861 Wildwood Lane, Grapevine, Texas 76051 - (817) 481-2685 - Fax (817) 488-3169
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Servants of St. Francis
Nursing Home and Hospital Visitation
| Contact: |
Josephina L. Crane Call parish office |
Brief Overview
Welcome to the Servants of St. Francis. There are two groups of servants in this ministry—those who visit residents in nursing homes and those who visit parishioners from St. Francis who are hospitalized.
Nursing Home Visits
This group visits, prays and shares the Eucharist with Catholic residents of nursing homes in Grapevine (Autumn Leaves of Grapevine and Woodridge Convalescent Center) and in Justin (Longmeadow Healthcare Center) every Sunday morning. To serve, you must be a Eucharistic minister and have completed the Keeping Children, Youth and Vulnerable Adults Safe Seminar—a mandatory requirement of the Diocese for all volunteers.
When a Catholic resident is admitted, the Activity Director of the nursing home calls the Servants Ministry Contact Person to include the new resident in the list of residents to be visited.
Hospital Visits
This group brings the Holy Eucharist to the hospital. During their visit they try to include prayer, hope, and joy into the person’s life. To serve, you must be a Eucharistic minister and have completed the Keeping Children, Youth and Vulnerable Adults Safe Seminar. The hospital is very careful about safeguarding the confidentiality of its patients. Servants must be discreet in observing this hospital policy. Opportunity to serve is given on short notice.
When a parishioner is admitted at the Baylor Grapevine Hospital, or other area hospitals, the hospital or family of the patient contacts the Servants’ Ministry Contact Person or calls the Parish Office Secretary who then arranged for the patient to be visited. They get about a dozen occasional requests a month to visit hospital patients.
Requirements to Serve
- Member of St. Francis of Assisi Parish
- Adult (from 18 years and older)
- Willing to commit at least two hours twice every quarter
- Compassionate and caring of the sick and elderly
- Member of St. Francis of Assisi Parish
- Eucharistic Minister Training
- Keeping Children, Youth and Vulnerable Adults Safe Seminar
- Visitation guidelines
- Booklets on praying for the sick and elderly
- Orientation - On the initial visit, a new servant who will walk with you throughout the visit.
- Servants follow a quarterly schedule and go by pair on every visit.
- Quarterly schedule is created two weeks before the turn of the next quarter and e-mailed to everyone. Additional copies are available in the Servants mailbox.
- Before the quarterly schedule is prepared, all servants are requested to submit the Sundays unavailable to serve.
- Each servant is scheduled to serve at least twice every quarter.
- Four to six servants or two to three pairs serve every Sunday.
- A servant who cannot fulfill his/her schedule switches with another (new servant with another new servant, active servant with another active servant).
- If a servant is unable to find a fellow servant to switch with, the Ministry Contact Person (if available) will fill in.
During Advent and Lent Holy Mass is celebrated in each of the nursing home facility. The Catholic residents may avail of the Sacrament of Reconciliation before the celebration of the Eucharist and immediately after the service they may also receive the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.
All the residents regardless of church denomination are invited to participate in the celebration.
The Servants Ministry is truly an enriching and special ministry to be involved in. One becomes a part of a community where everyone’s participation is important in making it run smoothly.
To build up our relationship with each other and the residents we visit, we share our visitation experience through a journal titled IN TOUCH. As we get to know the residents we visit the better we are able to serve them. IN TOUCH is also a learning tool for new servants.
We invite you to join us every Sunday morning in visiting, praying, and sharing the Eucharist with the sick and elderly. Often times, the sick we visit minister to us more than we minister to them.