The Geauga Faith Rescue Mission
Two weeks ago, I attended the annual fund-raiser for the Geauga Faith Rescue Mission. This organization, founded in 2014, is a non-profit, faith-based housing program for men and women that provides a “safe and structured living environment while assisting our residents into stability.” It opened its men’s shelter in Chardon in November 2022. Early on, the Sisters of Notre Dame have supported this mission in various ways: serving on the board, providing dinner every Friday evening at the men’s shelter, volunteering to make dessert every Friday, writing letters to the men at the shelter, and hosting their annual fundraiser in our auditorium which other volunteers transform into a Banquet Hall. (NOTE: Geauga [pronounced Jee – AWE – ga] is an Onondaga or Seneca word meaning “raccoon.” It was the original name of the Grand River in Ohio.)
I was very impressed by this fund-raising event–especially by the hundreds of people in attendance, mostly our neighbors in the county. After a delicious dinner (served by volunteers from a local organization called “Acts 6”), we listened to an array of speakers and viewed some short videos that explained the work of the mission in greater detail. Let me list a few facts and experiences that touched me.
1) Many local churches support the Mission: United Methodist Church, Cornerstone Bible Church, Christian Fellowship Church, St. Mary Catholic Church, Grace Evangelical Church, to name a few. Other supportive organizations include: JL Taylor Electric Company, Paterson Farms, O’Reilly Equipment, Silco, INC, the Knights of Columbus, St. Vincent de Paul Society, Enzo Co., Resident Artists, Universal Windows, and many “anonymous friends.” These people are all united in their desire to help our neighbors in crisis–especially with homelessness.
2) Geauga County is a beautiful semi-rural county with quaint towns such as Middlefield, Burton, and Chardon. Its rolling hills are dotted with farms as well as newer developments, some with large expensive homes. We don’t see homeless people on our streets or standing at traffic lights holding signs. But we, like virtually all communities, have people who are homeless in our midst: sleeping on a friend’s couch, living in an uncle’s garage, camping out in the woods, or living in their cars.
3) The Mission has only one paid full-time employee: Nathan Long, Executive Director, a dynamic and faith-filled man. It also has two part-time employees. Everyone else–many with impressive credentials–volunteer their time in various capacities.
4) As I looked around the large room, I sensed that those of us attending the dinner were diverse with regard to age, religion, economic status, and politics. But we were united in our deep concern for individuals in need. And we all wanted to help in whatever way we could.
5) Interesting note: Geauga county is home to 26,000 Amish, especially in the Middlefield area. They have formed an organization called NOAH (North Ohio Assisting Hands) which helps with disaster relief and community services. One day a group of about 20 Amish men arrived at the one-story women’s shelter and put on the back porch, the second floor, and a roof—all in a single working day! A professional video-photographer (donating his time and skills too!) made a time-laspe video of that achievement. At the end of this reflection, I’ve provided the address for GFRMission website which includes that video. I hope you have time to watch it. It takes less than a minute and is fascinating!
6) At the dinner, we saw other videos featuring men whose lives have been turned around by the Mission. In addition, one of the speakers at the fund-raiser was Jesse, a current guest at the Mission. He shared his personal story with us, a story that made homelessness personal and real. It was uplifting to hear from these men who have been helped in many ways.
At the end of the fund-raiser, the mission naturally asked for financial assistance. They showed a chart that listed things like this: if we had 20 people who could give $5 a month, we would raise $1200; if we had 20 people who could give $10 a month, we would raise $2400; if we had 10 people who could give $500 a year, we would raise $5,000… and on and on the list went.Their financial director, Paul Mysyk, told this amazing story. The Mission owed $104,000 on their loan to purchase the house for the men’s shelter. One day on their bank statement they saw this: – $104,000. What was that minus sign doing there? They assumed there had been a mistake, but when they met with the bank they learned an anonymous donor had paid off the entire mortgage! Whoever it was, did this at another branch of the bank to preserve his/her/their anonymity. To me this generous donation showed how someone(s) with considerable means really appreciated what the Geauga Faith Rescue Mission was doing for our local community!
