St. Owen Catholic Church | Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA We are again asking you to

include our twin parish in your observation of the Lenten season. The Lenten tree will be in the narthex with envelopes for your contribution for the clinic in Haina, Dominican Republic. Throughout the season, please consider contributing the money you save from acts of self-sacrifice to our twin parish, the Church of the Good Shepherd, formerly known as St. Augustine. The staff relies on contributions from St. Owen to keep the clinic open and to provide medication and food to the most needy.

Sr. Carol and Dr. Fremio passed along a story of a woman and her daughters whose lives have been touched by your generosity. Maritza hadn’t had a lot of breaks in life and was easily taken advantage of. As a result, she kept her head down and didn’t make eye contact with people. She came to the clinic last year with her two daughters and Dr. Fremio, who grew up in the barrio and knew Maritza’s background, recognized that she didn’t have the means to buy enough food for herself and her daughters. He began providing her a supplemental food basket. She had to return to the clinic each month to pick it up so Dr. Fremio was able to check on the family’s health. When she came, he paid her a little money to sweep the courtyard. Sr. Carol and Dr. Fremio began to see a change

in Maritza. Her self-esteem soared with the independence that came with a little money in her pocket. Plus, she and her daughters were feeling better because of the food and medical care they received. When the bishop came to install the pastor at the newly re-named church, Maritza was observed chatting with him and letting him know that she was the person who kept the courtyard clean.

Know that 100% of the money you contribute to the twin parish project goes to maintaining programs at the Church of the Good Shepherd and the people are extremely grateful for all you have done.

The clinic at our twin parish is a real success story and you can be proud of the investment you have made there. One hundred percent of your donations go to Sr. Carol Gross in the Dominican Republic where she carefully manages them to get the most out of every dollar.

Foto0183

The clinic has an annual budget of $40,637. It is staffed by a doctor five days a week. Dr. Fremio also does outreach programs in the schools and neighborhood. Approximately 500 patients are seen in the clinic each month. Those who are able, pay a small fee for medications.Your donations through the Lenten Tree will be used for doctors’ salaries, food, powdered milk, vitamins and prescription medications