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Contents:
1. Executive Director’s Reflection
2. 2010 NACC Annual Member Support Campaign has been sent!
3. May in Milwaukee! NACC National Conference 2011!
4. Thank you to all who volunteered to be a leadership mentor!
5. New positions for NACC members
6. Stations of the Cross from the 2010 NACC Conference
7. How are you handling coverage?
8. Are you planning to give any presentations on chaplaincy?
9. Order your video promoting the chaplaincy profession
10. Sign up now for May-June audio conference!
11. Local/regional event dates
12. Other educational events
13. Healing Tree: a request for prayers
14. Recent Job Postings
15. Positions wanted
While our members were convening in St. Paul for our NACC Conference, we lost two members to death following their bouts with cancer: Sr. Barbara Marie Link, FSPA, (63 years old) and Judith Winter Novak (54 years old). Both were young, both, like so many of our members, came to chaplaincy after earlier careers, both recently joined NACC and certified in 2006, both worked in hospice care. As they lived with and battled their own cancers, these dear women of faith ministered at the margins of life, as so many of you do.
In October 2008, while fighting cancer, Judy reflected on the question, “Do you believe God answers your prayers?” The excerpt was printed in her commemorative booklet. She wrote:
“The answer to our prayer is that we have what we need to live a fruitful life, praising God and loving each other. Not everything we want is given to us. What we need, as individuals and as a community, is what our God bestows upon us freely. To say that we believe in the power of prayer and that God indeed answers our prayers is to trust that God provides in ways we might not expect or understand. God provides what is needed, not always what is wanted. The point of prayer is not to get what we want, but rather to praise God for what we have been given as a community of believers here on earth, and to be strengthened in grace to continue the work that God has set out for us in the days to come.”
Judy’s observations on the point of prayer as praising God powerfully echo our eternal goal as expressed in yesterday’s Sunday reading from Revelation.
For this reason they stand before God’s throne
and worship him day and night in his temple.
The one who sits on the throne will shelter them.
They will not hunger or thirst anymore,
nor will the sun or any heat strike them.
For the Lamb who is in the center of the throne
will shepherd them
and lead them to springs of life-giving water,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
These were women of faith who listened deeply to others’ (Christ’s) voices, and now live in the endless grasp of our tender God, as noted in yesterday’s Gospel of John.
My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.
For us Catholics, these images are deeply consoling. Yet as chaplains, we daily minister to patients, families, and associates of all faiths and little faith as they grapple with prayer and pain, supplication and suffering, desires and death, faith and finitude. Yesterday’s readings carry us as Catholics (as they did for Barbara and Judy) and deepen our faith-fed passion to stand by and listen to those who experience life’s wrenching and suffering so that we can provide the healing presence and space to find and be strengthened by their own spiritual resources.
As we remember Sr. Barbara, Judy, and other members who have passed into the infinite Mystery of God's tenderness, we continue to stand at the edge of Life’s Mystery daily with so many. Our words limp, but our compassion consoles. May they rest in peace; may we continue to minister in joyful hope. You can visit the obituaries of Sr. Barbara and Judy: Sr. Barbara Marie Link, FSPA Judith W. Novak
What is it like to minister at the margins of life?
Appreciatively,
David Lichter
Executive Director
You should have received or soon will be receiving our annual member support campaign letters. Past generosity has significantly helped us meet member needs. Our member participation increased 66 percent in each of the last two years. This was wonderful! Can you please participate again or for the first time? Thank you in advance for your support! With questions, please contact David Lichter (dlichter@nacc.org).
May in Milwaukee! NACC National Conference 2011!Mark your calendars! May in Milwaukee! Next year’s NACC National Conference will be held in Milwaukee at the Hilton Milwaukee City Center, May 21 – 24, 2011! Would you like to help us plan? Please contact schaw@nacc.org. Our national staff and the Milwaukee members look forward to welcoming you. If you need to begin budgeting for it, the hotel rates will be $125 single/double plus tax.
Thank you to all who volunteered to be a leadership mentor!Thank you to those who volunteered to be mentors for members who aspire to grow in their abilities to become or develop in their roles as spiritual care leaders. We are setting up a conference call with these volunteers to review this mentoring role. We will be publishing those names soon after that call. If you want to volunteer to be a mentor, please contact David Lichter (dlichter@nacc.org). Click here for questions and answers regarding mentoring.
New positions for NACC membersJust a reminder to you, please let us know if you have accepted a new position/responsibility. E-mail Cindy Bridges (cbridges@nacc.org). We want to congratulate you and let others know, too. Below is our current list of updates from members:
Rich Woodley
After 15 years of leading the Spiritual Care Department at CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System, I am now the Program Director for Ethics Services for CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System.
Sister Mary John Fryc, CSSF
As of August 4th, 2009, I've been blessed with a Congregational assignment at our Felician Sisters Generalate in Rome, Italy. My main apostolate here is hospitality.
