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Parishes reap rewards through senior volunteers

Story and photos by LIZ QUIRIN
Messenger editor

Lyla Bova drops her cane quietly behind a chair as she sits down at the keyboard in the back of Immaculate Conception Church on Kaskaskia Island and prepares to play. At 82 and with macular degeneration, the cane gives her stability as she navigates up and down steps and ramps to get where she needs to be.

With macular degeneration, she can no longer read music but must play by ear. That doesn’t seem to be much of a problem, and she said she would continue to play as long as she is able.

Right now, this senior volunteer, along with others at the church are preparing for the annual church picnic Sept. 4 during Labor Day weekend.

Most parishes rely on their senior volunteers for any and all kinds of services so that donations can be stretched farther to help more people.

While the Kaskaskia Island parish was suppressed in 1994 after the horrendous flood of 1993, many people have contributed time, talent and treasure to renovate the church, then the rectory next door and now the old school building at the back of the property.

Most of the people no longer live on the Island — although some 40 people still do — but remain committed to the church where their ancestors were baptized, married and from which they were buried.

Almost everybody connected to the Island has watched the church emerge from the ruins of 1993 to what it has become today — a beautiful spiritual home, rich in history and tradition, where they share Eucharist and community with friends, family and anyone who stops by to see the church and learn a little history along the way.

Lyla was born and raised on the Island but now lives in St. Genevieve, Mo., near her son and daughter-in-law. She depends on others to bring her to the Island for church and to work with others, baking for the picnic.

“It’s great,” Mary Ellen Brown said. A younger volunteer, Mary Ellen joins others, including Larry Brown, her husband’s cousin, at the newly renovated rectory where they have been baking for the picnic. “Everything’s home made,” she said, and Lyla is part of the assembly line in making baked goods.

Another willing baker, Mae Klein, 82, remains connected to the church, along with her daughter Brenda. And that’s just the baking crew. Many others do whatever is necessary to keep things going or get things going for the church.

Revenue from the picnic pays the big bills for the church, including the heating and now, cooling. Before the flood, the church did not have airconditioning, Mary Ellen said.

When asked why she began and remains committed to her volunteer work, Lyla answers for almost anyone who is asked: “I do it because it is a labor of love,” she said.

While the church on the Island depends on its volunteers to keep the church going, many other diocesan parishes sent information about their volunteers.

Following are comments about the ministries of parish volunteers and comments from them about why they do what they do.

Over the years, quilters have provided time and place for volunteers to gather and to sew, making what one person described as “works of art” that parishes sell, raffle or give away as prizes during the year.

Msgr. Carl Scherrer at Immaculate Conception Parish in Columbia said “the quilting ladies” at the parish provide “100 quilts each year for the Labor Day picnic.”

Many of the IC quilters are “over 75,” he said. Pauline Neurohr at 92, quilts and does needle work at home for the parish picnic.

Steve Dressler helps with the St. Vincent de Paul and the Knights; Joyce Dressler coordinates Communion visits to the sick and homebound; Jim Held, Dennis Ling, Wayne Franklin and Ed Beck help with repairs and building maintenance.

Horticulture helpers include Dennis Krupp and Calvin and Carol Fries.

At St. Henry Parish in Belleville, two quilters, Charlotte Pfister and Rose Stankey were busy with a baby quilt.
Rose, 93, was a cook at St. Henry School for many years. She quilted during the summers, she said, until she retired.

Now a regular, she said “It’s a good passtime. You can see what you’re accomplishing.”
Rose also volunteers as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion.

Charlotte said she has been quilting since she was 7 years old. “I started out as a runner,” she said.
Both women said they enjoyed the camraderie of the group of quilters as well as the satisfaction of contributing to the parish.

Although not at her usual post, Audrey Justus is also a regular quilter and has been for about 28 years, just about the time her husband, Mearl became St. Clair County’s sheriff. Her good friend Helen Moore, also quilts at St. Henry’s.

