#changeaheart

One of the things for which I am most grateful is being able to have the opportunity to go to my service site walking, it does not matter if it is raining or snowing, it is something that I enjoy and that gives me time to have a moment of reflection, with myself, I think about what I have done, and what I plan to do on that day. On many occasions, I even talk to myself, or just try to make it a time of prayer. There are several avenues or streets that I can take to get to Casa San José (my place of service), but a few months ago I found the right one. And what makes it so special? A stairway, a stairway made up of 100 steps that are part of my path, although it may seem very ridiculous, at the beginning it was a challenge for me but now it is a stretch of path that I enjoy more than ever, it is like the beginning of my day. After climbing the 100 steps I have the feeling that my day has begun, and that all my thoughts, nervousness or anxiety are left behind, and the thoughts for the blessing of a new day are just beginning. It's like the feeling of reaching the finish line of a race and knowing that all the training and work you put in has been worth it. Walking is one of those things that I enjoy the most, people sometimes ask me why I do it, if I can take the bus, for example. But I answer them why not? Many times, I think of the joy I have of being able to walk and enjoy the things I see: the neighbor's dog, the children going to school, the birds or even a family of deer. I think, I walk for those who can't and would like to, for the simple fact of getting out every day and enjoying those little things, are the 17 minutes that makes my day different, it gives me peace inside, the necessary warmth in a cold morning, and the energy needed to start the day.

Returning to Pittsburgh after spending the holidays in Guatemala the first night, a heavy snowfall, which I did not expect, greeted me. It was a bit difficult at first to think about my family in Guatemala and how the night before I was still with them. On my trip from the airport to what also call my “second home”, I thought about the new stories and people that I would meet in this second part of the program. With a bit of anxiety and nervousness as the first day will be, I unpacked my things and prepared to return to Casa San José. Despite enjoying my time in the office, I like to go out and interact with clients as much as possible, not only to learn their stories but also to know that even with small gestures you can make this other person's day.

A few months ago I learned the story of this client whom I will call "Miguel", Miguel came from Colombia with his wife, his first stop was in Miami, but he had a really bad time there, he slept on the floor sharing a room with other people and the owner of the property whom Miguel considered his “friend” treated him badly, sometimes he would not let them sleep at night and on a couple of occasions he would close the door so that he could not enter when he returned from work at night. After many nights and desperation, through a friend, he got the contact of Casa San José who, together with his family, transferred him to Pittsburgh so that they could live for six months while they managed to stabilize. Miguel was enrolled in the free dental program of Catholic Charities, and they asked me to go with him to be the translator. While we waited for him to be called, Miguel told me his story, why he and his wife and other family members escaped from Colombia and how he ended up in Pittsburgh, living alone with his wife and having to leave their two children behind in Colombia.

When Miguel was called the dentist told me that the appointment would last about two hours, when leaving the clinic, I remember that he thanked me for being able to help him because the pain in his teeth was so strong that it even caused him problems when working. While I accompanied him to the bus stop, the bus just arrived at the stop, Miguel had to run to avoid losing it (or he would have to wait 45 minutes for the next one) we didn't even say goodbye, but that didn't matter to me in the end I felt fine because I was able to help him.

A couple of minutes later a text message from Miguel “Diego, muchas gracias por todo, que Dios te lo pague” (“Diego, thank you very much for everything, may God pay you”) a simple text message but one that I felt 100% honest. A small gesture that made my day, made me smile on my way back to Casa San Jose and that makes me feel that the hours in the doctor's office have been worth it.

A couple of weeks ago Carina one of my housemates told me about Pier Giorgio. I was curious and did some research on the Internet. Pier Giorgio Michelangelo Frassati is a Blessed born in Italy who died at the age of 24 due to polio and who was later beatified by Saint John Paul II in 1980. The most curious thing of all is that the images that you can see on the Internet are not those of the typical Saint who appears in pictures or paintings, it is the image of a young man wearing loose clothing on a mountain and with a pipe. He seems like someone cool and that I would like to have as a friend.