In short, that evening at the fund-raiser dinner I learned anew: 1) Small can be beautiful and effective. 2) There are many people around us with loving and generous hearts. 3) All communities have individuals in need, our “neighbors.” And 4) working together with others, we can do remarkable Christ-like deeds for our neighbor.
For reflection:
Is there anything in this story of the Geauga Faith Rescue Mission that caught your attention?
Have you ever worked with a diverse group in regard to age, religion, economic status, or politics in order to help others in need?
Are there other worthy organizations that you or your parish support through volunteer work, financial contributions, or prayer? I would love to hear about these! Please share some of them below.
Here is the website for the Geauga Faith Rescue Mission: https://www.gfrmission.org The first video, with one of their guests, explains the Mission. Scroll down to the second video after the pictures of the women’s shelter being built. Click on that video for the time-lapse photography of the Amish men building the structure of the women’s shelter in a single day.
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PS: A big THANK YOU to the parishioners of the Church of the Resurrection in Solon, Ohio who came to my talk on “Mary, Woman of Hope and One of Us” last Monday evening. I was truly edified that so many “showed up” to hear a one-hour presentation on Mary. Thank you for your eagerness, attentiveness, and your faith! Special thanks to Sister Susan for inviting me and for taking care of all of the details!
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I found a short song entitled “Love God, Love Our Neighbor” by Dale Sechrest. It’s a simple refrain repeated three times. The refrain gets to the heart of Jesus’ teaching… It is the underlying reason why the Geauga Faith Rescue Mission was founded… why the board and staff are working so hard… why so many people support the mission… why 20 Amish men donated their skills and labor for a day… why so many people attended the fund raiser… and why so many continue to pray for the success of this small faith-based organization in the heart of Geauga County.
(Disclaimer: I am recommending only the video posted here and NOT necessarily the other videos that pop-up automatically after this video.)
I hope you might leave a comment below:
When Have You Felt Set Free?
Have you ever felt like a bird in a cage? If so, have you ever felt set free from your cage? I suggest you reflect on this experience in your life. To help you do that, here are some examples from my own life when I felt set free. Some go way back.
Learning to print my name all by myself. (That capital S was so hard!)
Getting off the school bus on the last day of school before summer vacation and skipping up our long driveway and into the house.
Making up with my little girlfriend after some spat we had.
Walking out of the confessional.
Being accused of cheating in fourth grade (I didn’t do it, honest!) and being made to stay in during recess and “discuss the matter” with Mrs. Farrar and explaining (through my tears) that I had not cheated honest! and being believed by her and being told to go outside with the other kids who were anxiously waiting on the playground to hear if I had been found innocent or guilty of the crime.
Turning 16 and coming out of the BMV with my very own temporary driver’s license and Mom handing me the car keys.
Graduating from college.
Getting my first classroom (Notre Dame Academy, now NDCL, room 104) and being able to design my own bulletin boards and to decide where to put my teacher’s desk and how to arrange all the kids’ desks (within certain perameters, of course.)
Realizing that some of the changes made by Vatican II had opened windows I didn’t even realize were shut and feeling a gentle breeze on my face.
Life-giving friendships.
Good books, good movies, good music–too numerous to list.
Jesus was big on freedom. But freedom for Jesus was not the “do whatever you want to do” kind. It was more the “do what you ought” kind or “do the loving thing” kind. Look at Matthew 25. It challenges us to ask, “How free am I to feed the hungry…give drink to the thirsty… welcome the stranger… care for the sick… visit someone in prison?” Look at Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan. Was there ever a freer guy than that Samaritan? In the parable of the Prodigal Son, who is freer: the forgiving father or the resentful older brother? And who was freer than Jesus himself–even when he was hanging on the cross?!
But an important question to ask is this: what is our freedom FOR? To answer that question I go back to my scripture course at Duquense University (1980-1) taught by my dear friend, Fr. Demetrius Dumm, OSB. He stressed to us that freedom is the gift that we use to help others become more free. Years later I found this quote by Toni Morrison, who obviously agrees with Fr. Demetrius: “The function of freedom is to free somebody else.” Good parents are using their gift of freedom to help their children grow in freedom. Good teachers use their freedom to bestow knowledge and skills that will help their students grow in freedom. Good friends use their freedom to help each other be freed from potenial “demons” that can restrict true freedom–such as self-preoccupation, fear, pride, apathy, hopelessness.
