Many seniors who are homebound or live in senior residences have little or no visitors, including their families. Some families visit their seniors regularly but the ministry has found out that the majority of seniors are basically forgotten by their loved ones. Volunteers who would like to make the life of a senior or another person happier and less lonely are matched up with seniors or others who would like a visitor. Seniors just love seeing children on these visits as well.  Volunteers visit the senior where they live, either at a residential of private home.  The hope is that the relationships between the visitor(s) and those being visited will grow into one inspired by the Holy Spirit. People may also volunteer to give short-term respite care for caregivers (e.g., for wife with disabled husband.

 All of us feel a bit helpless right now. There is only so much that we can do to help others, but this is something we CAN do right now.  You can make a difference in someone else’s life.

The Enriching Lives Ministry (ELM) has been asked by Holmstad to start some new outreach programs as well as significantly increase the card & note sending during these difficult times. We are excited to be able to reach out and try to meet the needs of the residents at The Holmstad.
 
Our goal is to start this effort to serve lonely homebound and senior residence Holy Cross parishioners as well as the whole Community.  We will also be working to set up these programs at other nursing and senior residence homes in the area so we really need your help.

• Card Sending:  We need more volunteers to send cards, notes and children’s drawings to nursing card-sending ministry, volunteers are given an individual’s first name, last initial and an address, and are asked to send inspiring cards and notes (and/or kids’ pictures) at least monthly, hopefully more often, and on special occasions.  
• Quick Card Sending:  We are also looking for people who could send out words of encouragement on short notice (Quick Card Sending), when we are notified of new residents in the facility for rehab on a short temporary basis.
• Prayer Hotline:  In this new program we solicit parishioners who'll provide their phone numbers and names, first name only if desired, to Holmstad staff member Angela Kotschi, their Community Engagement Coordinator. The Holmstad staff will then create a Prayer Hotline that lonely residents can use to reach out to our parish members to talk and pray with them if they wish.  We ask that you show the callers compassion and love and only pray with them if they wish to do so but please pray afterwards several times for them.  Holmstad staff will monitor, encourage and assist people with these calls.  Joining the Prayer Hotline will help the lonely people in our parish and community, those who cannot get out or have visitors, and also help us and them feel better about life during these troubled times.  We will help lonely people feel they are not alone and that there is hope and there are people who care about them.  We’re hoping to arrange video calls for this ministry soon, too. 
• Letters of Love:  Another new program is the Letters of Love program.  Holmstad has set up an email address that our volunteers can use to send words of encouragement, pictures from children, etc.  These cheerful wishes and pictures will be shared with the residents at The Holmstad, primarily those in Holmstad’s care facilities.  At this time when we are stuck at home, it’s a great time to send hope to others.  Have your kids draw pictures, scan them or take a picture and email them to Letters of Love. We can all write a note of encouragement just to let the residents know we are thinking of them.  The Letters of Love program above will not have names for whom you email your encouragement wishes, but the long-existing Card Sending program above will.

Join the Ministry or ask for additional information

From time to time, our ministry is asked to help a family, a senior, or other people in need. When this occurs, their needs are put in the bulletin for at least two weeks as well as mailed to a very large-distribution list. Previously, some of the needs have included  - but are not limited to – companionship, house cleaning, clothes, gift cards, lawn care and other yard work, shopping and other errands, and sometimes monetary assistance. (Note:  Our ministry works with St. Vincent dePaul as well as other resources when the need arises.)

The purpose of the Rosary Crusade is twofold. First, it has people praying the Rosary for specific people in need of prayers. Second, it encourages volunteers to pray the Rosary regularly just as our Blessed Mother Mary has requested. The Rosary Crusade is divided into groups of 20 people each. When a group is given specific people for whom they should pray, each person in that group prays one specific decade of the Rosary every day for 20 days for that person's intention. Thus, each day a complete Rosary (4 mysteries and 20 decades) are said for the person's intention. After the 20-day period, 20 complete Rosaries have been said for the person. A Rosary Crusade is made for a person needing prayers for any reason, with the request for prayers made either by the person, a relative or a friend.
 
