Photo by Alan M. Dumoff
Father Robert E. Hughes, pastor of Holy Family Parish, Sewell, stands with Greg Stefankiewcz, who helped establish an Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) chapter.
SEWELL — Greg Stefankiewcz and his wife, Roseanne, were instrumental in creating an Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) chapter at Holy Family Parish with the help and encouragement of their pastor, Father Robert E. Hughes.
The local IHN takes care of homeless families in Catholic and non-Catholic facilities in Gloucester County in an effort to get them back on their feet. It provides shelter, meals and emotional support to homeless families through volunteers at various religious congregational facilities.
Greg became aware of what IHN was all about after an incident several years ago.
Greg and his brother-in-law were fixing up a house in Wildwood Crest for his wife’s family. Christmas was approaching but they hadn’t been at the house for awhile, said Greg, so he decided to check on the property. That was a week before Christmas.
He found the door to his brother-in-law’s apartment open “and it looked like people had settled in,” said Greg. “Pictures were up and there was a Mr. and Mrs. Claus decoration and there were even toys in the house. So I called my brother-in-law to see if he was letting anyone stay there. He wasn’t.”
Greg called the police who told him it looked like the people had just come in to get out of the cold.
“I could bring breaking and entry charges against them,” Greg said the police told him, “but if that happened the kids would be taken away. I didn’t want that. Especially at Christmas. I would not do that.”
He moved their belongings out on the porch with a note saying they could not stay there. “That’s what I did. I looked at the other houses on the block all lit up for Christmas and I saw their Mr. and Mrs. Claus decoration. I took the money I had in my pocket, $40, and put it in their suitcase. By that evening everything was gone from the porch.”
Greg said he couldn’t help but equate what had happened in his in-laws’ house with the story of Mary and Joseph who were looking for a place to stay for the night.
“This is a great country, but people should not be homeless and in need of food and shelter,” he said. “There is no room for that in this country.”
Greg said that incident made a tremendous impact on him and what stewardship means. “It was a sign from God that I should be doing something to help people. But what? I didn’t know. Then a couple of nights later at a Knights of Columbus meeting, I heard about the IHN.”
He is a member of parish council at Sts. Peter and Paul, Turnersville. Greg said that for all he knew those people in his in-laws’ house might have been helped by another IHN chapter.
Greg and Roseanne joined the IHN chapter at St. Charles Borromeo of Sicklerville about four years ago because Holy Family, their parish, didn’t have one. It was Roseanne who suggested Holy Family organize one.
“We got together with a couple of volunteers from St. Charles to present the idea to Father Hughes,” Greg said, who eventually became the leader and coordinator of the Holy Family chapter.
“I had talked to many coordinators who had warned me that it would be very difficult to start a chapter. They told me the church council would have to study the proposal and pray on it and vote for it. I had some trepidation about getting this off the ground. But I knew it was going to happen. We presented the idea to Father Hughes and an hour later he said ‘Let’s do it.’ And we became a hosting chapter.”
Father Hughes said of Greg, “He is a quiet and faithful and a gentle person. A true gentle man. Most people don’t notice him but he makes a big impact. He shows that stewardship is not just about money but about time and talents. To get his volunteers he sends out e-mails about positions that need to be filled and people will come to fill them.”
Each church in the network hosts as many as five families with a total of 14 people at a different time during the year. Holy Family does its hosting four times a year for one week. Sunday to Sunday.
“There’s a waiting list to get into the program,” Greg said. “Soon as a family ‘graduates’ out of the program, a family on the list moves in. You might have one family starting on Sunday, but sometimes they’ll drop out during week. The program is not designed to be easy.”
Greg admitted it can be hard for people to go from church to church each week.
“Parents must meet certain criteria to get out of the program and we help them find a home,” Greg explained. “If it’s too difficult, families will drop out. Gary Salmon, who has a ministerial background, is the director of the Gloucester IHN and the only paid member, He does background checks of all kinds.”
Although he and his wife have been sharing the coordinator’s duties, Greg noted he’s been doing more of the work now since his wife has gone back to school.
“She’s going to Gloucester County College to become an ultrasound technician,” he said. She was a teacher’s aid while their children were in school.
Their children, Brittney, 21, and Shaun, 19, have helped out with IHN in various capacities. Brittney helps with the kids at the evening hosting, from 7-9 p.m.
“She helps with homework, she plays games with the children. Shaun does overnight hosting with his mother from 9 p.m.-6 a.m.,” Greg explained, adding that each church must provide van drivers for the IHN vans.
Greg said that during the day the vans bring the participants to the family center in Williamstown at the St. John Lutheran Church “where they can shower, shave, have breakfast, look for jobs, and buses will pick up the kids to take them to school. The day begins at 7 a.m. and ends at 5:30 p.m. Then they’re transported back to Holy Family at 6 p.m. or to whatever church is hosting at the time.” Volunteers cook dinner, which is served between 6 and 7 p.m.
“Then the evening hosting begins again at 7 p.m.,” Greg said, noting that he needs a total of 50 volunteers for the week but he has a pool of at least 150 from which he can draw.
IHN, in addition to helping families get back on their feet, also assists single parents. For instance, he said, among those helped were a mother with two children who lost her job and home when one child was diagnosed with leukemia.
“We take them into the network to help them find an apartment and get counseling,” said Greg. “We get involved to find the proper state agencies that can help and show them how to apply for help.”
Greg fully believes that social justice is important and “you definitely get back more than you give when you live stewardship to the fullest.”
For more information on stewardship contact Deacon Russell Davis, Office of Stewardship, at 856-583-6102.
at the bottom and then tap “Add to Home Screen”