May 31…Today in 2015 it is a Marian Trinitarian day! Our spirituality is Marian-Trinitarian, so a great day!
There is another significance to this day; on May 31, 2010 we received the first child in need that we helped! She was a child who had been adopted and her family was struggling with her. So I agreed to help with her and she spend a few long weekends with us and I worked with the family as well. It helped greatly!
Since then we have worked with several adoptive families to assist them with struggles that are due from their child being from the “hard places”.
All in all we have worked with a total of 31 children both adopted and foster! Many of our children from the state stay for 12-24 months. There is not a time limit, they may stay as long as needed. We have children whose parent(s) have succeed in some healing and getting their lives back together so they are able to parent their child(ren)! Others have been placed for adoption. It is nice to see the adoptive families we have helped be settled with their children!
What was our journey that lead to our first child on May 31, 2010!?
After I had been released from my old community, in July 2009, I started writing to bishops for permission to start in their diocese. While I didn’t write to all bishops, it was a learning experience! It was the Bishop of the Diocese of Grand Island who gave permission for us to start in his diocese! The ministry started first while I also continued to live the life of a religious sister, as I feel called to begin a community to help with this ministry as spouses of Christ!
We started looking for a place to live as well as working on taking classes and filling out paperwork to be licensed! All of this took awhile. We started by renting a new manufactured home that was 3 bed and 2 bath. It didn’t take long to out grow that! So we looked for something bigger to rent! We found a larger home to rent, a 4 bed 1 1/2 bath older home in Ravenna! This has let us licences for 6 children (4 0-12 and 2 12-18)
We are now looking to build a home to meet our needs and to be able to expand! We are hoping to attract vocations of women who feel called to religious life and caring for children in need. We are also needing some good volunteers to help with this ministry!
So The Family of the Good Shepherd is under the protection of Mary and the Trinity!
