Catholic Charities staff standing by ready to assist with disaster response efforts
CHARLOTTE — Tropical depression Florence continues to pour on North Carolina, bringing dangerous flooding and power outages.
All nine schools in the Mecklenburg Area Catholic Schools system were closed Monday, Sep.t 17. Sacred Heart School in Salisbury is also closed Monday, Sept. 17 due to continued rain and flooding.
Bishop McGuinness High School in Kernersville will operate on a normal schedule on Monday, Sept. 17.
Our Lady of Grace in Greensboro will operate on a two-hour delay. School will begin at 10 a.m. There will be no before school care or hot lunch.
Immaculata School in Hendersonville will also operate on a two-hour delay due to the risk of area flooding causing hazardous driving conditions, Classes will begin at 10 a.m.
Other schools in the diocese had not reported closures as of 9:30 p.m. Sunday.
Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte staff are standing by, communicating with their colleagues on the eastern side of North Carolina in the Diocese of Raleigh to coordinate disaster response efforts.
Catholic Charities has been participating in regular calls with N.C. Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, or NC VOAD.
Catholic Charities is encouraging people to call North Carolina’s help line 2-1-1 if they need help seeking shelter or other assistance. NC 2-1-1 is an information and referral service provided by United Way of North Carolina and supported by local United Ways and public and private partners across the state, and it is available in all 100 North Carolina counties.
In addition, a helpful resource is READY NC, which provides a regular stream of news releases during a time of a disaster.
— Catholic News Herald
Note: This story will be updated as more information is available.
Pictured: Boarded-up windows with the words "Pray for Wilmington" are seen Sept. 12 Wilmington, N.C., ahead of Hurricane Florence. Communities along the southeastern coast prepared for the onslaught of the Category 4 hurricane. Forecasters warned the storm could hesitate just offshore for days, punishing a longer stretch of coastline harder than previously feared, before pushing inland over the Sept. 15-16 weekend. (CNS photo/Chris Keane, Reuters)
HUNTERSVILLE — Death and taxes. Both are inescapable. But as Catholics we know that death is not the end. Earth is just the first part of our journey home to the Father. His Kingdom is our ultimate goal.
But even as practicing Catholics, losing a loved one can be extremely difficult. That’s where the Bereavement Ministry at St. Mark Church in Huntersville can be a great comfort. The growing ministry launched group sessions to better serve parish families who have suffered a loss.
About 18 members serve in the parish ministry, which is led by Deacon Richard McCarron.
“When I was in formation in the diaconate, we were required to get involved in various diocesan ministries and they assigned me to work in bereavement support at a local hospital in their hospice program,” Deacon McCarron said. “I facilitated group sessions and I was astounded to see the healing that took place there and how the participants helped each other after realizing that everybody grieved differently. It was truly an eye-opening experience for me.”
The bereavement team reaches out to the family of the deceased by attending the viewing and offering condolences on behalf of the parish family. On the day of the funeral they attend the Mass, distribute the Mass booklets and generally assist the family with whatever they need.
Nancy McGahey is one of the team members. “I am the registration person,” McGahey said. “When people call I answer any questions they may have and gather their contact information. Each person I speak with is totally different than the next, with the exception that each one has suffered a loss. I never rush the calls and never try to ‘squeeze’ them in between something else that I’m doing, because I would hate to cut someone off as they are sharing about their loss. Some folks just get the time and date information of the group sessions, while others want to share every detail and I feel like that is part of what I can offer – just an ear.”
Even after the funeral, the Bereavement Ministry is there to support the family.
“When we moved to St. Mark Parish from New Jersey, we found that they had a wonderful bereavement support group already in place,” said Deacon McCarron. “The one component missing was the group sessions. To rectify this, we had about 12 people trained to become facilitators so that we could start bereavement sessions in our parish.”
The sessions are running for eight consecutive weeks with the last session in November. On All Souls Day a Mass of Remembrance will be offered. At the Mass the names of all those who were buried from St. Mark Church that year are announced and a candle is lit in memory of the deceased.
Deacon McCarron leads all the sessions, which open with a thought-provoking idea either through a video, a poem or a story. Then participants can share what is on their mind. No one is forced to speak and what is said during the sessions is kept confidential.
McGahey is also a facilitator at the sessions. “Like so many things in life where that little voice inside whispers in your ear, I had thought about Bereavement Ministry, but it took Deacon Rich to invite me into this ministry,” McGahey shared. “You should never underestimate that little voice that we often hear. And truly, being part of the Bereavement Ministry has been a gift where I have received much more than I feel I have given.”
After the sessions are over, on the first anniversary of their loved one’s death, a team member sends the family a card from St. Mark Bereavement Ministry so they know they are not forgotten.
— Diana Patulak Ross, correspondent
Learn more
For more information about St. Mark Parish’s Bereavement Ministry, call Nancy McGahey at 704-608-7067 or email Deacon Rich McCarron at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..