Westborough woman expands embrace of Haiti

By Christina Galeone  | CFP Correspondent

WESTBOROUGH – In 1999, when Gloria Josephs accepted an invitation from her friend, Father Rick Frechette, to learn more about his missionary work by visiting the orphanage in Kenscoff, Haiti, that he started and runs, she didn’t know that the trip would change her life. 

“On the plane ride, I remember asking him a ton of questions; his answer was that I should experience Haiti on my own,” Mrs. Josephs said. She added, “I recall how breathtaking the mountains were as we landed in Port au Prince.  Haiti is a country of horrific poverty and majestic beauty at the same time.”

But it was the children at the Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos Orphanage that inspired her to do everything she could to make a positive difference in their lives. Although she’s been helping them tremendously through her work in the Haiti ministry at St. Luke the Evangelist Parish, she recently expanded her embrace of the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. This fall, Mrs. Josephs, who’s the youth ministry director at St. Luke’s, will help the Worcester Diocese’s Haitian Apostolate attempt to bring at least 17 new regional parishes into the apostolate’s successful twinning program that serves the Diocese of Les Cayes, Haiti. 

 The twinning program unites Worcester diocesan churches (referred to as twin parishes) with Catholic schools and churches in the Les Cayes Diocese (referred to as sister parishes) through a covenant between the two dioceses that’s renewed every three years by their bishops. 

Sister Marie-Judith Dupuy, the Sister of St. Anne who runs the apostolate and the program, said the program creates a friendship between the twin parish and its sister parish as the two walk “hand in hand for the good of the two dioceses.” She noted that while local parishes share their financial resources, the Les Cayes parishes share their immense faith that has survived the country’s devastation. 

“They pray for one another,” Sister Marie-Judith said. “Prayer is very powerful.”

Sister Marie-Judith is looking forward to the annual Mass, which will be celebrated by Bishop McManus at St. Paul Cathedral in Worcester on Saturday, Oct. 20, in which priests from the twin parishes will meet/reunite with priests from their sister parishes. 

“One thing I really enjoy the most is when the two pastors sit together … to share their experiences in their pastoral ministry,” she said. “They share their dreams together, and that’s what the beauty of this noble ministry stands for.”

Mrs. Josephs, who will attend the Oct. 20 Mass, will help facilitate more of those blessed meetings. Although fall is the busiest time of the year for the youth ministry director, who’s also been immersed in the joyful work of preparing for her eldest daughter’s wedding, she will start speaking about the ministry and showing an educational video at places such as local Catholic colleges and deanery meetings. She also hopes to join Bishop McManus and Sister Marie-Judith in Haiti for the 2019 covenant renewal. 

“It is a wonderful program,” Mrs. Josephs said. “We are helping them spiritually and financially by helping support the cause there. It’s a wonderful thing!”

Mrs. Josephs has been familiar with how great the need is in Haiti and how any amount of aid can have a huge impact, since that first visit to the country in 1999.     

“How could a country of such beauty with beautiful Haitians have such terrible living conditions,” Mrs. Josephs recalled asking herself after that initial journey. “I fell in love with Haiti, the people, the music, the art, etc. I knew I would return to Haiti many times…”

Not only has she returned many times to volunteer at and bring supplies to the children at the NPH Orphanage, where the children are fed, educated, cared for and raised with love as one Catholic family, she has also initiated many St. Luke’s fundraisers to help the children there and at St. Damien Pediatric Hospital, which Father Frechette also started and runs. Along with her husband, children and St. Luke’s Parish, she said she has seen how much the people of Haiti are “busting their back trying to make life better” for their neighbors, and she believes she has been called to be a part of that work. She said, “God has a plan all the time.” 

And Sister Marie-Judith, whose greatest wish is that all Les Cayes parishes will have twins, is happy that Mrs. Josephs will be assisting the apostolate to reach its goal of recruiting at least 17 more parishes in 2019.

“She is such an enthusiastic person,” Sister Marie-Judith said. “We can work together very well.” 

– For more information about the Haitian Apostolate twinning program, please visit its website, www.worcesterdiocese.org/haitian-apostolate-1.