By TAMI QUIGLEY
Staff writer
As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Life is a journey, not a destination.”
And sometimes, the hand of God can be seen guiding people’s journeys so they intersect in a most beautiful way.
That’s what happened between the parish of St. Mary, Hamburg and students from Cardinal Spellman High School, Brockton, Massachusetts, en route to the Appalachian mountains of West Virginia to serve folks through the nonprofit Appalachia Service Project (ASP).
“Father Don Cieniewicz and his parish have been so good to us. They are amazing people with such generous hearts,” said Joan Querzoli, director of service, theology teacher and campus ministry at Cardinal Spellman High School, keen to share the story of their friendship.
ASP brings hundreds of thousands of volunteers from across the country to rural Central Appalachia to repair homes for low-income families. For 48 years, ASP has made homes warmer, safer and drier for families and provided transformational service experiences for volunteers.
Last year, 16,231 volunteers served with ASP, providing critical repairs for 493 families and constructing 26 new homes.
Querzoli and a group of 35 students – freshmen and sophomores at Cardinal Spellman – arrived at St. Mary June 23 for the Saturday Vigil Mass en route from Massachusetts to Logan County, West Virginia.
Accompanying them were 15 chaperones, comprised of alumni who used to come on the ASP trips when they were teens, as well as teachers and parents. They returned to St. Mary June 30 for Mass, dinner and recreation time, spent the night then headed home to New England.
How it started
The connection between the parish and school was first made four years ago, when Querzoli and her group got snarled in traffic on the way to ASP in West Virginia, and wanted to find a Catholic parish so they wouldn’t miss Mass. They found St. Mary via MassTimes.org, through which parish Mass times can be found by city, state or ZIP code.
“St. Mary’s popped up at the last minute, and we arrived with 42 people,” Querzoli said of the first year Cardinal Spellman ran the trip. The program has grown and had more than 100 students apply this year.
“The parish was so incredibly welcoming. I’ve never experienced that kind of hospitality,” she said, noting the kids and adults were “blown away” by the hospitality.
That first year, though the group arrived with no notice, the parish provided a place to freshen up and breakfast for the morning. “That hospitality is how Jesus serves and calls you and I to do the same. They were so thoughtful. And now we have made a great friend in Father Don.”
On the third trip down to ASP, the church where the group usually stayed over on the way home unexpectedly could not accommodate the group, so Querzoli called Father Cieniewicz, who said they were welcome to stop and “recharge our batteries, physically and spiritually.”
The parish also provided towels that year for the travelers. This year, St. Mary also provided them with coolers with cold, chilled water.
“It’s such an amazingly beautiful church. There’s a sense of the Holy Spirit there, a sense of peace. The kids and chaperones said ‘The Holy Spirit is palpable here,’” Querzoli said.
“For the first couple of years, the group stopped for Mass on their way to the ASP in West Virginia. Since then, they have been returning,” said Father Cieniewicz, pastor. “Last year, they made the request to stop on their way home for Mass and to stay overnight in our hall. We were happy to welcome them and provide them with a meal as well.”
Student experiences
Father Cieniewicz said because their stay in 2017 was extended, the opportunity was there to interact with the students and their chaperones. “The stories of their experiences were amazing. I had the feeling that the students were very different people just a week later because of their experience.”
“The students made an issue of having fruit and vegetables at the meal, which apparently, they saw little of during their service week. They then had time to wind down outdoors and simply enjoyed being teens after a very regulated and scheduled week,” Father Cieniewicz said.
“Some of the students shared stories of their work projects that benefitted very poor families. Their stories gave evidence of the transformative nature of their experience.
“As a parish, we were happy to welcome them. Their presence and the purpose of their trip has been an inspiration to our parishioners. The real story is about the students and their experiences. We are just happy to provide a rest stop along the way as they put their faith into practice to help others in need.”
This year, Father Cieniewicz had limited interaction with the group as he went out on two sick calls the evening of June 30. But he is much appreciated by the group.
“Father Don is the most amazing man I’ve ever met. He has a phenomenal way with the kids,” Querzoli said.
“On our travel down to West Virginia, Father Don somehow always manages to talk about what we need to hear and what we’re going to learn. He always plants a seed of wisdom within us during the homily,” Querzoli said.
“As our week unfolds, we spiritually wrestle with it, learn from it and grow. When we return to Mass on a journey back home, he completes the circle and ties it all together. God works through him in amazing ways.”
When the group came to St. Mary this year on the way home, they also met parishioner Eric Armusik, a liturgical painter the parish commissioned to create the “Baptism of Christ,” a 4-by-6-foot painting of St. John the Baptist baptizing Christ in the Jordan River. The beautiful work of art hangs approximately 15 feet above the baptismal font area.
