Issue #342- January 4, 2021
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(Items marked with a * are new or updated items)
NACC
1. Executive Director’s Reflection *
2. Welcome to our new NACC members who joined us in December 2020! *
3. Thank you to those of you who have given to our 2020 Annual Member Campaign! We are still getting some mail-in gifts! *
4. Thank you to our NACC members who are now assuming in 2021 new volunteer leadership terms and appointments on our Board, Commissions, Committees, and Panels! *
5. NACC Board of Directors announced the recipients of the NACC 2021 Awards!
6. In Vision: Pandemic puts unique strains on pediatric hospitals *
7. NACC Networking Calls for January 2021 – All are welcome to participate! *
8. Do you need a Listening Heart?
9. “Sharing of Feelings for Chaplains in the Field”
10. Healing Tree: a request for prayers *
2021 NATIONAL CONFERENCE, OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 1, 2021
11. Friday, October 29, to Monday, November 1, 2021, for NACC National Conference!
CHAPLAINCY NEWS, EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL SUPPORTS
12. Don’t forget to check the NACC Anti-Racism page for resources!
13. Don’t forget to check the NACC Coronavirus page for resources!
14. Educational Offerings *
15. Recent job postings *
1. Executive Director’s Reflection *
Blessings on your 2021!
I am sure you, as well as I, read and viewed so many reflections on 2020, often expressing a relief that it’s over. I suspect also that you, as well as I, begin this 2021 with lingering uncertainties as COVID-19 continues to ravage the country, racism has not lessened, deep political divisions remain real, and many unknowns face us. Perhaps I have different reserve, even caution, going into this year that requires more vigilance, humility, openness to new ways of life, and a deeper regard for our common humanity and earthly home.
I’m not sure why, and maybe it’s in part because of the above thoughts, but yesterday’s gospel of the Magi following the star, finding the Babe in the manger, bringing gifts, and due to a dream going home by another route, had a different feel. How many times have I reflected on that reading, but it never dawned on me before to consider these were three people.
I wondered: How they met? How different they might have been from one another. How they learned of each other’s yearnings? Which of them learned of the star and how they decided to follow the star together? How much they were in agreement or not on which way to go. How did they individually hear Herod? How they each picked their gift and felt about their gift and each other’s gifts; how they individually experienced the babe in the manger, which one heard the dream or did all three hear it? How did they decide to go another route and how did they choose that route? What was their getting to know and listen to one another? What was it like to share and come to agree on such a mysterious quest? What was it like to encounter the Mystery and to share in a way they found a new path together? This had me reflect on what their “group discernment” must have been like?
This led me to reflect back in gratitude for the many ways you, as NACC members, were there for one another in the midst of the very difficult times of 2020. In many respects the COVID-19 listening sessions were group discernments as you listened to one another’s stories and insights and held one another in prayerful support. I think of so many of you meeting new NACC members in the midst of fear, uncertainties, and loss. In many ways your shared resources were ways you were there for another, offering inspiration. Thank you for being there for one another.
As we look ahead to 2021, this will be a year of “group discernment” in new ways. As leaders and staff, we are counting on you to help us navigate this New Year together. We will continue our COVID listening sessions and the other supports. In this coming week, we will also share how we are viewing our education programs in a formative way that offers reflective sessions not unlike our Advent prayer together, mini retreats, extended virtual learning sessions, as well as our usual monthly webinars. We will provide an initial direction, but the year will unfold, as if we are following the Star, God’s graced guidance for us. As the three magi, we will discern together the way forward. Of course, our NACC Vision statement includes, “NACC is a light of hope, whose members are persistently advocating for those dedicated to the spiritual care of people experiencing pain, vulnerability, joy, and hope.” May we be for one another the place where the Light of hope, the Star, God’s graced guidance for us, is experienced.
With deep gratitude for you, your faith, your ministries, and prayers for 2021,
David Lichter, D.Min.
