Mission Advancement Egram - January 31, 2023

California Region

Mission Advancement Egram

January 31, 2023

One Heart. One Hope. One Mission.

MESSAGE FROM MISSION ADVANCEMENT

...proclaiming God's goodness and compassionate love

Dear Friends,

Most likely you have seen the plight of a homeless individual. For those of us living in California, this social tragedy seems ever present. Last week, I was privileged to participate in the annual homeless count as mandated by HUD, a count of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness on a single day in January. Here are two of the individuals that SND Associate Kevin McNamara and I encountered. We gave each person we met a bag lunch, provided by our SND Associates. On the left, Kevin gently awakens a gentleman in his late 30's who was curled up in a sleeping bag in Thousand Oaks; on the bottom right of the photo is a bag of day-old bread that he discovered outside a local market. He is a veteran and has done jail time for public intoxication. On the right is Henry who spent the night behind a storage unit. He is in his late 20's, a native of Ventura and someone who has aged out of the foster care system.

When we as Sisters of Notre Dame commit ourselves to share the love of our good and provident God, we discover innumerable opportunities in our midst. Thank you for being our partners through your encouragement and spiritual and financial support. Many hands and many hearts work miracles--as we see in Henry's broad smile very early on a cold January morning.

Grateful blessings, today and always,

Sr. Lisa Megaffin, S.N.D.

Director of Mission Advancement Services

PS--During this Catholic Schools Week, we offer our gratitude

and prayerful good wishes to all who are engaged in this awesome ministry in any capacity. Indeed, we have all been touched by the faith, excellence and service that are hallmarks

of a Catholic school education.

FROM THE CALIFORNIA GRAPEVINE

I was a stranger and you welcomed me...

Sr. Judeen Julier and Sr. Val Roxburgh (third and fourth from the left) work in the outdoor kitchen, preparing food for the migrants.

Sr. Kaitlin Morse, an SND novice, serves beverages. In summary, Sr. Kaitlin wrote, "I find it hard to articulate all that I saw, experienced and learned. For certain, I am forever changed and I am so grateful for that..."

Earlier this month, several SNDs visited Border Compassion in Calexico. Its mission is to invite faith-communities to have a cross-over experience at the California/Mexico border, while also offering a compassionate humanitarian response to families living at the Posada del Migrante Shelter. This facility houses up to 300 people, families who are awaiting their asylum hearing; the primary task of Border Compassion is to ensure that the residents have food, medicine and clothing.

Conditions at the shelter are rudimentary: there is limited refrigeration, hot water and air conditioning though summer temperatures can exceed 115 degrees, and the facilities far exceed capacity.

Border Compassion’s invitation is simple: to cross-over a border, a marginalized space, to be displaced from one's comfort zone to serve the other, to hold the suffering, and to broaden one's perspective. These experiences are powerful, for they enable faith communities to cross-over to collaborate, give, learn, serve as a public witness, and engage in activism for systemic change aimed to bring about more just immigration policies. For further information, visit Border Compassion's website.

Sr. Rita Schroeder and Sr. Leanne Hubbard traveled to St. John Neumann Parish in Santa Maria for the BEHOLD Youth Retreat on Saturday, January 14. This event attracted more than 350 youth who are preparing for Confirmation. Sr. Rita served as one of the MC's for the day, including moderating the question and answer discussion on priestly and religious life. Sr. Leanne (shown here with Fr. Andrew Laguna, S.J., the Jesuit Vocation Promoter) helped to monitor the interactive activities in the parish hall. She said that the most meaningful activity necessitated blindfolding nearly one hundred teens who then were asked to walk around in the dark asking, “Are you Jesus?” One participant was designated Jesus and asked to take off his or her blindfold. Anyone who found Jesus was to take off the blindfold too, and stay attached to Jesus as they walked around. Anyone part of the growing amoeba of people connected to Jesus could answer yes to “Are you Jesus?” and so the body of Christ grew until all were unmasked. This was quite a meditation to watch unfold four times!

Making it a Habit in California, Uganda, Ohio and more!

Our 2023 Nun Run is just around the bend and we look forward to welcoming you to our 5K and 1 mile event, or the virtual challenge. Now is the time to register and join a fundraising or walking/running team. The photos above show Ofelia Santiago and Sr. Joann Schlarbaum nearing the finish line, students at St. Julie Mission in Uganda following their race, and a toddler and his dad sharing the joy of the moment! A special feature of the day is a variety of non-profit organizations at the Community Service Fair. They will showcase their mission, programs and volunteer opportunities. AND you don't want to miss the ever-famous pancake breakfast hosted by volunteers from the St. Paschal Baylon Men's Club.

A little friendly competition!

There will be prizes for the largest teams as well as year-long bragging rights! To date, the top teams (overall, not by team categories) in order of standings are

St. Jude the Apostle School

St. Paschal Baylon School Bears

La Reina High School & Middle School

Horan Siblings & Friends

Our Lady of Guadalupe School

LA Star Steppers

Tie between: Chardon-Ay (Ohio) and SND Associates

If you already registered for the Nun Run and didn't select a team, email infoca@sndusa.org and indicate which team you wish to join. Follow this link for a complete list of teams...

Special thanks to our sponsors--scroll toward the bottom of this page to see the list and please thank them for supporting the Sisters of Notre Dame!

And many thanks to the top Fundraising Teams:

Knights of Columbus Council #8072, Westlake Village--SND Associate Candidate

Gary Tetzlaff, Captain

Horan Siblings & Friends--SND Associate Jen Coito, Captain

LA Star Steppers--Sr. Judeen Julier, Captain

Megaffin's Marathoners--Sr. Lisa Megaffin, Captain

Running Robbins--Sr. Regina Robbins, Captain

Team Jean--SND Associate Anne Interrante, Captain

SND Associates--SND Associate Olga Hernandez, Captain

Prizes will be awarded for top teams (participants and fundraisers) in several categories! Please note that prizes for fundraising teams will be based on team standings as of 7:00 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 3.

Follow this link to register and/or donate. Information regarding registration, running and fundraising teams, and the community service fair, is available at www.nun.run; for assistance in setting up a team and general questions, just email Jen Coito.

The SNDs are deeply grateful to all of our previous and current participants, sponsors, donors and volunteers. Proceeds from this event underwrite SND outreach to those in need. When registering or making a donation, be sure to select your favorite team. And thank you for making it a habit!