Parish social ministry volunteers hold bags of food to be distributed to the homebound.
Sts. Peter and Paul Parish social ministry constantly updates its services and ways to help
By Gabriella Munoz Hawaii Catholic Herald
A small classroom inside Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Honolulu was filled with chatter as the kindergarten and first grade vacation Bible school class worked on their arts and crafts. One little girl squealed and giggled as she dipped her hand into cold blue paint. Her classmates “oohed” in awe as the head teacher Bernadette Lopez held up the hand printed poster she made.
Paper bags to be filled with food are first decorated with cheerful greetings by the parish religious education students.
The poster wasn’t just for decoration, but, as Lopez explained to the older kids, to let the victims of the July 14 Marco Polo condominium fire know that there are people at Sts. Peter and Paul who are thinking and praying for them. Downstairs was a large stack of brown bags for the monthly food drive, brought to life with crayon drawings and messages from the children.
This is only one example of the work done by Sts. Peter and Paul’s growing social ministry program.
Student hand prints will decorate posters of support for the victims of the recent Marco Polo condominium fire.
The parish social ministry in its present form began last fall with a food drive that collected “a couple thousand pounds” of food. What truly astounded Wendy Garaghty, head of the ministry, was that “it wasn’t the typical food drive where you bring something from the back of your cupboard because your family won’t eat it.”
“It was like they were feeding Christ,” she said. The food drive now operates monthly.
The ministry tries to be adaptable, offering a variety of services, constantly updating them and offering different ways to volunteer or donate.
The parish social ministry aims to address the needs of the vulnerable in its community, which can be constantly shifting. Garaghty explained that, in order to stay in touch with how they can be of service, “some of us take time to walk around our community. As we go, we pray to see what the needs are right here around us.”
Because of this vigilance, “one month [of projects] might be entirely different than another month,” she said.
One project, creating basic necessity kits for “those who call the streets their home,” was centered on socks. Garaghty and her team knew that “socks are a commodity” when one is constantly on his or her feet.
For those who don’t work directly with the community, their talents are also put to use for other activities, like legislative alerts.
“We send out e-newsletters saying ‘Hey guys! Everybody heads up! It’s an alert. Please contact a congressman right now because this bill is going to pass if we don’t,’” Garaghty said. Advocating on specific bills is how change is made on the higher levels.
‘We’re the Catholic Church’
The nearby Waikiki community has embraced the presence of the social ministry volunteers.
“The great thing about it is that we’re not just Sts. Peter and Paul Church,” Garaghty said. “We’re the Catholic Church.”
“When we go to distribute things, it’s ‘Oh, the Catholic Church is here!’” she said.
This past week, with the Marco Polo disaster, the ministry volunteers again expanded their services. They went to the scene — to listen, comfort and assist in anyway — their parishioners who were directly affected by the fire, other Marco Polo residents, and even relief service volunteers. Sts. Peter and Paul is one of the Catholic churches closest to the apartment highrise.
While “families were sitting with the Red Cross, the kids were running around and getting into things,” Garaghty said.
“The parents were uncomfortable and couldn’t concentrate” so ministry volunteers created a kid’s corner with crafts and games. While the adults had their important conversations, “we wanted the kids to be kids,” she said.
The parish social ministry has room to grow, Garaghty said.
“When we started the parish social ministry, the goal was to provide information, education, and opportunity for service that totally integrate within the church the seven principles of Catholic social teaching,” Garaghty said.
She hopes give those who work in the ministry “tangible ways that they can either serve in their parish or serve on their own.”
This goal includes expanding the role of youth in the ministry. Youth already participate actively in several projects, like making posters for the Marco Polo residents and bags for food donations. Teacher Lopez said that the religious education program often partners with social ministry.
They do a lot of “intergenerational” activities, she said. The kids like to help their kupuna.
Garaghty said that the ministry plans to incorporate a youth team to help lead social ministry projects.
Garaghty hopes the ministry continues to build strong foundations and grow their volunteer numbers. She would like to tell those who feel they are on the outside of their church, that “The community cannot be healed or served without them being church.”
She wants to “really help them identify their baptismal vocation, what gifts and talents God has given them, and how those talents were not given to them for their benefit, but for the benefit of others.”
