Creating an adage tailormade for the Mount Carmel Guild, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., addressed the nearly 200 people gathered for the Guild’s 27th annual gala Oct. 28, in a video greeting, saying, “Many hearts make loving work.”
“I am so very grateful to the many hearts united in the charitable work of the Mount Carmel Guild,” the Bishop said, referring to how the 102-year-old, diocesan outreach agency in inner-city Trenton has provided basic food, rental assistance, education and health care – especially for the elderly and homebound – to those most in need in the greater Mercer County area.
PHOTO GALLERY: Mount Carmel Guild Gala
“When you take the hands of the poor, you capture their hearts as well,” he said. “The needs are great. Your work is rarely light, but your love comes right from the heart.”
Held in the Trenton Country Club, the gala served as the Guild’s main fundraiser with proceeds benefiting two major programs – the Community Support Program and the Home Health Nursing Program. A highlight of the event is the presentation of awards to individuals and businesses who have worked to advance the Guild’s mission of serving people in need in the greater Trenton area.
In her remarks, Jane Chrnelich, the Guild’s board of trustees president, shared that while the past year had been “challenging” with Covid variants continuing to surface; an uncertain economic future, and an increasing demand for services, “the incredible Guild staff and volunteers, with constant professionalism and grace, have met the needs of our care receivers and sustained the Guild’s mission of ‘Providing Hope and Preserving Dignity,” she said, citing the agency’s mission statement.
The Community Support Program, started in 1921, provides food and other necessities, offers homelessness prevention services and short-term financial assistance when available. Education and outreach on healthy eating and referrals to partner social services are also provided.
More than 90 percent of the pantry users are residents of Trenton who have to walk in order to obtain services. Households can access the food pantry once a week and from January to June 2022, the guild averaged more than 1,400 household visits each month.
The Home Health Nursing Program that was started in 1941 provides quality, long-term, home-based nursing care to patients 60 years of age and older with acute or chronic health conditions. The program’s registered nurses routinely visit and monitor each patient’s health and safety as well as reduce anxiety by answering questions. The goal of Home Health Nursing is to increase the patient’s medical stability through constantly monitoring and assessing their care plan and supervising their medication. Efforts are made to improve each patient’s well-being and increase access to social services, preventing unplanned hospitalizations and premature placement in nursing homes.
Chrnelich noted that the gala recognizes the contributions of the honorees, all of whom are leaders in their respective fields while making it a priority to volunteer to help others in need.
The honorees were: William Coleman; Tracey Destribats; Michael W. Herbert; Richard and Nancy Smith, and siblings Hawkins and Christabelle Sutter. (To read more about the honorees, visit TrentonMonitor.com>News>Our Diocese).
“You’ve got to give back to the community,” is something Herbert said his parents instilled in him while growing up and his desire to help others manifested in serving on the Guild’s board of trustees since 1993.