Emma, 1 year old grand niece
enjoying her birthday cake
When we were working on the Parable,Thy Kingdom Come…on Earth as it is in Heaven , one of our friends printed up a copy with the sub-title saying, “A Story of What Could Be….” Today, my friend and I experienced what is now, when the money, 1.1 million from the sale of Catholic Churches in North Central Milwaukee , is not being used to establish a fund for beds, stoves and refrigerators for people in need from this same area.
We made a St. Vincent De Paul home visit to a family in the North Central Milwaukee. The man who opened the door told us to wait; then, he returned and told us to come in. The lady of the house and mother of the children was sitting on the floor on some blankets; and, the home was completely barren with not even a TV set in sight. Next to the mother was a four month old baby sleeping in a car seat, also on the floor. The woman explained to us her situation. They had recently moved into the house and the only income they had was from the W-2 program with most of the money going toward paying rent. They had food stamps; but, without a stove and refrigerator they were unable to cook any decent type of food or store the perishables.
When we told them we could help with a couple of major items, she immediately asked for a stove and refrigerator; however, she quickly added that she needed beds for her two young children to sleep on and one for herself and her partner. The baby had a Pack n’ Play to sleep in, and that was the only piece of furniture in the house. I explained to her that we could only help with a few major items, with vouchers for a stove and refrigerator — or some beds. She thought for a moment and said the beds for her children were more important than the appliances; so, we gave her a voucher for two single beds and a full bed. I was apologetic about not offering her a stove and refrigerator voucher in addition to the one for the beds. In the back of my mind loomed the thought of the 1.1 million dollars sitting in bank accounts that was originally intended for the poor of North Central Milwaukee. She understood how our parish conference could not offer her beds and appliances due to our lack of money. She did not know about the 1.1 million dollars our parish was holding as stewards, for people in need. She was disappointed, of course, about not being able to get vouchers for the appliances. For now, the hot plate would need to serve as the stove and the unheated back porch as the refrigerator. Because a sustainable fund for beds and appliances had not been established with the money inherited by our Church, she had to make the awful choice.
We talked for awhile. The baby woke up and smiled at us. The two small children sleeping on the floor in a back bedroom woke up and we could see one of them running toward the back of the house. She explained to us that she originally had four children but one had died at age one. On the information sheet from the central office of St. Vincent De Paul, it said she had requested a refrigerator at a different address from a different SVDP conference. When I asked her about that refrigerator she said she had not gotten it since she was then in the process of moving. The man said the person who visited them from the SVDP conference had an “attitude” and, “we just let it rest.” When we left, I felt we had just met Mother Mary and St. Joseph, simple people who were just seeking beds to sleep on, a stove to cook food and a refrigerator to store it. We, members of the nearby parish, had forced the couple into making an awful choice. The leaders of our parish have refused to even acknowledge receiving the parable and the proposal from the parable which could have given us the resources to provide for this family “what could be…”, as ordained by Jesus Christ. I wish the members of the St. Catherine Corporation board and the parish council could have been with us on this home visit today. If they cannot hear the parable maybe they could have felt the pain and suffering we all felt in that barren house today when these poor people had to make the awful choice; where, ‘what could be’ would not be.
Tonight my wife, Pat, and I went to a multiple birthday party for some African friends, where one of the birthdays was for the one year old daughter of a young woman we had known since she first came to the USA with her mother and with another young teen, both of whom called me Uncle Bob when we first met fourteen years ago and tonight. My African nephew with his son and new baby girl was also there. In this African feast: the dance, food, drink and joy made me realize what can be when we look at each other as family and support each other. I met a young African-American male there who had to explain to others he did not know much about the African food, drink or culture since he was an American. The African community locally is a sign of what could be when they treated each other as family. The family we previously visited is an example of how it is when ‘what could be’ is not going to be.
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