| News from
The Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem, Bill
Lewellis, Editor |
In Wilkes-Barre, October 19-20
130th Annual Convention of the Diocese of Bethlehem
Episcopal Church in NE Pennsylvania Celebrated its Ministry
Bishop: Living with you has taught me so much about the
transformative power of God in Christ .
"I rely on the presence and power of God every
day... unsentimentally, reflexively and, in the best sense of the
word, habitually," Bishop Paul V. Marshall said in his address to
the 130th annual Convention of the Diocese of Bethlehem.
Some 300 clergy and lay delegates and visitors
from 68 Episcopal congregations in eastern and northeastern Pennsylvania
gathered at St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral, Wilkes-Barre, October 19-20,
to worship together, to hear the bishop's address and sermon, to
set the year 2002 agenda for mission, and to share their common
ministry and membership in the 14-county diocesan community.
"Something like scales have fallen from my eyes
as I have recognized more and more in people I meet, lay and clergy,
not the stereotype Episcopalian of the movies and TV, but people
committed to their faith, committed to making that faith real in
our life together in and for the world," the bishop continued. "Christ
alive in the living of the Church has repeatedly been the source
of a new dimension of faith for me in the last five years... These
have been the most important five years of my life. They have brought
some of the most intense pain I have known, but they have brought
even more joy. Jesus Christ is alive and at work wherever we have
let him in.
"Living with you has taught me so much about the
transformative power of God in Christ. I am more aware of my sinfulness
and weakness than at any other time in my life, and, by God's grace,
less worried about them than at any time in my life. It is to you
and your witness of love and commitment to your many, many ways
of living out your Christianity that I owe that. I don't have to
be reelected, so I say this only because I mean it."
The complete text of the bishop's address and sermon
can be accessed at the web site of the Diocese of Bethlehem: www.diobeth.org.
The following were among the highlights of the
two-day gathering::
1 - Delegates adopted a $1.9 million diocesan community
budget for 2002. An important difference between this budget and
budgets of prior years is that, while the assessment percentage
remains unchanged from last year, assessments will be based on parish
operating income as reported on the annual parochial report for
each parish rather than on operating expense. The budget was built
with an assessment of 11% and an additional acceptance/pledge of
5% - both based on the operating income of parishes.
A motion to adopt a substitute resolution that
would have deferred the move from a expense-based assessment to
an income-based assessment until at least next year's diocesan convention
was defeated.
The Diocese of Bethlehem had been the last of 100
Episcopal dioceses to build its annual budget on parish operating
expense rather than parish operating income.
The change will bring a new stability to diocesan
budget income that will enable Diocesan Council to plan more effectively
for diocesan ministry. Parish expenses fluctuate considerably from
parish to parish and from year to year. Clergy compensation is a
significant portion of the parish budget. When a rector resigns,
there is a significant drop in parish expenses during that period
of clergy vacancy and, consequently in that parish's participation
in the diocesan mission and ministry budget.
The budget represents the proposed financial commitment
of local congregations to the mission and ministry of the diocesan
community and to ministry beyond the diocese and around the world.
This corporate commitment does not include significantly more expended
for ministry through local congregations. Funds enabling the ministry
of the diocesan community come primarily from the people and parishes
of the diocese.
2 - Delegates adopted a 2002 clergy salary schedule
that represents a 3% wage increase over this year's schedule.
3 - Delegates adopted a resolution on child advocacy
"that the Diocese of Bethlehem embrace and participate in Every
Kid Counts, Good Schools Pennsylvania, a statewide effort to mobilize
concerned citizens to advocate for improved public education" and
"that each parish be intentional in the ministry of Child Advocacy
by identifying and naming a Parish Child Advocate who will serve
as a link to the Diocesan Child Advocate, keep the parish informed
about spiritual, economic, social and political issues which relate
to the rights and the well being of children and encourage parish
members to advocate and take action for the welfare of those who
cannot speak or vote for themselves."
