Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters SSpS Mission

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

The New Preschool in St. Kitts - Page 4

New Missionaries - Page 6

News Notes – Page 7

Called by the Spirit ~ Embracing the World

Little Mexico: After 53 years, still going strong! Article on page 2

“Through God’s guidance

and grace, I can help

others. God is always one

step ahead of me, but I

keep on working and

following Him.”

~Sr. Therese Mary Martinez

2011

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 2

Learning to make herbal medicine

Little Mexico traces its beginning to April 20, 1958. The Mission Treasurer of the Holy Spirit

Missionary Sisters and one of her helpers went in search of a Mexican family in Des Plaines who had been

receiving some clothing from the mission department located in Techny. They found in the area a settle-

ment of Mexican people living in very poor conditions. When they discovered that the children were not

attending regular religious education, they immediately made arrangements to begin holding classes. The

surrounding parishes were contacted and together with the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, they created a

network of help. At that time, there was no building that could be used to hold these classes and the Sisters

held them in the open air all through the summer of 1958. The Sisters finally found St. Alexis Catholic

Church in Bensenville, where they were welcome to use the existing parish school and even the buses they

had to bring the children to their classes.

In the first year of the religious instructions there were about 152 children and five Sisters who

took care of them. In the following years the numbers increased, especially during summer months. Nu-

merous volunteers helped by driving the bus and giving instructions. This influenced the parish communi-

ty which had a “great missionary spirit,” and was very supportive of the work the Sisters were undertaking.

In 1961, Santa Teresita was opened in Palatine to serve the Spanish-speaking people of that area.

This gave the people a chance to go to Santa Teresita; however, lack of transportation and distance

prevented many of them from attending the parish activities. At that time, Fr. Morrison was just starting to

build his church, Queen of the Rosary in Elk Grove Village, and the Hispanic community was welcomed

with open arms.

The secrets to the growing numbers of children were home visits and personal invitations to attend

religious classes. They felt wanted and accepted. Since the numbers of children and families that were

looking for assistance had grown, Sisters were also giving more time to accommodate those needs. It

looked like it could be a full time ministry.

Sr. Therese Mary and right-hand man, Felix Vences Sr. Therese Mary and a visitor to Little Mexico

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 3

All those activities began in the small room

in the basement of the convent originally used to

store school supplies. With the growing number of

needy people, there was also a great need for a

bigger space that eventually was granted for this

purpose.

Though the sisters did what they could to

help those who came from Mexico, they could not

alleviate their poverty. The Sisters realized more

and more that definite and individual attention was

needed.

It was in 1963 that the Sisters began the

Sponsorship Program which would allow the fami-

lies to take out loans. They were to pay back the

loans in weekly or bi-weekly payments. In addition,

they would receive a food basket that would help

them to save money to pay back the loans. The idea

was to help them save in order to buy a home. Sell-

ing clothing and religious articles provided the

Sisters with money to buy food. In addition, the

Sisters organized fund-raising activities.

When Sr. Therese Mary Martinez, who was

one of the first Sisters to see the needs of the Latin

American population, observed the shacks in which

people lived she was inspired to make assistance to

the Hispanics her mission. She named her project

LITTLE MEXICO and in 1972 moved the thrift

shop which she operated at the convent to a small

house on River Road in Mount Prospect. She ran a

small ethnic grocery store, received donations of

furniture, clothing, food and financial help from in-

dividuals and local churches. She realized that to

become part of life in the United States, it was es-

sential for families to own their homes. In over fifty

years of service, she has helped more than two hun-

dred families to obtain their first homes by provid-

ing financial assistance, legal aid from dedicated

friends and guidance on mortgages. All financial

assistance is repaid within ten years, interest free,

and the money is used to help others. She said: “I

trust them and they repay the trust.” In 1997, the

thrift shop was moved again to a location on Wolf

Road in Wheeling.

The ministry of Sr. Therese Mary includes

family counseling and help with finding jobs. She

also appears in court as a character witness and

speaks out on behalf of the rights of people from

Latin America. She says, “Through God’s guid-

ance and grace, I can help others. God is always

one step ahead of me, but I keep on working and

following Him.”

As Little Mexico’s director, Sr. Therese

Mary also takes the responsibility for supervising

the people assigned by the court to community

service in the shop. This allows the offenders to

stay with their families instead of going to prison

and gives them more respect. Money for the ser-

vices comes from the Flea Market in which Sister

participates during summer months, donations

from nearby parishes and rent for office space.

Many of us would say that missionary

work involves traveling to a distant country and

helping people to improve their living conditions

there. Usually we do not think that missionary

work is helping those in need wherever they are

even in the suburbs of Chicago. Little Mexico is

the place where people from Latin America find a

loyal friend who works quietly, efficiently and

with great determination on their behalf.

