The Wonders of Mary Centre

I had the pleasure last week of visiting some of the locations for Mary Centre, a ShareLife agency that serves people with developmental challenges. I was there with photographer Bill Wittman, collecting photographs and stories for upcoming campaigns – look for the results in the 2011 ShareLife promotional material!

I’m fortunate in my work because I have the opportunity to see how ShareLife funding makes a difference in the community; how it changes lives and lifts people up to their fullest potential. My visit to Mary Centre reinforced this fact in a very real way – small wonders unfolded before my eyes over the course of those two days.

In one case, I met 64-year-old George Bishop. For years, life was a struggle for George. He lived on his own in a dangerous, pest-infested apartment building, working for Goodwill services to try to make ends meet. He lived in isolation and relied on a local food bank for his meals. After a heart attack and a bone-fracturing fall, he wasn’t able to get out for work or for his meals.

George Bishop and Tamara Despard

By the time he met Tamara Despard, a community support worker with Mary Centre, three years ago, he was undernourished, facing eviction, and had no place to turn. Mary Centre advocated for George, arranged funding support to keep him off the street, and Tamara visited him frequently to help him get back on his feet. With her help, George transitioned into a nearby nursing home eight months ago, where he is safe, well-fed and well cared for. He receives visitors – Tamara continues to drop by – and enjoys social events at the residence. (He really enjoys the birthday parties.)

The staff at Mary Centre are convinced George’s life would have been in great jeopardy if he had been evicted – he likely would have died anonymously in squalor. Today, he receives care and support, sharing the small joys of life with people around him on a daily basis.

I also met other Mary Centre clients with different stories that were equally compelling. All of them have benefited from the hard work of the people at Mary Centre – and from ShareLife funding.

Thanks for your support – it really does work wonders!

The Final Push! - Greeting the last 50 days

ShareLife staff and representatives have been moving forward under full-throttle for the past several weeks, driving ahead as the July 31 campaign conclusion looms.

The third diocese-wide collection was held on May 30, with volunteers speaking to parishioners, committees promoting the good work of our agencies, and priests encouraging the participation of the Catholic community in this important annual appeal. To date, the parish campaign has raised just over $9.6 million of its $12 million goal - we're thankful to all who have contributed so far.

On the corporate campaign front, a couple of key events have been conducted in the past few days:
The 15th annual ShareLife Corporate Golf Tournament took place at Lionhead Golf & Country Club on June 7, with 152 participants playing over the links in the signature fundraising event of the campaign. We're grateful for the support of so many loyal and generous supporters of this event. This year, we were treated to a keynote presentation from Olympic hockey gold medallist Becky Kellar, who inspired the room during the tournament dinner.

Becky Kellar with Guy Ouellette, who won an auction to have a personalized autograph on a replica jersey.

On June 10, an intimate evening cocktail party was hosted at the private residence of one of our generous supporters in Woodbridge. With the goal of raising funds and awareness about the ShareLife corporate campaign in the local business community, the evening was a success by all accounts.
The ongoing support of the business community is an important element  of ShareLife's success, reinforcing the presence of Catholic charity in all aspects of life - parish life and work life.
And school life, too!

On that note, we heard about a fantastic success story this week in York Region. The school community at St. Elizabeth Secondary School presented ShareLife with a cheque for $10,000 - the proceeds of a carnival the school hosted as a ShareLife fundraising event. Congratulations to everyone at St. Elizabeth and thank you very much for your hard work and your generous support.

As you can tell, the campaign remains active on all fronts. With less than 50 days left in the campaign year, we have much still to accomplish in order to reach our ultimate goal. The result, however, will be the ongoing care of the weak, vulnerable and needy in the Archdiocese of Toronto and around the world.

Thanks again to everyone who has provided their support thus far. And for anyone who hasn't yet made a gift to ShareLife this year...there's no better time than the present.