4 - Delegates adopted a second resolution on child
advocacy "that the Diocese of Bethlehem embrace and participate
in the movement to Leave No Child Behind, a nationwide effort supported
by our national church and sponsored by The Children's Defense Fund
to mobilize concerned citizens to advocate for children and to ensure
that every child have a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start,
a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and a successful passage
to adulthood" and "that each parish be intentional in the ministry
of Child Advocacy by identifying and naming a Parish Child Advocate
who will serve as a link to the Diocesan Child Advocate, keep the
parish informed about spiritual, economic, social and political
issues which relate to the rights and the well being of children
and encourage parish members to advocate and take action for the
welfare of those who cannot speak or vote for themselves."
5 - Delegates approved an amendment to the diocesan
canons that would allow three members of the clergy of the diocese
to serve as members of The Incorporated Trustees, upon election
by Diocesan Convention.
6 - The bishop noted in his address that Diocesan
Council had adopted a health insurance proposals presented by a
diocesan insurance committee that has been examining excessive increases
in the cost of our health insurance. "The plan calls for Council
to assist parishes in getting coverage with rates based on local
community cost rather than group experience. The transition each
parish makes will differ in time, and Council will be there to assist
you and to keep standards for employee coverage uniform. I am indebted
to the committee and also to the Church of the Mediator, Allentown,
which blazed something of a trail for us all."
7 - The bishop addressed the topic of mutual accountability.
"During the next year I am going to ask the chancellor, the parliamentarian,
and others learned in law, theology, and business to present us
with canons to enhance our mutual accountability, our consciousness
of responsibility to the whole church, which is this Diocese."
Mutual accountability "is a necessity because in
the Episcopal Church our life is common, and we have responsibilities
and duties to each other beyond parish boundaries, whether or not
we would choose to." The bishop mentioned specifically care of the
clergy, care of the sick and shut ins, church accounting and financial
controls, parishioners' access to information and the decision making
process, and a plan for regular building inspection and risk management.
8 - The bishop welcomed Archdeacon Rick Cluett
back from sabbatical and spoke about the new responsibilities of
the archdeacon. "We are returning to a more traditionally Anglican
model of archdeacon's visits. The plan is for an annual visit to
each parish on weekdays or Saturdays. These will be visits with
parish leadership to look together at the state of the facilities,
the manner in which financial records are kept, and any maintenance
that must be planned for with outside assistance... While the archdeacon
is going to visit each parish on weekdays each year, I will double
up Sunday visits and make it to each parish every year on Sundays,
one in the morning, one in the afternoon."
9 - The bishop explained that "Maggie Watkins continues
to be ready to assist parishes in setting up accounting systems
that are simple and meet all known church and legal requirements.
For those parishes that truly cannot afford independent auditing
firms, she is prepared to work with an internal audit committee
in learning how to do an audit at home. Either way, we must be more
faithful about the existing canons requiring audits."
10 - The bishop announced that he has "revived
the office of Canon to the Ordinary... the person who is the bishop's
confidant and who oversees the work of ordination and deployment,
and asked Canon Jane Teter to assume that role... I am grateful
to her for assuming these duties in addition to her work in congregational
development."
11 - Mrs. Cid Spillman of the Cathedral Church
of the Nativity, Bethlehem, and Canon Donald Muller, rector of St.
Stephen's Pro-Cathedral, Wilkes-Barre, presented results of a market
survey on what the bishop termed "our dream of fields, the vision
for a center for camping, conference, and retreat. An independent
market study commissioned by Council says that this is doable if
we are hardheaded about our planning. I am beginning to taste the
excitement of a vision, now several years old, beginning to take
shape. When next we meet in convention, there should be a plan for
you to consider."