“I love it,” Audrey said. “It’s relaxing,” and it becomes almost addictive. “You have to have your quilting fix every week.”

At St. Augustine of Canterbury in Belleville, quilters work on large and smaller quilts. The group makes a quilt to be raffled four times a year. Retired seamstress and quilt committee chairman, Karen Zeller, designs the patterns, and quilters work twice a week to finish them.

They just like to quilt, they said and Helen Gardner, said she also quilts at St. Luke’s. “We like getting together,” Karen added. “This is our ministry,” they said.

Other ministries at the parish include the food pantry that, business manager, Ginny Goetz said is “one of our most important ministries.”

Bill Martin and Henry Schmitt work in the food pantry.

Ministries come in many varieties with many people fulfilling important roles in parishes. Without volunteers, many ministries just wouldn’t be done.

For instance, at St. Augustine of Hippo in East St. Louis, most parishioners volunteer in some capacity.

Christine Bush volunteers as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, catechist, youth advisor, sings in the choir, serves on parish pastoral council, assists with liturgy for children and works with the United Congregations of Metro East.

While her list of ministries is unusually long, Chris enjoys her various roles. For many years, she said, she has had “a passion” for working with youth. “They’re the ones that get lost,” she said. “They don’t have anyone to give them an example so they stray.

“The idea is to keep our kids in church. If I can make a difference with just one child, I’m happy,” she said.
However, her outlook changed, she said, when she became an Extraordinary Minister.

“It is a blessing for me to give the Eucharist to someone. Everything has become more special.”
A critical time for volunteers is at parish picnics. Every picnic needs armies of workers to chair committees, to set up, to cook, to serve, to clean up and to take care of details no one can think of until the day of the picnic.

At St. Michael’s in Paderborn, Marcella Klein, now 91, has been volunteering in many capacities for a good number of years.
“I do whatever comes along,” she said, including picnic work. Her cinnamon rolls are almost legendary.

She works at the picnic and the annual Pumpkin Party hosted by the parish.

When she can get a ride, she participates in activities and events away from the parish. Last year she participated in Life Chain in October, sitting by the road in Millstadt along with others supporting life issues.

She continues to volunteer, she said, because “the church is my home. I want to do whatever I can to help the church.”

Mary Ellen Pickar at St. Joseph Parish in Marion heads the funeral committee, and according to secretary LaVerne Williams, “she does a fantastic job.”

Mary Ellen said she has a great group to work with when she gets a call from LaVerne, especially her co-chairs Sandy Blankenship and Martha VonAh.

In addition to the two co-chairs, Mary Ellen said a large group of women bake dishes and help with the work on the day of the funeral.

“It’s such a wonderful ministry,” she said. “All are so pleased to help.”
Often, family members send cards or letters thanking the group for providing a meal.

While she never knows how many or how few funerals will be scheduled in a week, it has never been a problem.
In a way, Mary Ellen is carrying on her family’s tradition because, she said, both her mother and mother-in-law were involved in fixing meals for funeral luncheons.

“We have a really great community here,” Mary Ellen said. “They’re cooperative and generous.”

Sheila Philips helps with Marion’s Ministerial Alliance’s food pany; Doris Enders, president of the Women’s Guild helps at the food pantry among other volunteer duties; and Tony and Sue Sena “do all kinds of thing, especially helping with Right to Life activities,” LaVerne said.

Involved in food service, Cecilia Wiegmann, Lorene Rehkemper, Jane Fuhler, Joan Kohlbrecher, Stan and Mary Goestenkors, Ralph Bruggemann, Jeanette Benhoff, Karen Kaufman and Joan Willis of St. Rose Parish in St. Rose volunteer at the Meals on Wheels program in their area.

Father Gene Neff at St. George in New Baden depends on volunteers to maintain the parish cemeteries, but other volunteers fill key roles as well.

“Larry Pfeffer has given countless hours, using his skill and resources to care for the electrical needs of the parish facilities,” Father Neff said.

