Around 1975, Sr. Dorothy Thompson, OSU began collecting food and clothing for the poor. When Sr. Miriam Thompson, Sr. Dorothy’s sister, took over the program, she used a corner of the basement in the Ursuline Chapel.
After a few moves to different locations, Sr. Miriam settled in Fayetteville, Ohio at a former feed mill until poor health forced her to retire in 1995.
Sr. Marjean Clement, OSU became director of the program in 1995 and
assumed responsibility for working with the Board to find a larger more spacious site. By the year 2000, an eight-acre, three building site was acquired through bequests and special fund raising. Sr. Marjean Clement retired in December 2000 and Sr. Sandy Bates and Sr. Lucia Castellini took her place as co-directors. After Sr. Sandy’s passing, Mrs. Dianne Vollman assumed the role of co-director with Sr. Lucia.
The current location is at 5333 Kernan Road between Lynchburg and St. Martin, Ohio. Although it is not state-of-the-art, it is much larger and has a lot of potential. There are three large buildings plus a lean-to. The main building, called B-1, houses the offices, food and personal care items for general distribution. B-2 is used for furniture, appliances and small household items that have been donated to the program. B-3 is the clothing building and is also used as the Christmas Barn during the holidays as well as a staging area for the three-yard sales which are held annually.
Over the years, the number of families requesting help has grown. When Hope Emergency first opened its doors, there were less than 50 families per week that were asking for assistance Today, the weekly number has risen to 225+. During Thanksgiving 2017, food was provided for 452+ families. Our 2017 Christmas distribution allowed 757 children to have gifts and provided food for 460 families.
Everyone who comes for food and clothing receives it. Most of this is made possible by private donations, a small amount of grant monies, and purchases made from the Free Store/Food Bank and other local vendors.
Seven part-time personnel staff the program, but volunteers do most of the upfront work when the program is open for distribution on Wednesdays. Other volunteers lend a hand on Tuesdays and Thursdays by portioning food, organizing clothing, performing office work and doing other various jobs as needed. We also have four nurse volunteers on rotation which has made it possible for us to offer weekly assistance with basic health care needs to our clients. We always need new volunteers!!
We work knowing that the poor and those who help them have a special place in God’s heart. This ministry is in keeping with the charism and the tradition of the Ursuline Sisters: to freely embrace ministries in response to the needs of the time.
Revised 7/2018
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