12 - "Our reputation as a diocese where people
are safe just to do the work of the gospel rather than fight about
it is growing," the bishop said in his address, "and I am grateful
to God that our Commission on Ministry has agreed to implement a
flexibility that will allow me to work with candidates from other
locales who may be a little too conservative or a little too liberal
for their own judicatories to at least have the opportunity to test
their vocations. In addition, a number of our parishes are being
ably served by clergy who have come to this diocese on purpose,
because of what we represent. I mention this because I think we
need to be ever-conscious of our sometimes unstated mission to be
a diocese where those who may hold a very wide variety of opinions
never indulge in the luxury of breaking charity."
13 - The bishop made reference to his sabbatical
that will begin on November 2. "I have had a real struggle with
the idea that we can do without each other for the few months of
my sabbatical. Then I remembered that you managed to survive for
126 years without me, and something called perspective began to
settle in. While I am gone I will take the vacation I skipped this
summer and then get to work on finishing the book I was writing
when my life changed in December of 1995. There are a few other
writing projects as well, and like many of you I have a few books
unwrapped but still unread. I had planned to do a study tour of
Egypt, but that seems unwise, so I will try to learn more about
American culture, and visit the parts of this country of which I
am ignorant, particularly the mountain states."
14 - The offering received during the Convention
Eucharist was designated to aid Sudanese Relief and the Relief of
Workers at Ground Zero in New York City.
15 - Delegates received reports from some 25 committees,
commissions and diocesan staff persons, and elected the following
people to serve as officers for the diocesan community and members
to the Standing Committee, Diocesan Council, the Incorporated Trustees
and the Commission on Ministry:
Secretary: The Rev. George Loeffler, chaplain to
the bishop, diocesan deacon
Treasurer: W. Richard Guyer, Cathedral Church of
the Nativity, Bethlehem
Asst Treasurer: Madeline T. Watkins, diocesan staff
Chancellor: Charles (Ty) Welles, Esq., St. Peter's
Church, Tunkhannock
Registrar: Linda J. Shifter, diocesan staff
Standing Committee: The Rev. Henry J. Pease, St.
George's Church, Nanticoke Harry Hart, St. Alban's Church, Sinking
Spring
Diocesan Council: The Rev. Canon Calvin C. Adams,
St. Gabriel's, Douglassville The Rev. Jane A. Bender, St. Anne's,
Trexlertown The Rev. M. Peter Harer, Episcopal Ministry of Unity,
Palmerton/Lehighton The Rev. Nicholas W. Knisely, Jr., Trinity Church,
Bethlehem The Rev. Howard Stringfellow, St. Luke's Church, Scranton
Janet G. Charney, Trinity Church, Easton Joseph Jackloski, Grace
Church, Kingston Rick Kenney, St. Brigid's Church, Nazareth Daniel
Land, Trinity Church, Bethlehem
The Incorporated Trustees: Charles Barebo, Church
of the Mediator, Allentown Henry Beaver, Jr., Trinity Church, Pottsville
Robert D. Romeril, St. Andrew's Church, Bethlehem
The Commission on Ministry: The Rev. George Loeffler,
chaplain to the bishop, diocesan deacon The Rev. William S. Marshall,
Jr., St. Nicholas Church, Womelsdorf William L. Cauller, Cathedral
Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem Sara Fogg, St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral,
Wilkes-Barre
The Diocese of Bethlehem includes some 17,000 communicants
in 68 congregations in a 14-county area (Berks, Bradford, Carbon,
Lackawanna, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Northampton, Pike,
Schuylkill, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming). The diocesan community
has been actively involved in the development of ministries with
children and youth, with the poor, the marginalized and the oppressed,
and in enabling lay people to claim the call to ministry that is
theirs by reason of their baptism.
The diocese is one of 100 domestic and 15 overseas
diocese of the 2.5-million member Episcopal Church which, according
to the late George Cornell of the Associate Press, "has packed an
influence out of proportion to its size both in American history
and in interchurch affairs because of its Protestant-Catholic breadth
and its inclusiveness of rich and powerful, weak and poor."