Executive Director
2. Welcome to our new NACC members who joined us in December 2020! *
Full Members
Mr. David R. Adam (Roseville, CA)
Rev. Dominic U. Anaeto (Meriden, CT)
Mr. Endysen Afamefuna (Benjamin) Atu (Salt Lake City, UT)
Mr. Ntama B. Bahati (Mount Rainer, MD)
Mr. Martin U. Ekweariri (Cincinnati, OH)
Affiliate Member
Samson Naidoo (Chesterfield, MO)
Ministry Volunteer
Mrs. Ann M Burkly (Kennesaw, GA)
Student Member
Mrs. Paulina Alvarado (Burien, WA)
3. Thank you to those of you who have given to our 2020 Annual Member Campaign! We are still getting some mail-in gifts! *
Thank you to all who were able to give to the 2020 Annual Member Campaign! We do not yet have a final tally, as we are still receiving some mail postmarked December 31! We have received 512 gifts totaling $60685.10. As noted in our prior NACC Now, we did surpass our $57,000 goal.
4. Thank you to our NACC members who are now assuming in 2021 new volunteer leadership terms and appointments on our Board, Commissions, Committees, and Panels! *
We deeply appreciate their generosity and wisdom.
| NACC Board of Directors: | Rev. Richard J. Bartoszek BCC Austine Duru BCC |
| Finance: | Timothy J. Crowley |
| Governance: | Cathi L. Ruiz BCC Isidro Gallegos BCC |
| Competencies Commission: | Ruth L. Worley-Rizk BCC V. Rev. Vasyl E. Marchak JDC, PHD, MDIV, MHA, MBA, BCC-E |
| Certification Commission: | Timothy J. Creech BCC Gary A. Weisbrich BCC-PCHAC |
| Certification Appeals: | Bonnie J. McCulley BCC |
| Certification Appeals/PCHAC: | Sedona T. Montelongo BCC-PCHAC Allison S. DeLaney BCC-PCHAC Prudence R. Hopkins BCC-PCHAC Gary A. Weisbrich BCC-PCHAC |
| Ethics Commission: | Gina Lyke BCC |
| Annual Awards Panel: | Deacon Mike Salcido |
| Marketing Advisory Panel: | Preston A. Becker Pedro J. Mendez BCC |
| State Liaisons: | DC Sr. Ann I. Howard SNDdeN, BCC NY Rev. John T. Crabb SJ, BCC-E SD LuAnn M. Trutwin, D.Min., M.Div., BCC CA Mr. Patrick J. Murray BCC and Veronica L. Marchese BCC WV Moira C. Reilly BCC |
5. NACC Board of Directors announced the recipients of the NACC 2021 Awards!
The NACC Board of Directors, upon the recommendations of the NACC Annual Awards Panel, is very pleased to announce the recipients of the Distinguished Service Award, Emergent Leader Award, and Outstanding Colleague Awards. Recipients who will be honored at our 2021 National Conferenced schedule for Friday, October 29, to Monday, November 1, 2021 at the Hyatt Regency Buffalo Hotel in Buffalo, NY.
Emergent Leader Award – Mrs. Allison S. DeLaney BCC-PCHAC serves as a chaplain for the Pediatric, Neonatal and Women’s Health units in the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center and as an Instructor in the Department of Patient Counseling of the College of Health Professions in Richmond, Virginia. Nominated by Ms. Bridget Deegan-Krause MDiv, BCC.
Emergent Leader Award – Ms. Moira C. Reilly BCC serves as a chaplain for the Children’s Hospital at West Virginia University Medical Center where she specializes in maternal and infant care, neonatal palliative care. Nominated by Edward Horvat, BCC.
Distinguished Service Award – Rev. John T. Crabb SJ, BCC-E serves as Clinical Pastoral Educator at the Catholic Health Services in Long Island New York. Jack Crabb has served the mission, vision, and values of NACC for the past 23 years with skill, dedication, and great heart. He is sensitive to the person on the margins and ensures inclusion. Nominated by Dr. Caterina Mako ThM, DMin, BCC.
Outstanding Colleague Award – Ms. Wendy Cadge PhD is Professor of Sociology and Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies at Brandeis University, where she is also Senior Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives. She is an expert in contemporary American religion, especially related to religion in public institutions, religious diversity, religion and immigration, and religious and moral aspects in healthcare. Among her publications is Paging God: Religion in the Halls of Medicine, which explores how doctors, nurses and hospitals address religion and spirituality. She founded and co-directed the Transforming Chaplaincy Project from 2015 to 2019, and in 2018 launched the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab. Nominated by Mr. James P. Letourneau BCC.
