January 25, 2023

Dear Friends in Christ,

Today we celebrate the feast day of The Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, marking the moment, Saul -- a persecutor of Christians – became Paul, an equally passionate disciple of Jesus Christ. St. Paul is particularly meaningful to our parish, because he is the patron saint of our sister parish in Léon, Haiti, with whom we’ve had a nearly 36-year-old partnership that’s yielded a medical clinic, two schools, and a coffee-selling initiative, which have helped Haitians drive the direction of their future. Today, I want to acknowledge the complete love through action former parishioner Pat Labuda demonstrated through her many decades of service to our Haiti Ministry.

After St. Francis parishioners voted in April 1987 to partner with Conversion of St. Paul’s Parish, Pat became the key ministry leader. She traveled to the country, along with then-pastor Fr. Donald Worch and parish staff, spending the first week listening to the local parish priest and the townspeople. Thus, began her life’s mission to bring medicines, medical supplies, and her tireless energy to Haiti. She built up a network of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and others who committed to travel regularly to Haiti and she was recognized by name on Haitian streets. Over more than 100 trips to Haiti, she became fluent in Creole. And when others, such as Frank Nice and Dan Cardile, stepped forward to formalize and build up the Haiti Medical Clinic and the Bon Pasteur School, she worked alongside them and the Haitian people to get done whatever needed getting done.  

Like St. Paul, Pat did much to inspire others to serve her extended family in Haiti. At last Sunday’s Haiti Benefit Concert, Gilda Beauzile, the Haiti ministry coordinator at Jesus the Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Owings, told of how Pat visited her parish in the aughts to introduce the Twinning Program. In 2008, Pat accompanied the pastor of Jesus the Good Shepherd to Haiti, and that year, the parish joined forces with Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church on Grande Cayemitte, northeast of Jérémie, Haiti. Over the past 13 years, Jesus the Good Shepherd parishioners have built a new church for the chapel in Anse du Nord; built a solar panel system for the health center in Pointe Sable; and repaired the main church building following damage sustained by Hurricane Matthew. I think Pat would be proud.    

Longtime members of our parish, Pat and her wonderfully supportive husband, Bill, moved to Florida last year to be near family. Before they left, the couple donated Pat’s artwork and wood carvings from Haiti to the parish, asking that they be sold at auction and the proceeds donated to the Haiti Ministry. This was carried out, thanks to the hard work of Dan and Anne Cardile, who now carry on Pat’s leadership of her beloved ministry.

Dan shared that he learned many lessons from Pat. How to remain undeterred in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. How to work in solidarity with the poor instead of trying to fix them. How to focus on relationships to promote positive change. How to accept the fact that if you’re only working to solve problems that can be solved in your lifetime, then you aren’t thinking big enough. How to embrace that we are not the Master Builder, only laborers in the field.

As we reflect today on the conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, let us thank God for disciples like Pat who never wavered in their life’s mission. May we all discover where God wants us to serve, may we minister with zeal, faith, and energy, and may we inspire others to continue and broaden our work so that the kingdom of God is extended to all.

I wish you a blessed and wonderful week! Please join us this week at any of our virtual prayer opportunities and at 9:30 am Friday, January 27, for Eucharistic Adoration in the church.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. John