The Episcopal Church, in turn, is one of 38 self-governing
(national) churches of the worldwide Anglican Communion of some
70 million people in 164 countries.
Once commonly used as a synonym for English, "Anglican"
has come to mean a certain way of understanding and living out the
Christian Gospel. Anglican spirituality is driven by the conviction
that God has spoken uniquely through Jesus Christ and continues
to speak within a faith community through the interplay and creative
tension of Scripture, tradition, reason and experience as lived
out within cultures and faith communities.
The largest congregation of the Diocese of Bethlehem
includes more than 1,000 baptized members. The smallest numbers
20. Fourteen congregations list more than 500 baptized members each.
Another 23 congregations include between 200 and 500 members each.
The remaining 31 congregations each list fewer than 200.
The link among congregations as well as their link
with the Episcopal Church and the worldwide Anglican Communion is
symbolized in the ministry of the bishop who is also a historical
link with the first-century church of the Apostles.
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News
Health Advocacy
A Doctor, A Nurse and a Parish Priest
By David Howell
Diocesan Life, November 2001
A doctor, a nurse and a parish priest met at a
hospital. It's not the first line of a joke, but the real thing
for Dr. Jim Martin (Cathedral Church of the Nativity), Sara Klingner,
R.N. (Trinity, Bethlehem) and The Rev. Laura Howell (Trinity, Bethlehem).
The three members of the Diocese of Bethlehem enrolled
this fall in a course in Parish Nursing, taught by faculty from
Gwynedd-Mercy College and sponsored by Sacred Heart Hospital. Twenty-three
people from Pennsylvania and New Jersey of twelve different religious
denominations enrolled in the four-week program the Parish Nursing
Department at Sacred Heart offers on a regular basis.
"It was a little daunting at first," said Mother
Laura, "to walk into a room full of health-care professionals. I
was wondering if I was going to be able to understand anything at
all. The fact that the only other non-nurse was a physician was
not reassuring."
She described the course as a basic introduction
to the concept of parish nursing, with an overview of the issues
to be resolved before embarking on a program. "The instructors tried
to acquaint us with the many legal and ethical concerns involved.
For me, the most useful part of the course was the nuts-and-bolts
section on how to implement the program."
Sara Klingner added that "the course would help
a parish think about why it needed a parish nurse and what the nurse's
duties might be. It's a great jumping-off point to show the parish
where they will need to do further research and development."
When asked why a priest would take a course intended
for medical personnel, Mother Laura said, "When I worked at the
hospital and at hospice, I got spoiled. When patients had issues,
whether medical, insurance or social, there were staff I could consult
with who would help solve them. In the parish - especially our parish
with its large soup kitchen - we don't have professionals whose
job it is to sort out the needs. We need a parish nurse."
In a time when costs threaten to become more important
than cures, at least the Bethlehem Diocese has good news about health
care. Bishop Paul plans to add Health Advocacy Teams for every congregation
to improve the quality of life in the community.
Perhaps the most important members of these teams
will be parish nurses. The concept of parish nurses is both old
and new. The name "parish nurse" and educational programs have been
developed in the last few decades. On the other hand, this is a
modernization of the church's traditional role of caring for the
sick, both spiritually and physically.
"Parish nursing is a bridge between the healing
arts and the spiritual arts," said Dr. Martin. "The idea of health
advocacy is holistic, emphasizing the whole person and the integration
of both the physical and religious concerns of all individuals."
Parish nurses do not give hands-on treatment, but
are meant to fill a variety of roles as educators, referral agents,
counselors, and facilitators. Mary Ann Gibbons, RN, Coordinator
of the Parish Nurse Program at Sacred Heart Hospital, said that
they are particularly important for treatment of older patients.
"People are not kept in the hospital as long as
they used to be," she said. "They may need help when trying to recover.
Elderly patients may not understand instructions, and might need
someone to look in on them."
