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NCNWR > News > News Item | |
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NewsAlum of Society of the Holy Child Jesus School Urges Helpers to Take 'Response-Ability' for Schools
March 6, 2009 Drexel Hill, Pa. -- An alumna of a school founded by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus, Marilyn Buckley, is following in the footsteps of the Foundress of the Society, Cornelia Connelly, by initiating a service project to beautify Catholic schools in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles on March 21. "One of the things that I really liked about the Holy Child nuns is that they taught us strength and confidence," Mrs. Buckley recalled. "They always wanted us to be in the community to help those that couldn’t help themselves." And now, 200 years after Connelly's birth and in the midst of a yearlong bicentennial celebration, Mrs. Buckley is doing just that. She and Response-Ability Executive Director, Elizabeth Eager, are taking spring cleaning to a whole new level by spearheading a volunteer effort to clean, paint, and provide teaching supplies to Catholic schools in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. Margaret Doyle, a Sister of the Holy Child, who is the Coordinator of New Ministries for the Society's American Province, as well as a member of the Bicentennial Planning Committee, said the school cleanup project would make the Society's Foundress proud. "Cornelia told one of the sisters that she was never without thoughts of her own children. She wanted the schools she started to be like homes for the children enrolled in them," Sr. Margaret said. "Improving schools for our students and teachers is just one small way we can continue to carry on Cornelia's legacy." In all, six schools will be spruced up based on "wish-lists" that principals provided. Some will be brightened with fresh paint, while others will have their staircases thoroughly cleaned and ceiling fans and windows washed. While the schools' needs vary, the common thread is that the sites where the service projects are being carried out are schools where Response-Ability volunteers teach. Response-Ability, a ministry of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, trains, coaches, and inspires new volunteer teachers at 14 schools in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, the Dominican Republic, and Chile. Eager said the beautification project will go a long way in exciting kids about learning. "In a lot of the schools where our volunteers teach, they're so concerned with just the basics often that they don't have time for things like cleaning the risers in the stairs. For the kids, I think it does make a huge difference," Eager said. "In one of the schools, the paint is peeling off the radiator. It doesn't give you that warm, fuzzy I-want-to-learn feeling." Besides benefiting students, Eager said volunteers will reap the rewards of learning about other communities. "Cornelia believed that each person had a gift to be shared. You can have somebody that can go to do a day of service and they'll find a gift there," Eager said. "They'll learn something in that experience. That is the value of serving, even more than meeting that immediate need is the transformation that happens for people." Lending a hand So far, a handful of people have vowed to help with Response-Ability's service project on March 21. To be successful, more assistance -- both hands-on and in-kind -- is needed, Eager said. At some schools volunteer help means devoting a little elbow grease, or boosting school supplies by contributing a bulletin board for hanging school papers, and donating hand sanitizers and No. 2 pencils for students. In one case, a Response-Ability science teacher is teaching the subject without science materials. Eager is hoping that individuals will pull from their own personal gifts -- perhaps a science teacher who could offer materials -- to move the project forward and meet the needs. "I want people to feel welcome to serve as a family," Eager said, adding that students from Holy Child schools will be making prayer cards. "This is a good opportunity to extend the idea of service to younger children. Planting those seeds for service at a young age is so important." Mrs. Buckley understands the significance of service very well and has carried those early notions throughout her life. She and her husband were inspired so much by the strength and dedication of the Foundress of the Society, Cornelia Connelly, that the couple named their daughter Cornelia. But, when Cornelia was born, and the new parents learned that she might not survive, they decided to name her Cornelia Connelly. Perhaps it was the strength of her name that helped young Cornelia to not only survive, but thrive, ultimately becoming a partner in a New York corporation. Fast forward several decades and Mrs. Buckley, through her own volunteer work with Response-Ability, has come full circle. Moved by the spirit of the elder Cornelia Connelly, she is now encouraging fellow Holy Child alums to get involved and is confident that this service day will be the beginning of an annual project. "When you give people the opportunity to help others, I find that most are ready to do it," Buckley said. The service day Volunteers will be donating their time and resources on March 21 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at schools six schools in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles. The day will begin with a prayer before projects get underway. Following the service, participants will be invited back to that city’s Response-Ability community house for light refreshments and a tour of the house where Response-Ability teachers live. The schools: Philadelphia
Los Angeles
About Society of the Holy Child Jesus The Society of the Holy Child Jesus (SHCJ) is an international community of Roman Catholic Sisters founded by Cornelia Connelly. The Society is composed of three Provinces (American, African, and European). In addition to the United States, the American Province includes Chile and the Dominican Republic. Since the Society’s founding in 1846, education has been at the heart of its mission. Today, the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus continue to serve as educators in the broadest sense of the word through their ministries in teaching, spiritual direction, social work, legal work, health care, parish administration, and pastoral care. Throughout the world, the Sisters of the Holy Child serve in schools, colleges and universities, parishes, health care organizations, social service and legal centers, and more. The Society also sponsors 14 schools, Rosemont College, and several social service programs. For more information, visit http://www.holychild200.org/. About Response-Ability The Sisters of the Holy Child established Response-Ability in 1974 as a lay volunteer network to advance the Society's mission of serving the poor. In response to a shortage of inner-city teachers in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Response-Ability created a full-time teaching program in 1993. The program recruits and trains college graduates to teach in urban communities. Its success led the Society to expand services to Los Angeles, Calif. and Washington, D.C. Response-Ability is now coordinating the Society's international lay missionary program in both the Dominican Republic and Chile. For more information on Response-Ability, becoming a volunteer, or helping out with Response-Ability’s service project visit http://www.ravolunteers.org/ or e-mail Elizabeth Eager at liz@ravolunteers.org, or Marilyn Buckley at mcbuckley@earthlink.net.
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