6. In Vision: Pandemic puts unique strains on pediatric hospitals *
No clinical care setting has felt the burden of visitor restriction as keenly as pediatric hospitals. In our latest Vision article, Jim Manzardo describes the strain of caring for children with only one parent, or no parents, in the room, and also the “survivor guilt” that some pediatric staff feel when they consider the heavy load that other hospitals are bearing. To read more, click below — and scroll down to read reactions from the first wave of chaplains to receive the vaccine. www.nacc.org/nacc-blog
7. NACC Networking Calls for January 2021 – All are welcome to participate! *
NACC is offering these Networking calls in January:
Friday, January 8, 2021, 11 a.m. CT — NACC Directors of Spiritual Care Networking Call
Wednesday, January 13, 2021; 12:00 p.m. CT — NACC Palliative Care/Hospice Network Call
Thursday, January 14, 2021; 2:00 p.m. CT — NACC Nurse Chaplain Networking Call
To sign up or for more information, questions, comments or concerns contact Ramune Franitza at rfranitza@nacc.org.
You must reply to participate and receive the ZOOM code for the call. If you replied, we will forward ZOOM passcodes for a video connection via internet or you may still call in using your phone. Registering for the call, even if you cannot participate, will allow you to receive notes of the conversation and resources shared.
Calls with less than 5 participants may be postponed.
Due to ZOOM Security requirements, you may be place in a waiting room. Do not disconnect. Please be patient until the host joins the call and allows you access. If you have difficulty in joining calls using ZOOM please let Ramune Franitza (rfranitza@nacc.org) know so that we can address the difficulty. THANK YOU!
NEW TIME – Member COVID Listening Calls will continue in January. Our first call for 2021 will be Tuesday, January 12, 2021 at 12:30 p.m. CT. Please register here to receive ZOOM information.
For more resources and blog updates, be sure to read the latest update on our Coronavirus resources page.
8. Do you need a Listening Heart?
We recognize that these are unusual and uncertain times. You are being stretched in new ways and faced with challenging choices. We have a resource called, “Listening Hearts,” to provide you one on one support.
Listening Hearts is available for NACC members seeking a listening presence from a NACC retired chaplain colleague. You may be experiencing and feeling the cumulative impact of the present global Pandemic. For those providing support for others and navigating the new normal without the opportunity to gather with extended family/friends, visit a favorite restaurant or workout at the gym, we invite you to share the load by reaching out for a listening heart of an experienced and compassionate retired chaplain. Please contact Ramune Franitza (rfranitza@nacc.org) if you would like to speak with a Listening Heart.
9. “Sharing of Feelings for Chaplains in the Field”
Would you like to meet with other chaplains to process your experience during these times?
“Sharing of Feelings for Chaplains in the Field” will be a 50-minute bi-weekly group ZOOM session offering an opportunity for our members to express personal feelings and stresses related to ministry in this era of dramatic health care crisis.
Guidelines:
- Minimum number of 3 and maximum of 6 persons in each group.
- Open group – must register through NACC and can participate in one or many sessions.
- Group members are expected to stay with the 50-minute session once it has started.
- Commitment to strictest confidentiality,
- Free expression of feelings, with acceptance, support and understanding from each group member to be facilitated by an experienced retired chaplain.
- There will be no notes or recordings.
- More groups available, if more than 6 people apply.
We invite you to be a part of this intimate sharing group. Please contact Ramune Franitza (rfranitza@nacc.org) to express your interest and to set up a mutually convenient time for these sessions.
10. Healing Tree: a request for prayers *
We continue to pray for: the special intentions of Victoria Lucas, Robert Lopez, Maritza Ramos-Pratt BCC, Sr. Mary A. DuPlain SJSM, Susan Balling, Isabelita Boquiren, Fr. Jim Radde SJ, Denice Foose, Fr. Jose Hernandez, Barbara McKee, Mary Lou O’Gorman, Sr. Ellen Moore, Sr. Theresa Chiappa SSC, Rev. Richard J. O’Donnell MI, Mary Fiegel and husband Lee Fiegel, Liam O’Neill (brother of Mary T O’Neill), Sr. Emily Demuth CSC (on the death of her sister Patricia), Sr. Betty Keegan (on the death of her brother Joe Keegan), Sr. Mary Brigid and her family (on the death of her brother John Riley), Russell Butler (husband of Carole Butler), Autumn Vaughn (great-niece of Linda Bronersky), and Nolan (grandson of Br. Dale Recinella, in gratitude for healing).
Please let us know if you would like our membership to pray for your health and healing. We will leave the person’s name on the Healing Tree list for three months unless you ask us to remove your or the person’s name earlier. You can always request us to leave the name on longer.
