(Pictured: Fr. Mike McCue, OSFS, and De Sales Service Works volunteer Tim Gallagher)
Editor's Note: In a blog entry on Monday, DSW volunteer Meg Weber offered her reflection on her experience of spending her Fall break in Camden. Today, Fr. Mike McCue, OSFS, offers his reflection on the experience of these volunteers and reflects on one of the projects the volunteers worked on during their stay. Francis de Sales was a great lover of words, and Fr. Mike's reflection is a good reminder to us all of the power of words in our lives.
This Columbus Day long-weekend four members of DeSales University took an alternative fall break with DSW. Three students, Tim, Helen and Meg, and a member of the University Service Learning team, Latoya, served in a variety of ways over the four days. They helped in the rehab of the parish hall, made and served lunches, participated at New Visions Day shelter, visited Oblate Mickey McGrath’s studio in South Camden, and toured Hopeworks back on our block. All this work encourages the people of Camden and gives volunteers insight into big urban issues. It also gives volunteers the opportunity to get beyond “issues” to the level of people meeting people in Christian service.
This group from DSU initiated a project that will be continued the last week in October. Campbell’s Soup has had a long association with this city. The soup factories that used to employ wave after wave of new Americans and whose aromas filled the downtown air are now gone, but Campbell’s headquarters remains in Camden. They are sponsoring a service week this October for employees and neighborhoods. Our State Street area will benefit from this involvement.
One of the projects involves painting the boarded up windows of abandoned buildings in our neighborhood. The DeSales University Salesian Service team contributed to this by working on a prototype, painting a house’s broken-down porch and adding color to the boards over the windows. We painted Salesian good thoughts to offer the positive, good-sense vision of St. Francis de Sales to this environment. This project does not fix the problem of these buildings---but the bright, clean color and uplifting words make a difference.
St. Francis de Sales is well known for his sayings---expressed in short, memorable phrases:
“Be who you are and be that well.”
“Nothing is as strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as true strength.”
“Be patient with everyone, first of all with yourself.”
“We must do all by love, nothing by force.”
“It is a great part of our perfection to support one another in our imperfections.”
“We must be displeased with our faults in a firm yet tranquil manner.”
“Accept peacefully all the duties that come your way, taking them in order, one by one.”
“There is no soil so barren that diligent tenderness doesn’t bring some fruit.”
I could go on because there are hundreds of these wise sayings. They have some similarity to the Lord’s parables in that they are memorable and often express values that are the reverse of what is expected. They look good painted in the neighborhood. Next week, DSW volunteers and school children from Holy Name School will continue this effort along with volunteers from Campbell’s Soup.
Volunteers also distribute cards with Salesian quotes printed on them out with lunches to the individuals and families who come for food. People seem to enjoy the good sense, positive out-look, and the reminder that God is to be found in every circumstance---guiding, challenging offering blessing. Perhaps the reason De Sales came up with so many, and the reason they have been popular, is that they are memorable and thus can be carried into all aspects of life to put the faith we love into practice.
This Columbus Day long-weekend four members of DeSales University took an alternative fall break with DSW. Three students, Tim, Helen and Meg, and a member of the University Service Learning team, Latoya, served in a variety of ways over the four days. They helped in the rehab of the parish hall, made and served lunches, participated at New Visions Day shelter, visited Oblate Mickey McGrath’s studio in South Camden, and toured Hopeworks back on our block. All this work encourages the people of Camden and gives volunteers insight into big urban issues. It also gives volunteers the opportunity to get beyond “issues” to the level of people meeting people in Christian service.
This group from DSU initiated a project that will be continued the last week in October. Campbell’s Soup has had a long association with this city. The soup factories that used to employ wave after wave of new Americans and whose aromas filled the downtown air are now gone, but Campbell’s headquarters remains in Camden. They are sponsoring a service week this October for employees and neighborhoods. Our State Street area will benefit from this involvement.
One of the projects involves painting the boarded up windows of abandoned buildings in our neighborhood. The DeSales University Salesian Service team contributed to this by working on a prototype, painting a house’s broken-down porch and adding color to the boards over the windows. We painted Salesian good thoughts to offer the positive, good-sense vision of St. Francis de Sales to this environment. This project does not fix the problem of these buildings---but the bright, clean color and uplifting words make a difference.
St. Francis de Sales is well known for his sayings---expressed in short, memorable phrases:
“Be who you are and be that well.”
“Nothing is as strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as true strength.”
“Be patient with everyone, first of all with yourself.”
“We must do all by love, nothing by force.”
“It is a great part of our perfection to support one another in our imperfections.”
“We must be displeased with our faults in a firm yet tranquil manner.”
“Accept peacefully all the duties that come your way, taking them in order, one by one.”
“There is no soil so barren that diligent tenderness doesn’t bring some fruit.”
I could go on because there are hundreds of these wise sayings. They have some similarity to the Lord’s parables in that they are memorable and often express values that are the reverse of what is expected. They look good painted in the neighborhood. Next week, DSW volunteers and school children from Holy Name School will continue this effort along with volunteers from Campbell’s Soup.
Volunteers also distribute cards with Salesian quotes printed on them out with lunches to the individuals and families who come for food. People seem to enjoy the good sense, positive out-look, and the reminder that God is to be found in every circumstance---guiding, challenging offering blessing. Perhaps the reason De Sales came up with so many, and the reason they have been popular, is that they are memorable and thus can be carried into all aspects of life to put the faith we love into practice.