To aid in your reflection on this vital concept of freedom, I will close with four quotations that have helped me over the years.
“Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better.” Albert Camus
Obedience to God means more freedom, for it “lifts the burden of perpetual choice.” Evelyn Underhill
“The young monk asked the Master: ‘How can I ever get emancipated?’
The Master answered: ‘Who has ever put you in bondage?'” A Zen Story
“The big question of freedom is: How do you let the goodness out?” Thomas Merton
For reflection:
Have you ever had an experience of being set free? What was that experience like for you?
Have you ever felt that you helped someone else be set free? How did that experience feel for you?
Does anything in this reflection stand out for you today?
This Saturday is the Feast of All Saints. (This year, since it falls on a Saturday it is not a holy day of obligation.) On this day we honor the thousands of saints that the Church has canonized over the centuries. In honor of this feast, I have chosen a beautiful Litany of the Saints that celebrates only a few of our saints (4:32 mins.) The Litany of the Saints is traditionally sung on Holy Saturday at the Easter Vigil. Some of the names you’ll be familiar with. But with other names you may be asking, “Who’s that?” Feel free to add your favorite saint if he or she is not included. The Saints are a diverse group of people. When it comes to sanctity, one size does not fit all. But one thing the saints share in common is this: they were FREE to love and serve God and others in their unique circumstances, by using the particular gifts God had given them. This video was made by Michella Sherliza.
(Disclaimer: I am recommending only the video “Freedom.” I am not necessarily recommending the other videos that appear after this one. Discretion is advised.)
I enthusiastically invite you to share a thought or two below.
We Are Part of God’s Landscape
In the book of Genesis, there are two creation stories. In chapter 1, God spends the first five days of creation fashioning the sun and moon, plants and animals. On the sixth day, God creates more animals–including human beings saying “Let us make man in our own image, after our likeness. Let them (both male and female are created simultaneously in this version) have dominion” over the rest of creation. (v. 26) That word “dominion” is an unfortunate word choice, for it has led us humans to think that we can do whatever we wanted with creation–because the Bible says we can. Isn’t that what dominion means? To rule over? To dominate? To have complete control over?
The second creaton story in chapter 2 is different. God creates the man first and puts him in a lovely garden “to cultivate and care for it.” (v. 15) How different those words are from “have dominion over.” But soon God senses Adam’s loneliness and creates for him a variety of animals, “but none proved to be a suitable partner for the man.” ( v.20) Then God gets a better idea. God creates the first woman, Eve. And I can say (with complete objectivity) that making the woman was one of God’s best ideas!
Now, where am I going with all of this? Let me begin by saying: I am one lucky woman. I live on a large piece of property (over 400 acres) that has woods, meadows, lawns, fields, lakes, hills, and even an orchard. Housed on this land are also a high school, elementary school, provincial center, retreat center, and Notre Dame Village, which consists of an 81-unit apartment building, three memory care units, and over 40 houses for senior living. But I am luckiest because I have access to the natural beauties on this land–especially the woods for which I have a particular fondness. In addition, I am still physically capable of walking into the woods for a little stroll. Best of all, I have found my very own tree stump that I can sit on and just be!
This is my point: I believe we regularly need experiences of being part of God’s vast landscapes. To experience (in the words of Father Thomas Berry) that “we are creatures not merely ON the earth, we are OF the earth.” To experience our oneness with all of creation: brother son, sister moon, cousin deer, niece chipmunk, uncle tree, mother soil. And to realize that we are called not to control and dominate our environment, but to “tend and care for it,” as Adam and Eve tended and cared for the Garden of Eden.
As soon as I sit on “my” stump in “our” woods, the magic begins to happen. I sit silent and motionless for a few moments. In other words, I become part of the landscape. Within minutes, the world of the forest comes alive. A bird alights on a tree near me. Oblivious to my presence, he begins to chirp. I hear the rustle of leaves on the forest floor, and soon I spot a black squirrel scurrying about, doing his/her urgent daily business: like foraging for a tasty acorn. I hear the chirp of a chipmunk. It is answered by another chirp, but both chirpers remain unseen. I gaze in wonder at the patches of sunlight strewn across the forest floor. I notice the tops of the trees swaying in the wind. And if it has rained recently, I can even smell the damp soil which is sustaining everything I behold–and sustaining me!