Please pray along with us for the intercession of Mary for these requests.

Audio Version of the Rosary             How to Pray the Rosary Guide

Description: In November 2008, a small group of Enriching Lives Ministry volunteers began visiting with the residents of Batavia Rehabilitation Center to share conversation and social time. Thistask group remains vibrant and schedules about six to eight visits per year. The volunteers are dedicated to bringing smiles to their participants with bingo, crafts and snacks. Visits usually occur before an upcoming holiday, adding theme to planned activities. The residents have created their own placemats for holiday meals along with door-hangers and flower pots. In addition to playing bingo and making crafts, the volunteers and the residents have been abig part in supplying writing materials and thank-you/prayer cards to our local soldiers stationed overseas. We coordinate with the Batavia VFW before Christmas and contribute to their holiday mailings. We have also had the opportunity to include a group of young helpers, who have lent energy to our Saturday visits. This group of volunteers is led by Linda Crockett. Needs: Volunteers, including children, are needed to help the second group initiate its efforts. Comment: The committee is always eager to welcome new volunteers and ideas. Donations for bingo prizes can also be accepted by any of either group’s volunteers.

Seniors from Heritage Woods and Holmstad are taken to and from 4:15 PM Mass on Saturdays and 9:45 AM Mass on Sundays, respectively, on the Holy Cross bus. As of August 7th, seniors from Batavia Rehab will also be taken to and from 9:45AM Mass on Sundays. In addition, seniors not living at either of these residences are taken to Mass in private cars.  Senior Luncheon: Ten months per year, usually on the fourth Friday of the month, seniors from Heritage Woods, primarily, and Holmstad are taken to the Holy Cross Senior Luncheon then brought back to their residences on the Holy Cross bus. Volunteers assist seniors on and off the bus, and into the church basement. Batavia Rehab seniors are brought to the luncheon in their van. The seniors enjoy food, games and entertainment.  Other Activities: From time to time the Holy Cross bus is used for other senior activities such as the annual Holy Cross School “Senior Appreciation Luncheon” and outings such as visits to Catigny Park in Wheaton and the flower gardens and zoo in Aurora.

We always need more Bus Drivers and Bus Assistants.  Come join the fun and spiritual rewards helping people who can't get to Mass, other church-related activities.  Have a car and be willing to either get things at stores homebound/residence-bound people can't or ride them to places they have no way of getting to without you.

• Bus Drivers:  Cost you nothing.  We'll train you for a CDL liscence and the required CDL written and in the field tests.
• Bus Assistants:  Help the elderly onto and off of the bus; show love and card to them while on the bus
• Rides:  Use your personal car to help homebound and others to get needed things or go to needed places 

For several years, the ministry entertained seniors at area senior residences.  Singing, piano, violin, group and seniors dancing, and karaoke brought fun times to the mostly lonely seniors. This program was highly successful as the seniors loved it, but with the rapid rate of growth of the ministry, the one person who organized and participated in this effort could not continue and the entertainment was suspended.  If you are willing to lead this ministry, please contact us.

Mona Terpstra plays piano and sings for the seniors at Batavia Rehab and Reed Callahan assists.

Yard and house work are efforts that can be done by family, adults, youth groups, etc.  If you are handy at home, you could do minor house repair for a needy person not able to do the work.

A Holy Cross priest says Mass at Holmstad/Michaelsons, Heritage Woods and Batavia Rehab once a month.  When this occurs, three different groups of Enriching Lives Ministry volunteers bring residents to the location assigned in the residence for Mass, assist the priest during Mass, and take the residents back to their rooms after Mass.

Enriching Lives Ministry volunteers lead seniors in praying the Rosary at Heritage Woods Saturdays at 10AM and Batavia Rehab Tuesdays at 10AM.  If you are willing to lead the Rosary at Holmstad or another senior residence, contact the ministry.

Over the years, the ministry has been asked many times to do things for those in need not listed above.  There have been but a few of these requests that the ministry was not able to do.  If you or a friend of yours has a need, we ask that you tell us of that need and we'll make every effort to fulfill that need.