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May 3, 2024By Tanya Connor | The Catholic Free Press
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WORCESTER – God’s role at Visitation House was a theme sounded repeatedly at the non-profit’s annual fundraising dinner, held Saturday at the College of the Holy Cross.
The home for women with unplanned pregnancies and their children, 119 Endicott St., receives no government funding, but relies on donations so as to house residents and teach them various skills at no cost to them, said Rebecca Urban, executive director.
The sold-out dinner drew 350 people, 100 more than last year, and raised $95,000 as of Wednesday. She said the money is for the operation and maintenance of the house, which is nearly at capacity with 11 women, and for the expansion of programs and services.
The fundraiser included a silent auction, a video about Visitation House, testimonials, and a keynote address by Ray Guarendi, a Catholic father of 10 adopted children, clinical psychologist, author and television and radio host. “Living Right with Dr. Ray” is aired on EWTN Global Catholic Television and “The Doctor Is In” is aired on the EWTN Radio Network and Ave Maria Radio, says the website drray.com.
At the dinner, Bishop McManus presented the Ruth V.K. Pakaluk Legacy Award posthumously to Father Walter J. Riley, former Visitation House board member and pastor of St. Anne Parish in Shrewsbury. Father Riley’s sisters accepted the award, named for the late pro-lifer who is called Visitation House’s inspiration.
Mrs. Urban said she was moved to tears by letters accompanying donations to Visitation House, which Father Riley’s obituary requested in lieu of flowers.
She said Visitation House is God’s work and she prays he will work through her.
“My faith was shaken,” Loyda, a current resident, said in her testimonial.
“When I came to Visitation House, it grew. ... I love that God is there. ... There is a chapel in the middle of our home,” where the women can go to pray.
She had been engaged and attending pre-marital counseling, but she and her fiancé found they were not compatible, she said.
Upon learning she was pregnant; she made an appointment with what she thought was an abortion facility. It turned out to be a faith-based pregnancy resource center. She was prayed for and given an ultrasound.
She moved from Florida to Massachusetts, found Visitation House, gave birth to a son and named him Elijah, after the Old Testament prophet, whose faithfulness and trust in God inspired her. She felt God wanted her to trust him, she said.
Visitation House strives to leave women better than they were when they arrived, while some other places just provide shelter, she said. She said Visitation House helps them grow spiritually and build relationships with other residents. Saturday’s gathering showed them Visitation House is bigger than just its residents, she said. She told The Catholic Free Press that they saw they have many kind, genuine people standing behind them, supporting them.
Fawn, a former resident and present donor, who came from Nebraska to give a testimonial, said she often went to Visitation House’s chapel to cry and think when she lived there, and she felt like God was speaking to her.
She had just moved to Massachusetts from Nebraska when, at age 21, she learned she was pregnant, she said. Changes at work and her apartment complex led her to search for help for pregnant women facing homelessness. She said she was afraid to raise a baby, but participated in Visitation House classes, returned to Nebraska, is majoring in criminal justice and has a job, apartment, vehicle – and her daughter.
She thanked donors and encouraged present Visitation House residents to get back up when they fall.
“Easter is about the victory of life over death; it is Easter all year long at Visitation House,” said Father Michael J. Roy, the home’s chaplain and a retired priest of the Worcester Diocese.
He noted that love includes sacrifice, as Jesus showed, and asked attendees to sacrifice to support this home, which he said makes a real difference.
Dr. Guarendi hailed Visitation House residents.
“God bless you girls, because it is girls like you, who embraced life, who gave me my family,” he said.
He had just told about the 10th child he and his wife adopted, which they hadn’t planned on.
His children have what people call “risk factors” from rough environments in the womb, including exposure to drugs and alcohol, he said.
But his children are not strong-willed, because they’re not stronger willed than their mother, he said, giving tips for child-rearing, along with much humor. He said love without discipline is child abuse.
Dr. Guarendi said sometimes he teases clients, asking, “Would you have talked to your mother the way your kid talks to you?” If not, why not? Perhaps it was because of “the perception of authority,” that their mother would punish them for misbehaving.
“I am stronger than the biggest, baddest, 4-year-old,” he said, telling how, when one of his sons didn’t want to go to bed, he picked the boy up, put him in bed, and held him down. His son decided Dad looked like “he means it.”
Dr. Guarendi also offered encouragement to parents who feel guilty because their adult children have left the faith they raised them in. Even Jesus couldn’t get most people to follow him, he said.
- Editor’s note: Those wishing to donate to the fundraiser can still do so online at visitationhouse.org or by sending a check to Visitation House Inc., 119 Endicott St., Worcester MA 01610.