The poet Joan Mazza has written a poem called “Part of the Landscape” (from the book How to Love the World by James Crews, ed.) in which she describes sitting still on a park bench along her woodland walks. I resonate deeply with her experience. The last lines of her poem describe well what I too have experienced:
I hold still, photograph this world with just
my eyes, forget the news. My heart is here,
filled with gratitude as I fade and disappear.
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For reflection:
Do you resonate with the need to experience yourself as part of God’s vast landscapes? If so, when, where, or how do you find or nurture this experience?
What are some examples in history of we humans exerting “dominion” over creation that produced dire consequences?
What are some examples of we humans “tending and caring” for creation that produced good and beautiful consequences?
Do you have an experience of feeling part of God’s landscape that you would like to share below?
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P.S. I am mourning the loss of a dear friend, Sister Marilyn Sabatino, who went home to God quite suddenly last Friday evening. Marilyn was in my vow group of six, the oldest at age 82. She had a number of serious health issues, but she had said to several friends, “I told God I just want to live to celebrate my Diamond Jubilee (60 years). After that, I’m good to go.” We celebrated that jubilee this past summer. Last Monday, Marilyn also wrote a brief comment on this blog. She focused on two words that touched her: tenderness and loss. I now look upon these words as almost “her last will and testament” to us. Here they are: Thank you, Melannie, for today’s blog. It’s wonderful. I think that tenderness is a foundational quality. It leads to so many other human qualities like caring, love, compassion and just giving and receiving forgiveness. I was so inspired by the words about the falling leaves as an example of receiving new life from loss.” Friday evening she embraced God’s invitation to “new life”… and we who knew her so well and called her sister and friend, now mourn our “loss”… May she rest in peace. Amen.
As I mentioned, I love being in the woods–that’s because I love trees. Here’s an excerpt from a film made by National Geographic called “The Secret Life of Trees.” This excerpt is called “The Silent Friends.” This short video (less than 4 mins.) was made in Spain and it “highlights Spain’s breathtaking and diverse scenery.” The narrator speaks directly to trees. For me, her words are a love letter to trees. Some of my favorite lines are: “you have so much left to teach us… you are a shrine we visit to calm us down… you are the perfect listener… you give everything (the ripping off of the bark of the cinnamon trees is especially graphic. Such total giving–just so I can enjoy a cinnamon bun!)… I look forward to our next conversation.” Click on cc to get the captions.
(I am recommending only this video and not necessarily the others that pop up automatically after this one. Viewer discretion is advised.)
I eagerly await your comments below–on the reflection itself, the photos, or the video.
Five Quotations from Five Books
I was going over some notes I took from a few books I’ve read over the years. I thought I would share five of these quotations with you today.
“Autumn”
Appropriately, we’ll begin with a description of autumn by Joyce Rupp from the book The Circle of Life co-authored with Macrina Wiederkehr. You might want to gaze at the photo above for a few moments:
“In this lovely season of autumn when the dance of surrender is obvious, we find large spaces left where something beautiful once lived. As one by one the leaves go, a precious emptiness appears in the trees. The naked beauty of the branches can be seen, the birds’ abandoned nests become visible. The new spaces of emptiness reveal mountain ridges. At night if you stand beneath a tree and gaze upward, stars now peer through the branches. This is an important autumn lesson–when certain things fall away, there are other things than can be seen more clearly.” (p. 167)
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“Mistakes”
As many of you know, I admire Abraham Lincoln very much. Although I’ve read countless books about him, here’s a little story about him I had never heard before from Pulitzer Prize winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin, a leading authority on Lincoln. It’s from her book The Leadership Story: How Four Kids Became President. The four “kids” are Abe Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and Lyndon Johnson. One quality all four “kids” possessed that helped make them good leaders was their ability to learn from their mistakes. Here’s a mistake Lincoln made in his early years as a young politican.