Dr. Martin gave another example. "Medical organizations
are not well placed for lengthy discussions. A parish nurse is better
suited for fumbling questions, for example, those of a partner of
someone with HIV infection."
Other duties could include providing education
programs, blood pressure and weight monitoring, referral to health
care services, help with insurance claims, volunteer coordination,
and community health care advocacy.
"Managed care can discourage spending time with
people. Providers are forced to see more people in the same amount
of time," said Sara Klingner. She feels that parish nurses can fill
in the gaps not covered by our present system, and provide personal
help that is sometimes missing.
"A lot of people in my congregation ask me questions.
Many people feel more comfortable asking a nurse questions instead
of making an appointment."
Klingner sees a parish nurse as a "friendly face,"
helping people to deal with a health care system that is often impersonal.
"What is going on in your everyday life has everything
to do with the way you feel," she said. A nurse who is seen as a
friend can be important as a go-between and interpreter of medical
instructions. This can be particularly important for seeking psychological
help, since for many there is still a stigma attached to those services.
A problem faced by parish nurses is that their
services are not usually reimbursable by insurance or medical plans,
although this may change in the future. Many of the services they
provide are not measurable, and they often do not work directly
for health care agencies. With the addition of this group, over
two hundred nurses will have completed Sacred Heart's parish nurse
program. Many are unpaid, however, reported Gibbons.
"Some are part-time or retired. It depends on the
needs of the church. Others do volunteer work in addition to a full
time job."
Spiritual and pastoral issues were introduced during
the class, says Mother Laura. "One of the most important things
that a parish nurse brings to healthcare is the realization that
healing comes from God. Because parish nurses are people of faith,
working with other people of faith, it is natural for them to pray
with their brothers and sisters.
"It is natural to be able to ask, 'Where is God
in all this for you?' It is a relief for a pastor to work with a
medical person who is sensitive to the kinds of spiritual questions
that illness raises for people. Sara's not even our parish nurse,
but already I'm relying on her, if only to help me answer my questions."
For more information about Sacred Heart's Parish
Nursing Class, contact Mary Ann Gibbons at 610-776-5428.
For more information about parish nursing, visit
the Health Advocacy page
of our diocesan website and the Episcopal
Health Ministries site.
[Dave Howell is a member of Trinity Episcopal Church,
Bethlehem.]
[Bishop Paul's vision is that every congregation
of this diocese will have access to a Health Advocacy Team that
will provide a holistic health ministry for all parishioners as
well as other people in our neighborhoods. Contact Diana Marshall
(dmarsh@fast.net or 610-807-9281) if you want a member of the diocesan
Health Advocacy Committee to talk with your vestry or any interested
group regarding how to begin to do this, or to expand the services
that already exist in your parish.]
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News
AIDS in Africa
Diocesan Life, November 2001
Dr. Ned Wallace, Diocese of Bethlehem medical missioner
in Swaziland, will lead an interactive workshop on AIDS in Africa:
A Faith Response for clergy and lay leaders on November 26 from
8:30 to 12:30.
The purpose of the workshop at Moravian Seminary
(650 West Locust Street, Bethlehem) is "to learn the current status
of AIDS in Africa and how this epidemic is affecting children, families,
congregations and the communities of every country on the continent."
The schedule for the day is:
8:30 Registration and Coffee/Tea
9:00 Introduction and Prayer
9:20 Keynote address with Q&A
10:30 Break
10:45 Panel discussion
11:45 What can we do to make a difference?
12:20 Wrap-up
12:30 Depart.
Cost is $10, checks payable to Moravian Seminary.
Mail to: Continuing Ed. Dept., Moravian Seminary, 1200 Main Street,
Bethlehem 18018.
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Good Schools Pennsylvania
Addresses Crisis in Public Education
Diocesan Life, November 200
There is a crisis in public education in Pennsylvania.
(1) The State's share of local educational expenditures is declining.
