By Bill Sullivan, St. Isidore Gift & Thrift Manager
and
Tonya Olsen, Family Support Specialist
Catholic Social Services of Southern Nebraska
Are there any Father Mike Schmitz fans out there? We at Catholic Social Services’ Imperial outreach office and St. Isidore Gift & Thrift are huge fans. We frequently use his work to guide us as we serve our neighbors in the southwest corner of Nebraska, creating Hope in the Good Life.
When our executive director Katie Patrick asked us to write an article for the Southern Nebraska Register and share more about our work in Imperial, the first thing that came to mind was Love. Father Mike has talked about how Love can be summed up in three words: Here I am.
St. Isidore’s Gift and Thrift store is open three days a week and staffed by one CSS employee, while the remaining workers every week are volunteers. Volunteers do it all. No task is too big or too small to assure that the store continues to run smoothly and successfully: sorting, pricing, ironing, staging the store, cleaning, running the register. Here I am.
At CSS, we frame our conversations and interactions with those we serve as encounters.
Those encounters may include the widow who just lost her husband and comes in every week to see what’s new, but mostly just to have someone to chat with about how things are going since her husband passed away. Here I am.
The fallen away Catholic who comes into the store, spends some time in the chapel, seeking Him, receiving encouraging words to join us at Mass. Here I am.
The young girl clothes shopping on a budget because the store down the street is out of her price range. Here I am.
Through our Family Support Services Coordinator on site, we help with needs such as rent, utilities, food, and natural disaster expenses. A new family who immigrated from Mexico with no beds and bedding, no furniture, no toys. Here I am.
A mom experiencing domestic violence who needs safe housing ASAP. Here I am.
An expectant mother needing a crib and baby supplies. Here I am.
A victim of human trafficking needing help with mattresses for her and her son in their new apartment. Here I am.
An elderly gentleman struggling to get his bills paid. Here I am.
A family whose house burned down needing oh so much. Here I am.
A mom diagnosed with cancer, a dad injured and unable to work, needing food for their family. Here I am.
The list of people we have served in southwest Nebraska could go on and on, but at the heart of all that CSS does is Love. Here at CSS-Imperial, we know Jesus is Love and we do our best to share that Love with others, so they too may know His Love.
If you would LOVE to financially help CSS-Imperial, July 15 is the Chase County Challenge, in which any funds we raise can be matched. Reach out to Bill Sullivan at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Tonya Olsen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the message Here I Am.
To learn more about the Chase County Challenge visit www.ChaseCountyChallenge.com.
