Caring
Catholics Chicago Based Group Returns
Here in the Bible Belt, Catholics are but a
blip on the radar screen of religion. According to Wikipedia, an online
encyclopedia, the percentage of Catholics in Mississippi ranks lowest of
all states and stands at a paltry four percent. The same source lists one
hundred seventeen churches in Pontotoc County. Only one of these is a Roman
Catholic congregation.
I’ve not seen a survey, nor have I taken a poll, but I imagine there
are a lot of people in Pontotoc County who don’t know someone else in
Pontotoc County who is a Catholic by faith, let alone number Catholics among
their friends. And, had it not been for people of all faiths and Christian
denominations joining hands to help others in the aftermath of the deadly
tornado that ripped apart Pontotoc County in 2001, my family might not have
become acquainted with those Catholics we now count as friends.
I’ve learned that Catholics have a heart for the poor and a willingness
to volunteer that ranks as high on the list as that of any area religious
group. Through my association with Habitat for Humanity in Pontotoc County,
I’ve witnessed how Catholics from all across America have involved
themselves in the lives of the working poor of Pontotoc County. They’ve
come by large group and small group, by car, van and plane, from high schools,
colleges and universities, and from varied careers, all to fulfill the teachings
of Christ to give those who thirst a drink in His name and thus render service
to Him by doing for "the least of these, my brethren."
Many of the groups that have journeyed to Pontotoc to help as volunteers
for Habitat for Humanity have come from the Midwest, from states such as
Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri, with the northeastern states of Maine and
New York sending multiple groups, too. While other faith-based organizations,
apart from Catholics, have also contributed volunteers, it is Catholics that
have supplied the greatest number volunteers, likely because in the northern
states, the Roman Catholic Church is the dominant church.
For two successive years, Charis Ministries, a service-based organization
in the Catholic Church, has sent volunteers to work with Pontotoc County
Habitat for Humanity. Members of this organization are young adults. Both
groups were comprised of volunteers from Chicago.
One website defined the mission of Charis Ministries as "A Jesuit ministry
offering the gifts of Ignatian spirituality to men and women in their 20's
and 30's, single and married, through workshops, retreats, prayer, worship,
and service."
I had forgotten the age restriction when I asked about Ed, one of the men
who came last year. I was told he had grown too old for member qualifications
and was now forty. Ed may be too old to remain a member of Charis Ministries,
but I image he’s found another organization that meets his need to grow
spiritually and serve others.
There were eight members of the most recent Charis group of volunteers, five
women and three men. For three of these, this was their second trip. Barbara
and I got to know a little about Dave, Karen and Melissa last year. Dave
had told us that he would be marrying in the fall. We knew that Karen was
an information technology consultant working with Anderson Consulting, now
Accenture. Melissa worked for a financial corporation and was learning the
company business one department at a time.
A week is not much time to get to know folks, especially when fellowship
of evening meals provides the only opportunities to get acquainted, but I
found this group easy to draw into a conversation at the dinner table. Early
in the week, I asked several of the ones seated near me to recall their favorite
sandwich and later their usual choice of a breakfast beverage. They may not
have been as open about their religion, but they didn’t hold back when
it came to discussing food. For that matter, they didn’t hold back when
it came to eating our delicious southern cooking either.
Most of the ones I asked had a favorite, non-burger sandwich. A couple of
them preferred deli-sliced turkey on Italian bread or other crusty bread.
Karen, one of two (possibly three) vegetarians, shared of her enjoyment of
a cucumber sandwich topped with a spread of pureed chickpeas. It sounded
pretty awful to me, but that’s primarily because I don’t like the
taste of un-pickled cucumbers. Peanut butter and banana was another favorite,
though lovers of this sandwich thought it gross to mash the bananas into
the peanut butter, which is the way my wife enjoys hers.
Ryan, Habitat’s VISTA worker and Volunteer Coordinator took the prize
for the most complex sandwich. Ryan stated that from around the fourth or
fifth grade and until he went off to a boarding school as a sophomore his
daily lunch consisted of something of a Dagwood-styled creation. Starting
with a slice of Italian bread, Ryan builds his favorite sandwich in the following
order, hard salami, pepperoni, provolone cheese, fresh baby spinach, bell
pepper rings, onion, oregano, black pepper, yellow mustard and Italian dressing
whenever available. It sounds like something I would enjoy, but I’ve
not yet tried one. However, I’m impressed that anyone could stick with
a single daily favorite for so many years. Yes, Ryan still makes them
occasionally, though his budget doesn’t allow frequent indulgence of
his favorite sandwich.
Of the volunteers whom I asked about a favorite breakfast drink, no one mentioned
coffee. Instead, I heard cranberry juice, orange juice, Diet Pepsi and water.
There’s something wrong with folks who don’t eat breakfast and
especially folks who don’t drink coffee for breakfast. Maybe, coffee
is an acquired taste, and maybe, it's too much trouble for singles to make,
and simply popping something open takes less time.