(2) There is a $50,000 gap between the wealthiest and poorest school
district classrooms of 25 kids. (3) In Education Week's (January,
2001) annual report on public education, Pennsylvania earned a D-,
ranking among the eight worst states in terms of making sure that
state funds are used to ensure that poor kids get an equal opportunity
for a quality education.
Good School Pennsylvania is a nonprofit coalition
of grassroots, statewide and national organizations seeking to mobilize
parents, students and concerned citizens to advocate for improved
public education.
Some 85% of all Pennsylvania children go to public
schools. There are proven methods to Improve school outcomes. Funding
for public schools needs to be adequate and equitable.
The changes that are necessary to improve schools
will occur when we all join together and persuade civic leaders
and elected officials to expand funding, reform the funding distribution
formula, pass a set of common sense standards for excellence and
institute the accountability measures necessary for every child
to succeed. Good School Pennsylvania is spearheading a statewide
grassroots effort to do this.
Any parish can start a Good School PA group. You
need one leader/facilitator. The person goes to a three-hour training
held by GSPA, then recruits nine other people from the church to
make up the group.
The group meets for two hours once a month for
nine months, 18 hours over the course of a year. In the first hour
people learn about public education; in the second hour they write
two letters to legislators about what they learned. Any parish that
would like to start a group should contact The
Rev. Debra Kissinger at Diocesan House. More information is
accessible at http://www.goodschoolspa.org/.
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Parenting Preteens and
Adolescents? Dealing with Sibling Rivalry? Help is on
the Way!
Diocesan Life, November 2001
Parents are well aware that parenting is as much
about being transformed as it is about shaping the life of a child.
As your child grows, so parenting changes. It is never a fixed thing.
As with any important work, it is always helpful
to learn new skills and approaches. If you are entering the territory
of parenting adolescents or are dealing with raising siblings, help
is on the way!
Julie A. Ross, MA, is returning to the Cathedral
Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem to lead a workshop on practical
parenting skills.
Ms. Ross will present a practical parenting seminar
on November 17 from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at the Cathedral, 321 Wyandotte
Street.
In the morning session she will focus on sibling
rivalry. In the afternoon session she will present hands-on skills
for parenting preteens and adolescents.
Other topics covered by the workshop will include
teaching responsibility, establishing effective discipline, and
building self esteem.
Those who attended her first workshop in the winter
of 2000 responded with great enthusiasm to her enlightened presentation
and practical, hands-on techniques that are easy to apply.
Ms. Ross is the author of "Practical Parenting
for the 21st Century: The Manual You Wish Had Come with Your Child"
as well as "Joint Custody with a Jerk: Raising a Child with an Uncooperative
Ex" and "Now What Do I Do?" which offers techniques for parenting
elementary school age children.
A parent educator and counselor with a practice
in New York, Ms. Ross has appeared on national television, presented
workshops across the country, and published articles in national
magazines.
To register, call the Cathedral office at 610-865-0727.
The cost of the day is $10. Lunch is included. Child care will be
provided for those who preregister by November 9. Please indicate
ages of children when requesting child care.
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News
Visit www.link2lead.com
to Discover Insights about Yourself, Your Community, Your Congregation
and the World
Diocesan Life, November 2001
A new Link2Lead
web site, designed by the Percept organization for local church
clergy and lay leaders is "dedicated to providing the latest information
about your community, hands-on-tools to better understand and develop
your own capabilities and a variety of additional resources to assist
you in leading your congregation into the new world of opportunities
awaiting us in the 21st century."
For the past 14 years, Percept has supplied thousands
of churches and hundreds of regional and national denominational
agencies with demographic and other resources of planning within
their particular mission context. Regularly recognized as one of
the best strategic information companies in the country, Percept
develops unique resources to assist churches to engage in mission.
Because the Diocese of Bethlehem is a client of
Percept, local congregations may access the information provided.
The Diocese has used Percept to evaluate locations
for new congregations and to assist parishes to plan for their future
through better understanding of their community in relationship
to themselves.
