributing food baskets, hams, and gift certificates to the adults, the Easter Bunny provided treats for the children who came with their parents. Each child received Easter goodies and a book, and had their picture taken with the Easter Bunny.

Service Day – April 12

Sisters Prepare for Service Day with Laity

 

Apart from the planning efforts of SM Faith Balawejder, coordinator for the service project at the West Hills Food Pantry, the sisters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Convent in Coraopolis, PA, are gearing up for Saturday’s 140th Anniversary Celebration with their lay partners.
As a number of the sisters residing at the care center and central convent are not physically able to participate in the actual service day, there was no stopping them in doing their part. In preparation for the April 12th Service Day, Sister Faith and SM Denise Bernas involved the sisters by having them make Easter cards, favors, bunnies, and other items that will add color to the bagged articles while bringing joy to the hearts of the families who will receive food items for Easter from the West Hills Food Pantry.

The sisters gathered in the Activities Room on Friday, April 4, coming at whatever hour they were available for this history-making event. According to Sister Denise, “The sisters were certainly on a roll and had a great time doing something for others.”

Next week, both sisters and lay partners will gather to clean the West Hills Food Pantry by washing windows, painting walls, clearing the outdoors, and making additional favors for the bagged food items that will be distributed by the food pantry to their clients for Easter. Other service projects for this area will involve sisters and lay partners at McGuire Memorial in New Brighton and the Mooncrest Neighborhood in Moon Township.