As part of the Christian Services Commission, Wilma Kuhn and Pat Isaac coordinate the parish’s work with the village’s ecumenical food pantry among other programs the group sponsors in taking care of those in need, Father Neff said.

Yesterday’s Kids at St. Nicholas in O’Fallon volunteer in many ways, and manage to work a little fun into their gatherings too.

A group of women at the parish decided they wanted to do more for St. Vincent de Paul so they formed a “special works” conference to help at the office.

Many ministries would have fewer workers without the senior volunteers at St. Nicholas.

At St. John the Baptist School in Red Bud senior volunteer Eileen Wuertz helps out in the classrooms. What teacher couldn’t use a bit of extra help sometimes?

Coordinating funeral luncheons at St. Clare Parish in O’Fallon, Pat Vollmer makes calls for other volunteers despite being wheelchair-bound.

“She has always been a wonderful volunteer in the parish, a very welcoming member of the senior group at St. Clare, Jane Dotson, director of family faith formation, said.

Pat is just one of many senior volunteers at the parish.

At St. Sebastian in St. Sebastian, Bill Wright is the volunteer organist; Priscilla Morris takes care of altar cloths and linens and Mike Ankenbrand is the volunteer grounds keeper in summer with mowing and weeding.

St. Vincent de Paul Society members from St. Lawrence in Salem are Dixie Reyes and Pat White.

Many volunteers help out at St. Mary Parish in Belleville; pastor Msgr. Bill McGhee said he had trouble listing all of them.

“They’re the backbone of our parish,” he said.

Among those listed were Rich Blaes, who has worked “temporarily” with St. Vincent de Paul since the 1960s. He’s been waiting for his replacement for a long time.

Msgr. McGhee said many of the volunteers had been working for years, like usher Joe Khlor.
Others volunteer in many ways, like Charles Fahrner with the buildings and grounds.

At Queen of Peace Parish in Belleville, the “Pats” manage the funeral luncheons. That would be Pat Halpin and Pat Hanger. They handle the information for the luncheons.

A number of senior volunteers deliver Community Barrel items to local charities, like Lou Slapshak, Pat Whelan, Jeanne Edgar and Roberta Meehan. The delivery folks are also active in other ways as well.

Sue Demarse is the head of the St. Peregrine Devotion committee, but she also depends on many volunteers to make sure everything is ready for the monthly liturgies.

Angels play a big part in parish work at the parish with Angels on Call. Bea Klemme spearheads the ministry that takes Communion and prayer to the homebound and nursing homes. She and her husband no longer live in the parish, but she continues to manage the ministry to homebound and nursing home parishioners of Queen of Peace.

Other “angels” bake cakes — angel cakes — for nursing home bingo. Residents look forward to the baking magic of Sister Mary Ann Schrage and Pat Lanter every month.

St. Peter Cathedral also depends on volunteers. The parish’s St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry depends on volunteers like Gary Calhoun and Bev Fahrner among others.

Other cathedral parishioners volunteer at the Pregnancy Care center, including Gloria Miller, Gloria Schwartz and Jeanne Corcoran.

Those who bring the Eucharist to the hospital and the homebound are most appreciated. Jeanette Wuest and Shirley Deitz are on that list.

The green thumb of Jim Bassler can’t be missed as people enjoy the roses at the cathedral. He also cares for roses at other locations, including the convent, St. Teresa’s and the bishop’s residence.

So many volunteers have been named here through the help of parishes that answered an email from The Messenger. An equal or greater number of senior volunteers has not been mentioned.

It was impossible to list the names of all of the people who were listed, like the group from St. Augustine’s in East St. Louis. Most of the people who attend church there seem to volunteer in one or more ways.

When you go to church this weekend or next, look around at the altar linens, the grounds, the people who serve in any number of capacities in the parish, and thank the ones you meet. Without them, it would be difficult to keep everything going.