2021 NATIONAL CONFERENCE, OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 1, 2021
11. Friday, October 29, to Monday, November 1, 2021, for NACC National Conference!
Mark your calendars for the NACC Conference in 2021! This conference will be held Friday, October 29 through Monday, November 1, 2021, at the Hyatt Regency Buffalo Hotel in Buffalo, NY. It will be preceded by preconference workshops and our NACC retreat. Plan to join us!
CHAPLAINCY NEWS, EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL SUPPORTS
12. Don’t forget to check the NACC Anti-Racism page for resources!
Please continue to check our NACC Anti-Racism page for resources.
www.nacc.org/resources/antiracism-resources
13. Don’t forget to check the NACC Coronavirus page for resources!
Please continue to check our NACC Coronavirus page for resources.
www.nacc.org/resources/coronavirus-resources.
14. Educational Offerings *
See the Catholic Prison Ministries Coalition 2021 webinar offerings, starting with the January 13, 2021 webinar “Addressing Racism : A Time for Gospel Courage” – www.nacc.org/event/cpmc-webinar-addressing-racism-a-time-for-gospel-courage
Wednesday, January 6th at 1:00PM (EST) / 12:00PM (CST), please join us for a free webinar titled Psychospiritual Development and Moral Injury: Implications for Patient and Staff Care co-sponsored along with our friends at the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab Click Here to Register
Psychospiritual development is a theory with growing empirical support in the conceptualization of, and treatment for service member/veteran experiences of potentially morally injurious events. This webinar will discuss the current literature on psychospiritual development and how it can inform chaplain’s work with patients and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future directions in research and clinical practice will be explored.
Presenters:
J. Irene Harris, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist
Director, Social and Community Reintegration Research Center
VA Bedford Health Care System
Bedford, MA
Timothy J. Usset, MDiv, MPH
Executive Director, Physicians Wellness Collaborative
Army Reserve Chaplain (MAJ)
PhD Student, Division of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota
**Please note: this webinar will be recorded and distributed for all those who register. You will automatically receive a link to the recording in the days following the event.**
Monday, January 11th at 11:00AM (EST) / 10:00AM (CST), please join us for a free webinar titled: Chaplain Documentation: A Review of Charting Spiritual Care: The Emerging Role of Chaplaincy Records in Global Health Care
This webinar, sponsored by TC’s Chaplaincy Functions Research Network, along with our friends at the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, will focus on the research and findings presented in, Charting Spiritual Care: The Emerging Role of Chaplaincy Records in Global Health Care (2020). This book includes perspectives from multiple authors on topics such as spiritual assessment and documentation, concepts like confidentiality, and the role of charts in interprofessional communication and teamwork. What have we learned so far, and what do we have yet to learn about the state of chaplain documentation?
Presenters:
Prof. Dr. Simon Peng-Keller
Dr. Peng-Keller is the Professor for Spiritual Care at the University of Zürich, the second such professorship in Europe. His primary research focus is on healthcare chaplaincy and interprofessional spiritual care at the end-of-life and in the context of severe chronic disease. He is a co-editor of the recently published volume Charting Spiritual Care – The Emerging Role of Chaplaincy Records in Global Healthcare.
Pascal Mösli is a Research Associate at the Professorship for Spiritual Care, University of Zürich
Moderators:
M. Jeanne Wirpsa, MA, BCC, HEC-C, Program Manager & Clinical Ethicist, Medical Ethics Program and Research Chaplain, Spiritual Care & Education, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL
Christina Shu, BCC, Lead Interfaith Chaplain, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, and Co-convener of the TC Chaplaincy Functions Research Network
15. Recent job postings *
The following positions have been posted recently on our Positions Available page.
For more information go to www.nacc.org/resources/positions
DIRECTOR, SPIRITUAL CARE
Camp Hill, PA – Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center
SPIRITUAL CARE MINISTER (two openings)
Green Bay, WI and Eau Claire, WI – HSHS St. Vincent’s Hospital and Sacred Heart Hospital
ASSOCIATE CHAPLAIN
Indianapolis, IN – Franciscan Health
CHAPLAIN
Springfield, MO – Mercy Hospital
STAFF CHAPLAIN, HOSPICE
La Crosse, WI – Gunderson Lutheran
CHAPLAIN – CATHOLIC PRIEST
Tampa, FL – BayCare/St. Joseph’s Hospital
