My community sisters and I decided to stop by the social block to see one of our dear friends Margarita. When we arrived, we realized that we had forgotten her apartment number so we waited by the door to see if someone could open the door and let us in. After waiting for five minutes,...
My community sisters and I decided to stop by the social block to see one of our dear friends Margarita. When we arrived, we realized that we had forgotten her apartment number so we waited by the door to see if someone could open the door and let us in. After waiting for five minutes,...
One day in the last two weeks of my mission, I knew it was going to be super full—this was my second to last chance visiting one of the neighborhoods in Deva, “Pe deal Sus,” a neighborhood behind a grocery store on a hill, with a beautiful view. Yet, ironically, it is totally unseen by...
I met Rick on my second or third day of the mission. He has both a mental and physical handicap but that does not stop him from sharing his light with others! He has one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen....
Every week, for the past 28 years, our volunteers have visited this village near Deva called Mintia. There, we often visit Elena, a mother of four boys. She had her first boy at age 13 or 14, and she is now in her early twenties. Her boys are Nicholas, Christopher, Lucas, and Michael. These boys...
Every Wednesday we take the bus to a little village near Deva called Mintia. One of the people we visit in Mintia is a little girl named Vanessa. Vanessa is 8 years old and was born without kneecaps so she is only able to walk on her knees. Vanessa doesn’t have many friends because she...
My very first apostolate in Deva was at the Monastery, which is a home for children who do not have families to take care of them. The children are there either because their parents have died, their parents struggle with substance abuse, or simply because their families cannot afford to care for them. We try...
One of our friends that I have gotten to know from the past month and a half is Margareta. She comes from a Gypsie family, but she also has a disability, and so, some of the Gypsies discriminate against her. Thus, we are her family. She has been a close friend of our community for...
One of the eldest sons of a family that we visit at least once a week, M., has grown up with the volunteers of Con-solatio. This spring he became the first in his family to graduate from high school. When he went with one of the volunteers to receive his diploma, the director who gave...
During our last month on mission, at just about every friend we visited, Hermine and I were saying goodbye. It was an intense experience to say goodbye and leave the people that I was close to, but I was also struck by the many friendships that were revealed through this painful experience of leaving...