Women’s Respite
Program
Celebrating 20 years of sharing!
2008 Scheduled Programs
November 8: Annual fund-raising spaghetti dinner at
St. Leo's church hall at 885 Sweet Home Rd. in Amherst 4:30-7 pm.
Applications for respite programs can be downloaded by clicking on the link above.
Mothers enjoy vacation
days
Response to the needs of the poor
prompted Magdalen Daemen to leave her home and move to Heythuysen to assist the
poor. Creativity in response to such needs is part of the Franciscan charism.
A ministry to low income single mothers
was begun in 1989 when Sister Diane Gianadda, a social
worker, was visiting a woman and her four children on Buffalo's East Side. The
single mother, whose husband was in jail, was attempting to entertain her small
children indoors on a hot July afternoon. "It's too dangerous for them to
play outside. Too many drug dealers," she remarked, exhausted. "How
I wish I could have just a little rest." It was then that the idea of a
"vacation" or "time away" for single mothers, The Women's
Respite Program was born.
Over 250 single mothers who bear the
responsibility of rearing their children alone, with limited financial and
emotional resources, and who are in need of rest and renewal, have attended the
four-day, overnight Women's Respite Program held at the Center of Renewal at
Stella Niagara. Many of the mothers who attend the program have never had the opportunity to spend any time away from their children,
and to take time for themselves.
All are referred by social service agencies as mothers greatly in need of a
break. This year the program is expanding to include grandmothers who are caring
for grandchildren.
The mothers enjoy swimming,
arts and
crafts, massage, trips to Artpark and Niagara Falls, a "makeover," and
time to share with other mothers over meals prepared for them. They also receive
spiritual support and encouragement through morning prayer and journaling.
The Women's Respite Program involves
individuals and groups in providing this service for mothers. The Sisters assist
in running the program and in providing hospitality and transportation. Many of
the Sisters living at Stella Niagara become prayer partners, praying for the
needs of an 
individual mother and her family and meeting with her. The program
is sponsored by the Sisters and is funded by them as well as by contributions of
generous donors, foundations, and church groups.
This ministry has been a blessing for the Sisters, who
are happy to be able to welcome these mothers and share the quiet peaceful
beauty of Stella Niagara and to be enriched by their lives and their stories. It
is a blessing, too, for the women, who find peace, refreshment, and rest. As one
of the mothers said, "It's comforting to know that you're not alone in your
struggles. I loved it here. It was so relaxing. As soon as I walked in the door
I felt peace, love, and comfort."
Women
gather for grandmother's weekend 2007
