Teens find faith is a two-way road in Hopkins Park
Published Aug 31, 2007
HOPKINS PARK—Servant of the Holy Heart of Mary Sister Mary Beth Clements sat on a wooden bench, catching a brief break in the shade on a hot August day at Sacred Heart Mission in Hopkins Park. Beads of perspiration dotted the forehead of the woman who coordinates the volunteer projects among other duties at the parish. Grateful for another successful season of volunteer work, she pointed to the various improvements around the faith community and expressed gratitude for this summer’s harvest of blessings.
Cultivating the effort over the summer were teens with equal parts muscle and heart from several groups—specifically St. Teresa and St. Patrick parishes in Kankakee; Cathedral of St. Raymond Parish in Joliet and St. Jude Parish in New Lenox; St. Peter the Apostle Parish in Itasca and St. Lawrence O’Toole Parish in Matteson.
The heat in July and August regularly raised the thermometer to above 90 degrees, yet the teens kept digging away at the tasks at hand, noted Sister Clements. Some of the tasks were completed inside—building crates and painting a kitchen. However, many called for outdoor labor—constructing a fire pit, repairing a lawn mower and clearing debris.
This season’s crop of volunteers helped residents in the area where running water and electricity are a luxury, but they also assisted with creating a better environment for future energetic mission groups. Sister Clements pointed out the fresh coat of paint on the flight of wooden stairs leading to the rectory’s front door. The building previously served as living quarters for a clergyman in residence, but now it has been transformed into a dormitory for volunteers on weekend and weeklong missions in the community.
After long days of cutting grass or painting homes this summer, the youth had to manage with just the two bunk beds and two single beds inside the rectory. Sister Clements is hopeful that next season there will be four more sets of bunk beds in the room where Itasca teens removed a dividing wall this summer.
Teens from St. Peter the Apostle Parish have been hammering away for a few years in Hopkins Park, explained Carol Shubert during a telephone conversation with the Explorer Aug. 9. The director of youth ministry and adult formation said the volunteers typically sleep on the floor. By removing the wall she said they were “trying to create an environment to get groups to come back.”
The 180-mile round trip the suburban Catholic youth take to the rural parish a few times a year has established a friendly relationship. She said, “The people we’ve come into contact with are genuine, faith-filled people no more in need than what we’re in need of.”
The interaction with the people of Hopkins Park is essential to the teens’ experience, added Shubert. She said they frequently conclude their weekend activities by hosting a Sunday brunch for Sacred Heart parishioners after Mass. While serving up a typical breakfast of pancakes drizzled with syrup, the teens have had a chance to visit with community members. Shubert said the finale event is often the most enjoyable because “it’s about those relationships.”
According to U.S. Census data, the more than 8,000 residents of Itasca, located in DuPage County, make it ten times the size of the Kankakee County village, which has less than 800 people. The median home value differs by more than $150,000 between Itasca and Hopkins Park. Caucasians make up 75 percent of Itasca’s population, while African-Americans account for 92 percent of Hopkins Park’s residents. Shubert said, “They keep stepping out of their comfort zone every time and, hopefully, that challenges them to be a better person.”
Sister Clements sat in a grotto area of the parish grounds and described to the Catholic Explorer how she has been blessed to witness the transformation of teens in that very spot. She said, “Their faith is being planted here.”
Life-changing moments occur while working, praying and playing in the area. The 44-year-old nun said, “It’s a beautiful experience because what they talk about is how they found God here in their experience. To be able to hear that whole interaction and how God is working in their lives is, for me, a really amazing experience.”
Youth have been known to return with their families to celebrate Mass on Sunday “just to be here” or bring in resources from their own connections to assist the parish, added Sister Clements. She said, “One of the girls from St. Teresa’s group lovingly referred to this as ‘home.’ And she said that when she comes here life is simple and there are no problems.”
The youth have since returned home to prepare for school, but reminders of their work are obvious throughout the Sacred Heart property. On the wall of the rectory, Joliet and New Lenox teens called attention to their replacement of a roof by painting an inspirational scene that detailed their work. Hearts, painted by Kankakee teens, also dot the entire campus, which stretches more than two acres.
During a telephone conversation, Michelle Barrie, co-youth minister for St. Patrick and St. Teresa parishes, explained since 1999 the Kankakee teens leave their trademark signature on projects by crafting hearts with bricks, paint or any other handy material. The hearts represent the mission’s theme for the year, such as Trilogy of Hope and Hearts of Hope.
Hope is something that the youth unearth during every outing, added Barrie’s husband and co-youth minister, Ken. He said, “They see people living on faith. They are depending on God to see them through their day.”
In a place where residents struggle to find transportation to the nearest grocery store—which is about 10 miles away—the prevalence of poverty can be overwhelming for the teens, Ken acknowledged. The nicely paved blacktop road with bright yellow lines on County Road 2 is evidence of efforts on the part of governmental and private entities to make improvements. Nevertheless, heaps of garbage, burned out structures and rusted automobiles still pepper the landscape despite sporadic attempts to improve living conditions. Ken surmised, “It’s like feeding the world. How do you do it? We do it one person at a time.”