“On certain occasions, however, Lincoln’s humor could be mean-spirited. After Democrat Jesse Thomas had ‘indulged in some fun’ at Lincoln’s expense, Lincoln ‘imitated Thomas in gesture and voice, at times caricaturing his walk and the very motion of his body’ and viciously mocking the ‘ludicrous’ way Thomas spoke. Soon the ‘skinning of Thomas’ became ‘the talk of the town.’ Realizing he had badly overstepped, Lincoln went to Thomas and wholeheartedly apologized. For years afterward, the memory of that misstep filled Lincoln with deep regret.” (p. 31)
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“Tenderness”
Here are some beautiful words on tenderness by Howard Hanger from his book Drink Deeply with Delight:
“The problem comes when you begin to equate brute force with inner strength. Pushiness with power. Bullying with potency. The problem comes when you assume that the only way to express strength is to push people around… Some of the toughest and most powerful actions in life are those which appear to be the weakest. Love, for instance. Mercy for another. And tenderness. When you express tenderness… real tenderness… you are putting your neck on the block. You are placing yourself in one of life’s most vulnerable places. In effect, you’re laying out your heart where it can be stomped flat… Yet, as frail and fragile as tenderness may appear, it can be one of the most potent and live-giving things you can do.” (p. 106)
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“Grief”
In April 1956, C. S. Lewis, British writer and confirmed bachelor, married Joy Davidson, an American poet with two small children. After only four years of happiness together, Joy died of cancer, leaving Lewis inconsolable. He kept a journal of his struggles with loneliness, grief, and faith. It is entitled A Grief Observed and is one of the finest things I’ve ever read on grief. Here is his description of the pain of Joy’s absence in his life:
“At first I was very afraid of going to places where Joy and I had been happy–our favorite pub, our favorite wood. But I decided to do it at once–like sending a pilot up again as soon as possible after he’s had a crash. Unexpectedly, it makes no difference. Her absence is no more emphatic in those places than anywhere else. Her absence is not local at all… The act of living is different all through. Her absence is like the sky, spread over everything.” (p. 11)
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“Pleasure”
Many years ago a friend gave me a book by J. Ruth Gendler entitled The Book of Qualities. It is a collection of 99 very brief descriptions of qualities–both inner aspects of the psyche (like fear or doubt) or qualities outside of ourselves (like the wind or service). Gendler personifies these qualities, that is, she describes each quality as a person. One of my favorites is Pleasure.
“Pleasure is wild and sweet. She likes purple flowers. She loves the sun and the wind and the night sky. She carries a silver bowl full of liquid moonlight. She has a cat named Midnight with stars on his paws… Many people mistrust Pleasure, and even more misunderstand her. For a long time I could hardly stand to be in the same room with her. I went to bed early to avoid her. I thought she was a gossip and a flirt and she drank too much. In school we learned she was dangerous, and I was sure that she would distract me from my work. I didn’t realize she could nurture me… As I have changed, Pleasure has changed. I have learned to value her friendship.”
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For reflection:
Did any sentence in any of the five quotations stand out for you today? If so, which? If you want, you can even tell why.
Is there anything you’d like to say about any of the topics: autumn… mistakes… tenderness… grief… pleasure?
Do you ever copy quotes from the books you read? What do you do with them afterwards?
Do you have a quote from something you’ve read that you would like to share with us below?
PS: Before the video, I am asking for your prayers for a women’s summit called SHINE for which I will be a panelist. The summit, on November 6th, is sponsored by our SND’s in the Toledo region. It features Katie Holmes, actress and filmmaker and a graduate of Notre Dame Academy in Toledo. The summit brings together women of all faiths, ages, and backgrounds to honor five women who exemplify the “five pillars of SHINE”: Support, Honor, Inspire, Nurture and Empower.” For more details, go to our SND website: sndusa.org. Click on Regions… Toledo… Then scroll down to SHINE. Thank you for keeping this event in your prayers!
I began this reflection with autumn. I’ll end with autumn too. This is pianist Roger Williams’ famous rendition of “Autumn Leaves”–against a background of lovely autumn foliage.
(Disclaimer: I am recommending only this video “Autumn Leaves.” I am not recommending the other videos that automatically pop up after this one. Viewer discretion is advised.)
I invite you to write a comment below!
