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Healing the World...Step by Step...Little by Little |
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St. Francis of Assisi encouraged all of us with his dynamic quote: “It is in giving that we receive.” Eight BVMs and Associates answered the call to give and the healing ministry has remained a common thread in their varied vocations. Some of the eight were “called” specifically!
Each of the eight finds it a privilege and honor to serve, to “be present,” and striving to fulfill the BVM mission of being free and helping others to enjoy freedom in God's steadfast love. Ecuador Journey
Paula Smith wanted to “make a difference” when she went on a medical mission in late 1994. She joined a group traveling to Ecuador in answer to the prayers of BVM Ann Credidio who was seeking help to continue God's work among patients with Hansen's disease in Guayaquil. The team of which Paula was a member traveled to various clinics in the poorest areas of Guayaquil, often meeting patients who had been abandoned by family and friends. Some were medically able to go home as they were no longer contagious, but they no longer had a place to call “home.” Since 1994, Paul has made one more trip to Ecuador where she taught CPR at the hospital and the day care center. Since then, Paula's contacts in the Pensacola area of Florida have been successful in sending medications and medical supplies several times a year. Paula is now a member of the board for the Hansen's hospital and a BVM Associate. A Second Call
Across the miles in Chicago, Nancy Feldman, BVM (Dorothy Mary) recalls being asked by her novice mistress, Sister Mary Leo, if she would consider becoming a nurse instead of going to the Scholasticate since the numbers there were so large at that time. She calls her “vocation within vocation” a true blessing! “God heals,” Nancy says, “and we, the medical professionals, treat.” Through the years of her nursing career, Nancy has been particularly touched when she received a letter from a patient or family member in which they expressed their gratitude for some small act of kindness. Such occasions reminded her of the words of St. Therese of Lisieux, “little acts done with great love.” At one point, Nancy was briefly transferred to lab, where she determined the pathology of spinal fluid specimens and informed the physician about the results. At that point she “truly felt the life of the patient was in my hands because the treatment would be determined by those results.” Nursing in Varied Settings
Looking back, Joan treasures the memories of many patients whose condition brought her to both tears and laughter, especially the intense experience having to “code” people when their hearts had stopped beating. The early '80s were particularly challenging with AIDS patients on her floor of the hospital. The nurses got to know the patients quite well from admission to their deaths about 18 months later. It was a time of “continuous grieving.” At the Juvenile Detention Center, Joan remembers with great affection administration and staff who strove to bring LOVE into the lives of young people who had never experienced it. For many of the residents, “Juvie” was the only secure haven they had ever known. Hospice Ministry
In 1999, when Vicki was completing her work for her MSW, “Hospice” was the specific topic that piqued her enthusiasm for her thesis research. Eventually, she attained a full time placement with Kaiser Hospice, home care with a goal of providing comfort to patients with a terminal diagnosis for which additional treatments would not likely provide a cure. A nurse, doctor and social worker are the core members of the hospice team. Vicki has journeyed with people of many ages—from 11 days old to 106 years. On any day, her ministry might include meeting with patients and their families to provide supportive counseling and validating feelings regarding death and dying, aware that everyone's death will be different. “Being sensitive to cultural diversity (one of our BVM values) is of great importance in this work.” “Truly,” Vicki said, “it is a journey of faith as people transition from fear and denial to a peaceful acceptance of God's will for them.” It is a “gift to be present to them and hear their reflections on life and their concerns. In doing this, I believe I am living the BVM value of helping others enjoy freedom in God's steadfast love.” Parish Nurse
When the possibility of a parish nurse program arose, Mary Pat took an orientation program. As soon as the parish was ready to launch the program, Mary Pat was ready, too! Since Mary Pat was a parish nurse before she became a BVM Associate, she recognizes the goals in her career which were similar:
LPN Opportunities