The phrase “Verso l’alto” is his personal motto and with which Pier signed his photographs, it means “upwards”, and it is a constant reminder for us to reach the summit of eternal life. Pier's life reminds me a lot of the life of St Franciss of Assisi, born into a wealthy family who preferred to help others rather than himself. He gave his shoes to a mourner, and he preferred to return home barefoot, or with his money he paid the rent of people who couldn’t do it, and who even on his deathbed asked one of his friends to bring some medicine to Converso (a poor and sick man whom he used to visit). As Christians I believe that we are all destined for Holiness (because at the end of our lives we must reach heaven, right?) But it is not an easy path, we must first put off our things, and not necessarily it’s something material, many times we must fight against those things that we have inside of us and “shed” them and in a way surrender them to God, and our daily path will be lighter. The service that we have done as part of the Change a Heart program during these last almost three months has been in part “depriving ourselves” of many experiences that we may be doing, such as going to parties, meeting our friends, or going shopping. Our goal during this service is to be focus on helping others. It is not such an easy path to take because it has its ups and downs (good and bad days) and that at the end of the day, as my personal experience I can tell you that when you return home you feel calmer and with inner peace because you know that you are directly or indirectly helping these people neglected by the Society in general. Because quoting Pier Giorgio Frassatti “Each of you knows that the foundation of our faith is charity. Without it, our religion would crumble. We will never be truly Catholic unless we conform our entire lives to the two commandments that are the essence of the Catholic faith: to love the Lord, our God, with all our strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves”.

Hello Change a Heart Family,

I hope you all are doing well. It seems that our June 3rd retreat was only a few days ago. We were able to go white water rafting, as well as enjoy some time to get away and encounter God through nature. I was also given some time to reflect on my experience with my Change a Heart year by creating a Tavola. The Tavola is basically a series of pictures that shows different important events in your life time. Being able to make one focused around my time in the program allowed me to see how I have really grown this year. There were definitely times where I thought about leaving the program, but due to my sense of commitment and through conversations with the volunteer director, I decided to stick it out. Sometimes the most growth comes through trials and tribulations. I am starting to realize that my time with Change A Heart is almost to a close. It has definitely been a crazy ride, lots of ups and downs, but through it all a lot of growth. If you are looking for an opportunity to help others and grow in the areas of self-perseverance, communal living, and simple living this just might be the program for you. I tell you that it won’t be easy and that you will be challenged, but if you stick it out, it will be worth it.

It was important to me to be able to find my Joy throughout my time with Change A Heart. There were times when I didn’t want to go to my service site and when it felt too much like “work”, but I stuck with it, and I came out on the other end a different person. The people that we are serving are individuals that are in need, and regardless of how prepared/unprepared we are, God will provide. Through my time here with Change A Heart I have learned that I will never have all the answers. I will never be “ready”. It is important however, to not let the fear of inadequacies or the unknown stop you from stepping into the breach. This year will be a spiritual battle, but you will get out of it what you put into it. I encourage you to really give of yourself and be open to change. When you open your heart to those you serve, oftentimes through the craziness and frustrations, much growth can come and you may just find yourself encountering a deeper kind of love (i.e. the love that Francis encountered in the leper). Those that one is serving, in societies eyes, can often be seen as the leper. One that is forgotten, unwanted, and unclean. These people however are Christ, and we are called to love them just as Francis and Jesus did when they encountered the leper in their lives.

I have learned that I will never know everything, but that is ok. I can’t let that stop me from trying. God will provide where I am lacking. I have truly been given the opportunity to live out the common statement: “God doesn’t call the qualified, but rather He qualifies the called.” Also through serving these individuals, it has helped me to realize my own self-worth. Just as these people deserve to be treated with respect, honor, and dignity, so do I, and you do too. Sometimes people serve others because they understand what it is like to be forgotten, not understood, or left out. This can be a good starting point, but it is important that it doesn’t end there. We must learn to realize that just as these people deserve to be cherished and honored, so to do we.

I’ll leave you with these two nuggets of wisdom.

1)      God loves you, and there’s nothing you can do about it!

2)      If God led you to it, He will lead you through it!

 God bless you all and I hope that you have a blessed year with Change A Heart,

 Your Brother in Christ Jesus

 Scott Peters

St Francis, Clare, and St. Faustina … Pray for us

Hello! My name is Gretchen Beany and I will be serving as a Change A Heart volunteer through July of 2017. I am very excited to begin this new adventure. A few interesting facts about me are: I have donated my hair 4 times, I am left handed, my favorite animal is the manatee, and I have recently been learning how to knit.  