Annie has served as a volunteer coordinator for Charis Ministries, but has
recently committed to perform a similar job for a different organization.
Jay is a certified public account, and as such seemed more gregarious and
fun loving than the average C.P.A. that I know. Julie has a doctorate in
Chemistry and trains customs personnel, nationally and internationally, to
detect dual-use chemicals that have a commercial use and could also contribute
to the manufacture of a weapon of mass destruction.
Greg just finished college and will be teaching Spanish to high school students
this fall. Greg expressed an interest in Pontotoc’s history and heritage
early in the week. I couldn’t do justice to the cause, but I mentioned
our museum and post office that’s maintained by the Pontotoc Historical
society and shared some of what I knew of famous landmarks and people. Sarah
Naugher did a better job when she took the group to the museum, one night,
to see a WPA commissioned painting of the first Christian marriage in America
from the days of the Spanish explorer, Hernando DeSoto.
Dania (think Don and rhyme with Sonya) and Jay both play the piano and each
entertained us for a few minutes the night we ate at First Baptist Church.
Dania is a Genetic Counselor for a children’s hospital in Chicago.
The Charis group of volunteers toured the sights of Memphis on Wednesday,
their day off. They loved seeing the ducks at the Peabody Hotel, the sights
and sounds along Beale Street and were engaged by the history of the Lorraine
Motel, now a Civil Rights museum. I don’t know that the herbivores in
the group loved dining that evening at the Rendezvous Restaurant, whose specialty
is pork spareribs, but the carnivores did.
With respect to food, most evening meals for the group were provided by local
churches in Pontotoc. West Heights Baptists served them two meals, Oak Hill
Baptists blew them away with genuine home cooking that included a chocolate
cobbler. The Brotherhood at First Baptist invited them to eat grilled burgers
and homemade desserts at an appreciation dinner for widows and widowers,
and members of Maple Drive Presbyterian treated us to good selection of
home-cooked foods on Friday night, the last night the group was in Pontotoc.
I doubt I could hold out to multiple weeks of food and fellowship with groups
as great as the Charis Ministries group, and still keep my regular job, but
it would be fun to try. There’s no such thing as "my favorite group
of volunteers." I’ve enjoyed all of the ones that have come to Pontotoc
to help Habitat for Humanity, and it’s fair to say I’ve loved all
of them, differently perhaps, but loved nonetheless.
Habitat’s
Thirtieth Affordable Housing
Last Sunday, Pontotoc County Habitat for Humanity dedicated it’s thirtieth
house and turned the keys over to the new owners. When one considers that
the Pontotoc County affiliate has been in existence for sixteen years, the
mention of thirty houses doesn’t tell the whole story.
In 2001, only seven houses had been built by this affiliate. Yet, the need
for affordable housing, following the 2001 tornado, created something of
a building boom for Habitat. In the past six years Habitat has built twenty
three houses.
In case folks have forgotten, Habitat for Humanity is not a give-away program.
Persons who are fortunate enough to become homeowners of a Habitat for Humanity
house must have the ability to pay a mortgage. Habitat mortgages are set
at zero percent interest, and yes, the bank note is smaller than that for
a typical homeowner with a house of similar size, but that’s because
Habitat only charges for the materials and any labor they are unable to secure
through volunteers. Basically, Habitat homeowners are able to purchase a
house at roughly half the amount charged by typical home builders.
Last
Sunday, the family of Luis Gordillo became the newest owners of a house
constructed by Pontotoc County Habitat for Humanity. It’s a modest,
attractively designed, three-bedroom house on a conventional foundation.
It is also the seventh house to be constructed in the Circle of Hope subdivision.
The Charis volunteers worked on finishing the foundation of the eighth house
in Circle Hope, one that’s adjacent to the Gordillo home.
Since Habitat for Humanity is a Christian organization, any house dedication
is likely to involve one or more ministers. Because the new owners are Catholic,
the local priest blessed the home and sprinkled holy water on the doorposts
throughout the home. The entire ceremony lasted less than thirty minutes
and consisted of various presentations and prayers by Habitat officers and
board members.
Refreshments were served following the dedication and guests were invited
to tour the new home. The Gordillo family posed for pictures with both family
and friends. Approximately sixty persons attended the dedication ceremony.
Bodock Beau
Party Differences
Carl Wayne Hardeman sent us the following tale:
Fred Thompson and Hillary were walking down the street when they came to
a homeless person. Fred gave the homeless person his business card and
told him to come to his office for a job. He then took $20 out of his pocket
and gave it to the homeless person, and told him to clean up and get himself
a hot meal.
Hillary was very impressed, so when they came to another homeless person,
she decided to help. She walked over to the homeless person and gave him
directions to the welfare office. She then reached into Thompson's pocket
and got out $20. She kept $15 for administrative fees and gave the homeless
person $5.
Now do you understand the difference between a Democrat and a Republican?
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