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April 1, 2012
Overview of St. Philip the Apostle, Bakersfield, Health Care Ministry
In addition to facilitating the programs described below, in the office I take phone calls; make home, hospital, and nursing home visits to individuals; recruit, train, and assign volunteers; refer to community agencies; arrange for educational programs; and do a whole lot of listening.
There are approximately 75 volunteers involved in prayer ministry and another 75 involved in the nursing home ministry. About 12 of those are health professionals. We have monthly meetings for the volunteers that wish to come for support in their ministry and annually we have a meeting with dinner and a speaker.
I supervise one part-time staff person who coordinates our Senior Outreach ministry.
Prayer Ministry
The Health Care Ministry manages prayer requests in several ways:
- Emergency phone / e-mail prayer line for urgent requests
- Monthly prayer letter
- Parish bulletin prayer list
- Prayer Blanket Ministry
Nursing Home / Homebound Ministry
Weekly communion services are conducted at nine assisted living / nursing facilities, and visits are made to private homes, conducted by teams of volunteer Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. The ministry also provides monthly Masses at the same nine facilities.
Our purpose is to provide sacramental life for those unable to attend Mass on a regular basis and to maintain parish connections for the sick and elderly by providing volunteers visitors from the parish. Participants are for the most part the elderly and include English, Hispanic, and Filipino populations. We also will serve non-Catholics in the facilities that would like to receive prayer. We serve over 200 parishioners weekly in these facilities / homes. Over 75 volunteer Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion serve.
GriefShare MinistryGriefShare is a 13-week support group / seminar for adults grieving the loss of a loved one. Initial cost of the program was $540, and there is ongoing cost for participant workbooks and materials. We suggest $15 as a donation for participation in the group, but make it clear that it is voluntary. Our local Knights of Columbus makes an annual donation to the ministry. Average number of participants is 14 per session, some of those repeating from earlier sessions. Included in the GriefShare ministry is our “Surviving the Holidays” seminar for adults, and this year we held a meeting for children.
This program provides spiritual care and teaching to grieving people, as this is a scripture-based program. Although not it’s primary purpose, the program evangelizes as non-Catholics and un-churched Christians frequently attend, making up about half of our participants. One inactive Catholic has embraced her faith again, and another participant is currently in our RCIA process. This same couple is getting married later this year!
Blood Drives
We hold two to three blood drives a year, Advent, Lent, and summer, at St. Philip’s Church. Houchin Blood Bank usually collects 25 pints of blood at each drive. We get a good response from our parishioners, with new donors at each blood drive, and repeat donors. So far we have had only Saturday blood drives, but we may try a Sunday morning blood drive. That seems like a good idea, since so many people are already here for Mass.
“3D” Whole Life - Eating Right, Living Well, Loving God
This is a 12-week program focused on diet, discipline, and discipleship. We have offered this program twice, with an average of four participants per session. Some participants have found great encouragement and success in their pursuit of a healthier life and have finished the 12 weeks. Some have not completed the 12 weeks.
Senior OutreachPhilippian 50 Plus is a monthly potluck with a speaker for our parishioners who are, as the name suggests, over 50 years of age. The speakers include health education, community resources, entertainment, and more.
In addition, there is a monthly Senior Outreach meeting. This meeting provides social interaction in the form of games, story-telling, and celebrations.
Periodically, trips out of town are planned to sites of interest to our seniors.
ChallengesRecruiting and training enough volunteers is always a challenge, though I am amazed by the dedication of many of the volunteers, some of which have served for years.
Walking with those with mental illness has proved to be a great challenge. I have sought to educate myself by attending classes taught by NAMI, which have been helpful. I continue to walk with one woman in her illness, often feeling like I am accomplishing nothing, but not wanting to abandon her as so many others have.
Prayer Blanket Ministry
Volunteers knit, crochet, or quilt lap blankets to be given to the sick. Some volunteers meet twice a month to work, fellowship, and pray together. Blankets are taken to a communal anointing service twice a year and blessed by our pastor, Rev. Msgr. Ronald J. Swett. Blankets are then given upon request. Twenty to thirty blankets have been given in the last year. Materials are usually donated, and monetary donations are often made for the blankets.
The purpose of this ministry is two-fold. The primary purpose is to provide a tangible sign of the prayers of the community, in the form of a blanket. Two, as an added benefit, it provides fellowship, prayer, and healing for the volunteers working together to make the blankets.