I was born and raised in the suburbs of Cincinnati Ohio, but spent the last five years at Allegheny College. During my time at Allegheny I served as a stage manager in the Playshop Theatre, founded a grief and loss support network for students on my campus, and spent a lot of time in the Dance and Movement Studies department. I love theater, art, dance music, and the mind body connection. I graduated this past May with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater; as well as minors in German and Psychology. I am very passionate about helping others to grow and heal. It is my goal to one day get a Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and work with the Expressive Therapies. 

As a Change A Heart volunteer I will be serving a diverse population of people with Ursuline Support Services. Their services include: “Checks & Balance” a volunteer bill-paying/representative payee service; “Cart to Heart” grocery shopping assistance; “Reassurance” a telephonic wellness check support service; and “Good Grief Center Peer Support” telephonic/face to face/group volunteers bereavement support. These areas of service are very near and dear to my heart based on some of the personal experiences I have had with my family over the years.   

Living simply has been an interesting concept to grasp and a difficult one to maintain. You find yourself working toward something and with it comes planning and disciplining yourself to reach that goal. In the past six months, I have come to know that I can live on less materially and distinguish what is something I need versus something I want much easier compared to previous years. I’ve come to recognize how to find more than one use for most household items. It’s meant finding ways to save when we do purchases or even purchase anything. I hope that by my living simply and not keeping anything in excess for myself, others may be able to find the resources they need to survive and that’s especially true with those who come to food pantry.  

Living more simply has also allowed me to do more things that I want to do. Those things I thought I didn’t have time to do I can now do because I’m not distracting myself or wasting as much time doing XY or Z. It’s been about using the time I found to do more stuff with each member of community, enjoy the things I do now a little more, try out new things, and do more reflecting on what each day meant to my personal growth this year.

Simplicity when viewed and put in the right perspective frees you to do all that you wish to accomplish. It’s not about depriving me of things but allowing me to be who God calls me to be.

Community living was the part I was most looking forward towhen I started the program. My college experience was shaped mainly by living and finding community with those who were part of Men’s and Women’s Catholic Household. It produced the closest relationships I have in my life right now and it’s been a joy to continue some of them by living in Pittsburgh and visiting those still at SVC.

This year of living in community has given me its own ups and downs, joys and frustrations, peace and anxiety. It has lived up to some of my expectations while totally shattering other expectations. While they were all good expectations, some were based on how I saw the community at SVC evolve as people left, others joined, and how much time and effort each person invested into relationships. I mainly forgot to consider everyone else’s expectations of what community should be and what they wanted of community. We were 7 people coming from different parts of the country with different upbringings and situations. In the end, living in community this year has led to a lot of personal growth in many different areas of my life.

Within the past six months, the groups within community have definitely given me the support I was seeking and allowed me to spend time with each person. I’ve come to find siblings from other mothers and friends who are really goofy. Our recent Winter Retreat was a reminder that I should balance out some time for those I don’t hang out with as much in community and stop letting fear be an excuse to speak up or spend time with others.  

One of the blessings that I didn’t expect to have this year was to spend another year in community with my friend Sam. Just when I thought I was going to build community with total strangers, one of my closest friends happened to join the party. We’ve known each other since freshman year and every year, we have grown closer as friends and this year has been no different. I didn’t mean to just single her out but we can all say something like that for every other member in community because they have been such a blessing.

I’ve also have come to find community with those I work with at EECM.  Many of the staff and regular volunteers have allowed me to come in and be part of their lives, sharing in the camaraderie already developed between volunteering on the same days with the same people. Then there is lunch time which can turn into a riot. When Carey, Art, my buddy-in-crime Sheila, and the Queen of the Pantry Miss Phyllis and I are all together at a table, it becomes the best part of my day every time. There has been many a stomach aching conversations had over lunch on any topic on someone’s mind and have offered each other insight from an outsider’s point of view. It has also allowed us to be there for each other when things get a little rougher to handle.

Wherever you find community, you come to stick to them because we all seek to give and feel love. That has come true for me by being part of this program and who knows what the rest of this year brings.