Sr. Therese Mary and friend Evelyn Pazera take a break.

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 4

Ever since the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters ar-

rived in St. Kitts, the smallest country in the Caribbean,

we have seen the needs of young children. Most of them

are from homes with a single mother who needs to work

outside of the home to provide food and housing. Thus,

there is little time or attention for her child. We saw that

the precious years of early childhood needed to be uti-

lized for developing skills and values, and that children

needed to do this having fun together. We dreamed of

gathering the children together in a safe place to learn

through playing, thus nurturing a wholesome foundation

for their lives.

The dream was realized on Sunday, September 4,

2011 when we celebrated the opening of the new pre-

school. There are currently seventeen children, who are

with us from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Monday through

Friday. During that time, we have devotions in the

morning which consist of Bible stories, praying, songs,

etc. Other activities throughout the day include outdoor

play, small group activities, snacks, lunch time, breaks

for bathroom visits, naps and circle time.

We hope that in the near future, we will be able to

expand to include other children who wish to come to our

preschool. One day, a woman came and expressed her

intention to enroll her child. When we asked how old the

child is, she laughed and answered, “Soon to come!” She

is a pregnant mother.

Sr. Julita Bele Bau

Learning through Play: The New Preschool in St. Kitts

Our Sisters from Antigua join our Sisters in St. Kitts for the celebration.

Mothers and children celebrate the opening of the school.

The Holy Spirit Preschool focuses on:

Helping families, especially mothers, to form and educate their children.

Building a strong foundation of Christian values and morals.

Helping children to appreciate their culture and at the same time train them to be multicultural-

minded.

Working in groups to develop good interpersonal relationship skills in their early education.

The preschool also emphasizes the important collaboration actions of punctuality, politeness and

tidiness.

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 5

Wish List for the St. Kitt’s

Preschool

~Television set for showing children’s educational DVDs $550.00 ~Children’s educational DVDS $15.00 each (or your used children’s DVDS) ~Meals for the students $8.00 (for one student for a week) Donations for the preschool can be sent to the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, 319 Waukegan Rd., Northfield, IL 60093

Sr. Julita and students.

Outdoor time.

Sr. Margaret Kissani and the students at lunch.

Do your own thing!

Ready for a new day!

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 6

Sr. Uloma and her sister praise the Lord in dance!

Jesus still calls missionaries to be with Him and to be sent by Him.

O n September 8, 2011, Sr. Uloma Patricia

Akpa, made her first vows as a Holy Spirit

Missionary Sister. Rejoicing with her

were family, friends and our Sisters living in the

Chicago area. All enjoyed the beautiful liturgy

wherein Uloma publicly professed her desire to

follow Jesus as a Holy Spirit Missionary Sister. She

will soon begin an internship at the Center of

Reconciliation in South Chicago run by the Precious

Blood Fathers and Sisters. They work in the youth

detention center and with the neighborhood gangs,

schools and churches as instruments of the Lord’s

peace. Sr. Uloma is the first Nigerian Sister in our

Congregation.

O n September 18, Rebecca Chaan

David proclaimed her desire to enter

the novitiate and begin immediate

preparation for following Jesus and partaking in

His mission as a Holy Spirit Missionary Sister.

The novitiate is a time when a young woman

lives the religious life and, under guidance,

prepares for total dedication to God. Rebecca is

from Sudan and was able to meet with her

parents (right) in Uganda shortly before

entering the novitiate. She will be doing her

novitiate in Chicago with our community in

Rogers Park.

Rebecca with Dad and Mom

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 7

News Notes

Sr. Lidwina Murakami, Provincial of our Japanese Province, spent a month with us in the U.S. to

brush up on her English before the Provincials’ Assembly in Rome. She and our Provincial, Sr.

Carol Welp, left for Rome on September 30. On September 25, Sr. Lidwina gave a presentation to

our Sisters, friends, and priests and brothers from the Society of the Divine Word about Japan and

the after-effects of the tsunami and earthquake.

Our novitiate has moved back to its remodeled home in Rogers Park, Chicago, Illinois.

Earlier in the year, Sr. Rose Therese Nolta represented the U.S. Province when the Mission Animators

and Justice and Peace Coordinators of the Americas met in Sao Paulo, Brazil, at Santo Amaro, our Pro-

vincial House in the Brazil North Province. The meeting emphasized how each province has imple-

mented the agreed upon actions from the Third Assembly in September 2008.

SSpS Mission Magazine is published quarterly by the

Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters Our web site: www.ssps-usa.org Our phone: (847) 441-0126

Editor: Judy Cates

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The Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters are an international community of Catholic religious women serving in 47

countries. Missionary activities include pastoral work and catechesis, education, nursing and health care, social

work, adult education, and many other services designated to promote human dignity.

SSpS Mission Magazine Page 8