If you have visited the Congregational Development
Committee tables at Diocesan Training Days or at Diocesan Convention
you may have seen a demographic summary for the zip code where your
parish is located.
The Link2Lead web site includes four easy-to-use
sections:
My Self - Find out more about yourself and how
you deal with change.
My Community - How well do you know your community?
Explore the latest demographic information for your ministry area.
Learn ten facts about your community that may surprise you. A Ministry
Area Profile (MAP) gives detailed insight into your community to
form a basis for parish growth planning. There is an additional
cost for MAP, but the Diocese will assist if a parish cannot afford
the cost.
My Congregation - How does your congregation compare
with the larger community you serve. The MAP results are combined
with a six-page survey done by parishioners and sent to Percept
which returns 60-page notebooks for a committee of parish leaders
to study, using a format provided by Percept.
My World - What has recent change meant for the
church? Insights into the future of the church. Includes a questionnaire,
a 22-page booklet (Five Keys to Discovering the 21st Century Church),
Quick Insight reports, book reviews and a monthly newsletter.
More information on Link2Lead will be sent to parishes.
Each parish can have five "official" memberships. More info or help
is available by contacting the Congregational Development Committee
through Canon Jane Teter
at Diocesan House.
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In Stroudsburg
The Rev. Elizabeth S. Haynes
The Rev. Elizabeth (Beth) Haynes, interim at Trinity,
Easton, has been called to serve as rector at Christ Church, Stroudsburg.
Ordained a priest in 1997, she has served also
as interim at Grace Church, Allentown, as an intern in parish ministry
at St. Margaret's Church, Emmaus, and as a deacon intern at Trinity
Church, Easton.
Born and raised in South America, she completed
high school in an Anglican school in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and
came to New York City to complete business college. She and her
husband, William, are residents of Cresco, Pennsylvania, and have
been parishioners at Christ Church, Stroudsburg.
She was employed for ten years as a nursery school
director and teacher. She has been employed at Kirkridge Retreat
Center in Bangor and serves also as a retreat leader.
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News
Pennsylvania September
11 Victim Assistance Program
Seeking Survivors and Immediate Family Members of the Dead
and Missing from Terrorist Attacks
Diocesan Life, November 2001
Pennsylvania residents who survived the September
11 attacks or who have lost an immediate family member in the violence
are eligible for crime-victim services.
A 24-hour toll-free number (866-328-2800) and website
have been established to provide personal assistance and information
about all the State and Federal programs that are available to assist
with the physical, emotional and financial needs of Pennsylvanians
who are victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World
Trade Center, the Pentagon, and United Flight 93.
Victims and their families are eligible for compensation
(including death benefits and loss of earnings), counseling, transportation
and other services.
Because private and government programs vary from
state to state, many families don't realize they are eligible for
services. Anyone aware of survivors or the immediate family members
of the dead or missing (including spouses, children, parents, and
grandparents) who live in Pennsylvania may call the hotline to help
identify potential victims in need of support. Professional program
staff will serve as advocates for the families to deal with all
the agencies, banks, insurance companies, government agencies, airlines
and the criminal justice system to ensure that victims receive full
benefits from all the programs available to them.
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In the Diocese of
Meath and Kildare
Please Pray for the Stewart Family
Those who have been involved with the Ireland/Bethlehem
Youth Exchange over the years will remember the Stewart Family.
The Rev. Alan Stewart and his wife, Liz, were adult advisors with
the Irish Youth on their last two visits to Bethlehem. Their children,
Claire and Robin, were part of the Irish delegation, each in different
years.
All four were in a tragic automobile accident on
October 10. Claire, 23, was killed. Robin was transferred to the
National Rehabilitation Institute with serious injuries.
Please remember the Stewart Family, their parish
and the Diocese of Meath and Kildare in your prayers: The Rev. and
Mrs. Alan V. Stewart, Baltrasna, Ashbourne, County Meath, Republic
of Ireland.
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