Excellence in Architecture–and in Life
Once I was reading an article on architects. (I enjoy reading articles on things I know little or nothing about!) In it, the author was trying to discover what distiguished the really good architects from the medicore ones. Her conclusion? It was not the fact that good architects did things right the first time. No, it was “their willingness to revise, rework, redo.”
Isn’t this what determines excellence in almost every field, whether it’s cooking, writing, painting, leadership, gardening, music, or athletics? Take football. How many hours does a really good quarterback practice throwing passes or handing off the football? Excellent quarterbacks are willing to change their stance, revise their footwork, adjust their throwing, tweak their timing, submit to a new game plan–all in an attempt to become better at what they do.
Michelangelo, as far as I know, never excelled as a quarterback. But he did excel as an artist. He said to someone who envied his work, “If you knew how hard I worked at this, you might not think it was so wonderful.” Similarly, a woman once said to the great violinist Fritz Kreisler, “I’d give my life to play as beautifully as you!” Kreisler replied, “Madam, I have!”
As Christians, we are all called to excel in the spiritual life. We can even say, we are called to be good architects–architects of ourselves. St. Paul posed this question for the Corinthians, “Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16) We are all fashioning ourselves (with God’s grace, of course!) into a temple from the materials life bestows upon us. What materials? Our talents, limitations, background, relationships, good luck, bad luck, education, health, age, life experiences, etc. How hard are we willing to work at this fashioning? Are we totally content with ourselves and with the way things are? Do we say to ourselves, “This is me… I’ve always been this way… I’m too old, too tired… The demands of the Christian faith are just too hard for me.” Have we turned a legitimate rest along the road of life into a permanent stop? Or are we still engaged in the journey of life? Are we still listening to God’s call to revise, rework, and redo ourselves?
Jesus encourages revisions. In fact, he continuously calls us to conversion. His call is nothing less than the call to revise our behavior… to rework our attitude… to redo our priorities. He calls us to expand our heart… to continue to learn… to serve others… to forgive… to let go… and to find creative ways to contribute our small share of “goodness” to promote the common good. In the spiritual life, as in most worthwhile endeavors, it is never too late to make a few changes. It is never too late to strive for greater excellence.
Prayer: Jesus, give me the patience, the wisdom, and the strength to follow your call to conversion today.
For reflection:
Is there anything in your life right now that Jesus might be calling you to revise, rework, or redo?
For you personally what are some of the things that get in the way of heeding Jesus’ call to conversion?
Give yourself credit for some of the “revisions” you have made throughout your life to become a better person, a better Christian. Can you name a few?
The temple we are becoming may not look like St. Peter’s basilica. It may look more like this precious little house… (Photo by Kdibrik – Pixabay)
Sometimes it’s easier to see Jesus’ call to extraordinary individuals rather than to more ordinary individuals like ourselves. So today I chose a short video that shows that day, May 8, 2025, when Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, originally from Chicago, was elected the 267th Pope, taking the name Pope Leo XIV. Talk about a dramatic call from Jesus! I was struck by the somewhat “ordinary-looking” human being who stepped out onto the balcony that day. Understandably, he was emotional as tens of thousands of people–at the first sight of that white smoke–managed to get themselves to St. Peter’s Square to see and cheer for our new Pope. At one point, Pope Leo even seems to sniffle a little. In the background you will hear some contemporary chant saying: “Jesus, you call me by name… May I hear your voice… You love me, Jesus… Thank you Jesus.” You will see the new Pope’s motto: “In Illo, Uno Unum,” the words of St. Augustine, “In the One, we are one.” His coat of arms includes the crossed keys of St. Peter, the lily against a background of blue (a tribute to Mary), a heart pierced by an arrow, the emblem of his Order the Augustinians, and the book representing the Word of God.
May the words of the chant become our own: “Jesus, you call me by name… May I hear your voice… You love me Jesus… Thank you, Jesus.”
(Disclaimer: I am recommending only the video below on Pope Leo’s election day. I am not recommending any of the other videos that pop up automatically after this one. Viewer discretion is advised.)
Do you remember where you were when you heard we had a new Pope–and he was an American? What were some of your thoughts and feelings?
If you had a coat of arms, what would you put on it?
I welcome your comments on the reflection, the pictures, the video. Thank you!
