New Dreams, New Times…By S. Monica Gundler

It started as an idea among a few of the Sisters of Charity Federation vocation directors. What if we could start a house where Sisters from across the Federation could live in an intentional community and minister together in service to the poor?

Then the discussion took hold anew as the Sisters of Charity Federation began hosting young adult volunteer trips to New Orleans, La., after Hurricane Katrina. The needs are great for housing, education, home repair, health care, mental health services, etc. for a city that is still recovering from great trauma. The city’s recovery has been helped not only by donations from all around the country, but also by a steady influx of volunteer labor from high schools, colleges, churches, companies and other organizations. As we hosted young adult trips throughout these years, the idea kept emerging: What if we could have the house here and include space for volunteers or people in discernment or even people in initial formation? As several of us met in El Paso, Texas, to plan future collaboration, the idea of Houses of Charity in different places in the country also came up. The Federation leadership has supported the idea and an initial meeting for those interested was held in Cincinnati, Ohio, last spring. 

After the weekend, I headed to New Orleans for a month of volunteering and scouting. I was offered hospitality by the Daughters of Charity who have been in New Orleans since the Sisters of Charity became the Daughters in the mid-1800s. They welcomed me warmly and were an enormous help and support. S. Anthony, director of strategic planning for Catholic Charities, in particular introduced me to people all over the city working with the poor.

I met with people in the diocese and with Sisters from other communities who have been there before, during and after Katrina. I met with the director of Catholic education and the director of peace and justice for the diocese, with people in parishes and with Catholic Charities. 

I spent several days each week as a volunteer with Operation Helping Hands. Catholic Charities in New Orleans began the program after Katrina to help homeowners by providing volunteers to gut, rebuild and paint. Volunteers from all over the country have come to the city and have passed through the numerous programs involved in bringing the people back and restoring homes. Operation Helping Hands also hosts long-term volunteers, mostly 20-something young people who give one year of service after college or before going. These were my steady companions during my month of service. Mostly we painted, but other days we pulled up flooring, mudded drywall and removed debris. I worked with high school students from Boston and Seattle, and college students from Philadelphia - and even the University of Dayton. We worked all over the city as there are needs everywhere. Each day brought new people, new conversations and young people who were passionate to make a difference. I met a few who are in discernment about religious life and others who were anxious to find their place in the world.  

 I volunteered a couple mornings for the daytime homeless center run by the Presentation Sisters. These Sisters did a Federation-wide discernment about new ministries to the poor and were scheduled to arrive pre-Katrina, but were delayed due to the storm. I met the St. Joseph Sisters who conduct adult education at a center next to a St. Vincent de Paul store. The Adrian Dominican Sisters have four Sisters who have begun a house with room for some of their Sisters to come for short-term volunteer experiences. They are hosting a week-long “nun build” this fall in St. Bernard parish, one of the hardest hit areas from Katrina. The Religious of the Sacred Heart who had served as mostly educators had Sisters who took over an empty rectory and converted it to a volunteer house. The Sisters of St. Joseph also are beginning a house for young adult volunteers. Many of the communities who have been in New Orleans for years have had to adapt to new ministries, new surroundings and new needs. One Sister told me, “We know that everything has changed and we are trying to find our way in this new changed place.” Her comments struck me as a metaphor for our lives as women religious in this day and age.

I looked at housing possibilities around the city as well and was highly encouraged by all the Sisters I met. “We need everything,” one Sister remarked. 

Overall, the needs and the people encouraged the continuing desire to form a House of Charity in the city. As I returned from New Orleans I sent a report to the Sisters of Charity Federation Leadership. The next steps are to be determined!