Michelle Lemiesz
Effective April 1st, I have been promoted from the Director of Chaplaincy Services at Mount Carmel East to the System Director of Chaplaincy Services for the Mount Carmel Health System in Columbus, OH. Mount Carmel Health consists of 4 hospitals as well as physicians offices and outpatient services.
Linda Broda Pribble, M.A., BCC
Since my certification in 2004 I have predominately worked as a Hospice Chaplain in New Mexico. Recently, I became Co-Director of San Patricio Retreat Center with my husband Dr. Wayne Pribble. The retreat center was purchased by the Diocese of Las Cruces, NM in September of 2009. This is a beautiful center located near Ruidoso, NM in the amazing Hondo Valley.
Chaplain Louise C. Gregg, M.P.S., M.A., BCC
Recently accepted a new position with Washington Hospital Center in the Spiritual Care Department as the Clinical Pastoral Education Coordinator, ACPE Supervisor.
Father Mark Scheffler, C.ss.R.
As of January 1, 2009, accepted the position as the Assistant Director and Chaplain at St. Clement Health Care Center in Liguori, MO.
Many who attended the Stations of the Cross services at the 2010 NACC Conference requested a copy of our NACC member Sharon Mason's “The Stations of the Cross for Chaplains.” They can now be accessed on our NACC website, under Spirituality and Prayer resources at www.nacc.org/resources/education.asp. Thank you, Sharon, for your creativity and generosity!
How are you handling coverage?We are looking to connect members from hospitals who have changed their coverage from 24/7 to Monday through Friday, first shift only, with no on-call second and third shifts or weekends. If you have had this experience, we would like to connect you with one of our members who is having a similar shift in their chaplain program/work hours. Please email Susanne at schaw@nacc.org if you would be interested in sharing information.
Are you planning to give any presentations on chaplaincy?We continue to encourage members to promote the chaplaincy profession. Please remember that the NACC office staff wants to make sure you have resources to share. If you are planning to do a presentation, please contact Cindy Bridges (cbridges@nacc.org) so that she can send you brochures. Also we remind you that you can access on our NACC website the Chaplaincy Ministry video (or order one – see below) as well as two Power Points to use as a basis for the presentation at www.nacc.org/advancing/promo.asp.
Order your video promoting the chaplaincy professionOur video on Chaplaincy, both a recruitment version (that begins and ends with “Is God Calling You?”), and a version without this question, are available in DVD format. The charge is just $6.00, the cost of production and shipping. You may preview the video at this link. To order copies please email Cindy Bridges for instructions.
Sign up now for May-June audio conference!Our first NACC audio conference series are scheduled for Thursdays, May 27 and June 3, 2010, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Central Time. It will be “Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services Directive 58: What Does the Revision Mean For Us?” by John Paul Slosar, PhD, Senior Director of Ethics, Ascension Health. To register, click here.
Local/regional event datesMore local gatherings are being set. Please review the list below, and mark your calendars. More details of events will be in future NACC Now's.
Here are other events for our members. For a complete listing of events, go to: www.nacc.org/resources/edops.asp
Please let us know if you would like our membership to pray for your health and healing. We continue to pray for: Tom Regan’s granddaughter, Kathryn Rose in NICU (born prematurely, weighs 3l lbs. 15 oz. with many developmental issues), Sr. John Marie Stack, OSF (lymphoma cancer), Mary Pawicz (recovering from shoulder surgery), Gloria Troxler (preventive chemo therapy after ovarian surgery), Fr. James Radde, S.J. (radiation therapy), Fr. Kevin Ikpah (eye troubles), Sr. Micheletta McGee, RSM (pancreatic cancer), Lourdes B. Ruta (wife of Peter Ruta, in recovery), Fr. Bob Nee, BCC, LICSW, CT (intractable epilepsy), Kelly Elizabeth Sexton (cancer: daughter of NACC member Melyssa Sexton), Joyce Fink (heart attack/recovery from open heart surgery), Fr. Bill Spacek (detached retina and other eye issues); Sr. Nancy Crane, OP (cancer treatment); Sr. Hilda Mallet, MHS (cancer treatment); Sr. Rita Rzeppa, IBVM (recovering/rehab from knee surgery), and Dennis Eldridge (Kathy's husband, for cancer treatment).
Recent job postingsThe following positions have been posted in the last two weeks. Please go to www.nacc.org/positions/available.asp for more information.
CHAPLAIN-CATHOLIC PRIEST
Jacksonville, FL - St. Vincent's HealthCare
PRIEST/CHAPLAIN
Phoenix, AZ - Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center
CHAPLAIN
Chewelah, WA - St. Joseph's Hospital
DIRECTOR OF SPIRITUAL CARE
Beech Grove, IN - St. Francis Hospital
In this time of change and uncertainty it is more important than ever to use every resource available. If you have lost your job recently, if you’re just seeking a new or better position, or if you are an employer seeking a chaplain for your organization, be sure to visit our Positions Wanted webpage. NACC members can take advantage of this free service by placing a job-seeking ad, for free, which will run for 60 days. To see the ads, visit www.nacc.org/positions/wanted.asp.
To place your own ad, send an email to Phil Paradowski: pparadowski@nacc.org.