The parish has two other works by Armusik – a copy of the Sistine Madonna, also called the Madonna di San Sisto, and St. Therese of the Little Flower.
“Eric came down and met us, talked and fielded questions from the kids. Our entire group was so moved by this piece of artwork,” Querzoli said. “To be able to meet Eric and deepen our understanding of his work was pure gift. Just another way God is at work.”
Querzoli said students are not allowed to bring any technology on the trip, which, at first, isn’t a very popular idea. But they then appreciate playing kickball, wiffleball, Red Rover and tag, “kids being kids, laughing and creating bonds.”
Another generation serving
Querzoli has run the trip from Cardinal Spellman for the past four years, and prior to that a group went for 15 years through a parish. But the number of students going from the high school became so large it was time for the school to sponsor its own trip.
“The neatest part of the whole thing is some chaperones came with me 15 years ago as 15-year-old kids, so it’s come full circle, creating another generation of kids serving,” she said.
Reflecting on this year’s ASP, Querzoli said, “A lot of kids were amazed at how welcoming the homeowners were. We repaired six homes there. The kids were overwhelmed at how graciously people opened their homes to ask strangers for help. It was inspiring.”
Querzoli said students learned that, “In life, sometimes they will be the hand to pull people up and sometimes they will need to extend their hand for help.”
“They now know how to do that with grace and humility.”
“We were able to repair six homes and make them ‘warmer, safer and drier’ for our homeowners in need,” Querzoli said.
Some of the construction projects they worked on during the week were exterior siding of a two-story dwelling, large porch support replacement project, repairing the exterior sheathing of a kitchen, living room floor repair to make it more handicap accessible, soffit replacement project, and repairing a bathroom and bedroom floor and adding new flooring.
“ASP is not just about repairing homes. Their philosophy is that this is a relationship ministry, with construction on the side.
To forge new friendships that bring the hope of Jesus while learning to accept and love people for who they are, just where they are is the real goal of ASP and its missionaries,” Querzoli said.
Why does Cardinal Spellman do this? “To be the face of Christ to those in need by serving all that we encounter, as Jesus would serve,” she said. “We recognize how blessed we are and the need to share what we have – time, talent and treasure – with our brothers and sisters who might be struggling.”
The school has seven teams of two chaperones and five students, with one additional “float cargo van” to deliver supplies. Eight vans carry 35 students and 15 chaperones. “We have workshops all year long to prepare spiritually and culturally, to learn about the coal industry and poverty in the Appalachian mountain range, and power tool/construction training,” Querzoli said.
Lessons learned
Querzoli highlighted six things the group learned on the trip.
“At some point in your life you will be the one to have the means to reach out and offer a helping hand – do this as often as you can when this opportunity presents itself. At some point in your life you will be the one reaching out your hand for help – do not be afraid to do so. We were not made to journey this life alone, even Jesus had Simon of Cyrene to help carry his cross,” she said.
“This world is tough and we are all in this together, so take care of one another using gentle hands. You never know the burden someone else is carrying.
“Be John the Baptist and constantly point to Jesus. He is the true master builder and healer of all things. Thanks, Father Don for that big lesson learned.”
They also learned to welcome everyone, friend and stranger alike. Hospitality is the hallmark of a true Christian. “Thank you St. Mary’s for showing us hospitality done right – the way Jesus would serve.”
Two more lessons learned were, “We have so much to be thankful for and need to cultivate a deeper attitude of gratitude,” Querzoli said. “And at the core, people are good.”
Some volunteers and a volunteer chaperones were also keen to share their thoughts.
“This was my first time on ASP and I didn’t really know what to expect going in. The trip changed me for the better, giving me a better perspective on how to live, especially teaching the lessons to not take things for granted and appreciate what you have,” said sophomore volunteer Caroline Larue.
“Through my experience with ASP in West Virginia, I learned the importance of accepting and loving people no matter who they are, or where they come from,” said freshman volunteer Shannon Leary. “I also learned the value of providing service, and hope, to others.”
“A life-changing experience where we learned that all people are kind and good,” parent chaperone volunteer George Ferro said of his involvement with ASP. “The ability to offer help allowed us to grow as a community.”
“I learned if you truly open yourself to God and truly trust him, he will give you exactly what you need when you need it,” said chaperone Rich Gattine.
“On my second year on coming to ASP, I learned that even when you feel like you are nailed to the cross, there is still hope and you can always try and help get yourself out of the mess,” said sophomore volunteer Audrey DellaBarba.
“My homeowners were constantly helping my group and giving us any materials we needed and cooking us lunch, even though we were supposed to be the ones helping them and making their day.”
And sophomore volunteer Rachel Lomasney said, “I learned that there are people in this country who are struggling with poverty that many Americans are not aware of.”
For more information on the Appalachia Service Project, click here.