Just as a parish nurse connects with the patients/parishioners in their own homes, so did Joel Kramer, BVM connect with hundreds of BVMs during her years (1965-68) as “food manager” at Marian Hall. When she finished, she took advantage of the LPN fund in Mt. Carmel 's treasury. Eventually, Joel became the night supervisor at Marian Hall and then, in 1970, returned to teaching in Sioux City while moonlighting at Mercy Hospital every other weekend. After retirement, Joel worked for Home Health Care and frequently was “borrowed” to do night duty for hospice. In the mid-90s, Joel added hospice volunteering to her jobs because of the need to give caretakers a break! She has been a hospice volunteer for caretakers ever since. Some people have no children or no children nearby, or no close relatives to give relief and no extra funds to find a qualified sitter. She has been sent by hospice to sit with dying patients in nursing homes. She's taken care of clients from every race and their gratitude has become the common bond. On Nov. 15, 2005, Joel was chosen from the Sioux City office to attend the Honored Volunteers at the 2005 Iowa Hospice Organization Fall Conference. Full Circle
Pat Nooney, BVM (Ann Carol) has come full circle in healing ministry. Hers starts and ends in geriatrics. After profession, she was assigned to care for the older and retired sisters at Marian Hall. Eventually Pat became a Licensed Practical Nurse. In 1971, Pat left Iowa to work a medical/surgical floor at St. Francis Hospital, Evanston. There she cared for pre-op and post-op patients before moving into the outpatient department—a totally different type of nursing. The primary focus was caring for the marginalized in the South Evanston/Rodgers Park communities. All phases of medical care were provided for those who had no insurance. Now, Pat's ministry is oriented toward desk work, documentation and public relations with patients, physicians and pharmacists. Home Care Another Sister who began her caregiving at Marian Hall is Sarah Braig, BVM. Sarah volunteered in the summers between 1968 and 1976. That successful venture set the stage for the next 30 years! In Oregon, Sarah worked at Marylhurst, the infirmary at the provincial house of the Sisters of the Holy Names. Her most special memories are of singing to/with the sisters during their last hours. Currently, Sarah is working for CSJ Care in St. Louis. Twelve religious communities collaborate in the ministry of visiting the elderly in need of assistance in their homes. “We enable our clients to experience some sense of independence by allowing them the freedom to get outside their homes weekly. “Mother Mary Veronica was one of the clients I had with CSJ Care for a year and a half. She had been the Abbess of the Poor Clares, suffered from Alzheimer's and required more care than the Sisters were able to provide. I was permitted to enter the cloister in order to care for her. “I assisted Mother with eating, prayed with her, sang to her, and helped her to walk with the assistance of one of the other sisters. I was able to get Mother to march up and down the hall in time to the music while singing ‘How I Love to Go for a Walk Along the Street.' “All these years of working with the elderly, infirmed and being with the dying culminated in my being able to be with my dad as he returned HOME! What a gift!” Eight stories—eight individuals linked by their common thread of healing. “Ultimately what really matters is a courageous spirit and a generous heart.” —Kirschensteiner How grateful are all of us for their GIVING ministry! About the author: Julie O'Neill, BVM is retired in San Francisco, where she volunteers in the archdiocesan Office of Religious Education. Return to Table of Contents. |
In contrast to Nancy 's nursing ministry, Associate Joan Lum's career traveled from raising her own six children, to Marymount University in Virginia where she attained her RN, to 25 years in a medical unit at the local hospital, to a part-time position at Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center as a staff nurse. More recently, she is helping to raise her three youngest grandchildren! 
AIDS also played a major role in BVM Vicki Smurlo's development in hospice ministry. She traveled from San Francisco, where she had been doing volunteer work with visiting nurses and hospice for cancer and AIDS, to Chicago where she continued her volunteer work at Bonaventure House, a residence for people with AIDS. 
An article in the Bellevue Herald-Leader highlighted the career of Associate Mary Pat Sheehan as a parish health nurse. Mary Pat “more or less fell into parish nursing” as she was completing her career as a part time telephone triage nurse in one of the medical clinics in Dubuque. 
