March 18, 2025 // Diocese

St. Jude Parishioners Give Back through ‘Stations of Service’

Bethany Beebe

“Lent is the favorable season for renewing our encounter with Christ, living in His word, in the sacraments, and in our neighbor,” Pope Francis wrote in his 2017 Lenten message,

The Social Action Committee of St. Jude Catholic Church in Fort Wayne has been sharing that love of Christ with neighbors near and far since 2014 through their annual Lenten “Stations of Service.”

Sheila McGarry, chairperson of the St. Jude Social Action Committee, told Today’s Catholic, “Lent isn’t just about giving up something, it is giving out.”

Each weekend of Lent, members of St. Jude engage in service projects that directly tie into the corporal works of mercy. Lenten service cards are printed out not only to give details on the planned projects but also ways to engage the corresponding work of mercy for those who are unable to be physically present.

The first work of mercy, clothing the naked, saw the group visit Wellspring Clothing Bank on Saturday, March 8, where participants helped stock products at the facility that charges nothing for the goods it offers, according to the organization. Each 90 days, a recipient simply makes an appointment and does a bit of paperwork. Last year, Wellspring Clothing Bank helped 3,671 people.

Next, those with a hunger to serve met on Saturday, March 15. With the idea of feeding the hungry and giving drink to the thirsty, volunteers filled and boxed packages with rice, soy, dried vegetables, and vitamin packets for the organization Project 216.

Formerly known as Kids Against Hunger, Project 216 puts 216 of the meals in each of the boxes it sends and calls on the request found in the Bible’s Book of James (verse 2:16) that Christians must take action against poverty, according to the organization’s web site.

Volunteering on a Saturday morning to pack food boxes for Project 216, Molly Roman and her family worked on the assembly line. “I thought it was a nice way for the whole family to volunteer together,” she said.

McGarry said that the donations made and packed by the members of St. Jude are bound for Malawi, a country located in southeast Africa. St. Jude paid for the goods shared, which cost 32 cents per package.

Ellen Mann, a Project 216 representative, said the boxes prepared on March 15 will join those from a packing event at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church and about four other area churches. Project 216’s donations go to Feed the Hungry, an international organization that ships and distributes to those in need. Mann said Feed the Hungry sends supplies to 20 countries and feeds approximately 625,000 children every day.

The Stations of Service at St. Jude will continue on Saturday, March 22, as attendees will tend to the corporal work of sheltering the homeless with a visit to the Fort Wayne Rescue Mission, where volunteers will help serve dinner, including desserts provided by parish members, who will also pack meals for those who arrive after dinner.

“Volunteering is the backbone of what we do here,” Caroline Collins, the Rescue Mission’s Marketing and Communications Coordinator, said in a recent podcast. “It is not possible to function without our volunteers.”

On Saturday, March 29, parishioners and their guests will make no-sew fleece blankets that will be distributed through Project Linus, which “provides homemade blankets to children needing comfort due to illness or injury,” said Deb Heath, chapter coordinator of Project Linus Fort Wayne. “We provide blankets to children in the hospital, surgical centers, counseling facilities, special camps, and for Adoption Day in November. We depend on the generosity of the community to help provide blankets, supplies, and monetary donations to continue our mission.  We appreciate St Jude’s continued support.”

To serve the corporal work of ransoming the captive, on Saturday, April 5, members of St. Jude will visit Gigi’s Playhouse, an organization that aims to improve the quality of life for those with Down syndrome. The volunteers will help to run and organize the Saturday morning free-play stations.

To serve the final corporal work of mercy, burying the dead, on Saturday, April 12, volunteers from St. Jude will put together registration packets for Erin’s House, a nonprofit that supports grieving children. Founded in 1993 and serving those ages 3 to 18, Erin’s House was the first grief-support center of its kind in Indiana, according to the organization’s website. The organization helps an average of 1,000 grieving children per year since its inception, but it served 2,224 children in 2024.

By serving the corporal works of mercy during Lent, members of the St. Jude Parish community are living out the Gospel call and helping, as Pope Francis wrote, to “find concrete ways to overcome our indifference.”