By Laura Grisham
SOUTHAVEN – Summer is finally here! School is out, much to the relief of teachers and students alike. Vacations are at the top of the list, but in addition to planning for beach or mountain getaways, many people have decided to spend a time in the Mississippi Delta with Sacred Heart Southern Missions’ (SHSM) Volunteer Program.
Local and long distance guests have rolled up their sleeves over the past few weeks to lend a hand on a number of rehab projects. The amount of work that has been accomplished is phenomenal.

Sadie Dixon helps her father Paul Dixon build a wheelchair ramp. The whole family does summer service.

The Dixon family, who attend Olive Branch Queen of Peace Parish, is no stranger to SHSM. Earlier in the spring, Crystal, Paul and their four youngest children, helped plant seedlings at the Garden Cafe in Holly Springs. Cafe guests were able to see and eat the fruits of their labor, as the first eight bell peppers were harvested in June. Soon, squash, peppers, carrots, beans, cantaloupes, and tomatoes will all be on the menu!
Itching to get their hands dirty again, the Dixons helped construct wheelchair ramps for two of our clients and have plans to work on roofing, plumbing, painting and sheetrock projects in the upcoming weeks. Crystal said that it was a real blessing to work with SHSM and was pleased to be able to enrich the family with a service experience. “We were looking for an opportunity for the family to work together. I made lots of calls and many were accepting of us adults, but thought the children would get in the way,” said Dixon. “Sacred Heart welcomed all of us with open arms.”
In addition to families, SHSM has been blessed with the youth of the six parishes in the region contributing time and talent to many projects. In mid-June, 20 young men, along with a handful of chaperones, made a decided difference at three client homes, the Garden Cafe and Dehon Village.

Nine-year-old Jake Dixon works on a wheelchair ramp with his family.

From painting and sheetrock to plumbing and cooking, these teens got a real workout, but also benefited from the service experience. Ryan Harra of Queen of Peace Parish said he was surprised that there were so many people in need so close to home. Another commented how he took ‘the little things’ for granted until he saw how little others had.
First time retreat participant and Eagle Scout Lyndon Meng, put part of the scouting oath into action. The oath reads: “Many people need help. A cheery smile and a helping hand make life easier for others. By doing a Good Turn daily and helping when you’re needed, you prove yourself a Scout and do your part to make this a better world.”
But it was not all work and no play for the retreat participants. Evening respites of bowling, swimming and a cookout rejuvenated the young men for the week’s work. The experience for them culminated with the June 12 feast of the Sacred Heart Mass and celebration at Christ the King—a fitting end to a week of service.

A volunteer for Sacred Heart Southern Missions paints a home in North Mississippi.

The next week girls from the same parishes made a service retreat and picked up where the boys had left off, completing several projects, including new plumbing for one client as well as paint and repair work on several homes.
A group from Chicago to Memphis of more than a dozen high school students from the St. Ignatius Seniors Rising program and chaperones made their annual trek. They made much needed repairs to rotted areas of exterior wood and added two good coats of paint to two homes.
Holly is a 68-year-old veteran chaperone for St. Ignatius and has been volunteering for their “summer immersion” for the past 17 years. Despite her family’s request to slow down, she is determined to continue until age 70, when she plans to ask her family to join her on the volunteer trip as their “birthday present” to her.
Another volunteer, 17-year-old Jack, perched atop a ladder slathering paint on carport trim, stated it was his first time with the group. He said he had enjoyed his time so far and was pleased that he had been able to meet the elderly lady for whom he invested his time.
Just north at another client site, Isabel was fighting wasps and heavy humidity as she coated a window sash with paint. Her group repaired and re-glazed all of the windows and tackled an all-wood exterior thirsty for a good coat of paint at an early 1930s home north of Red Banks. Isabel shared that this particular day was her favorite, as the group was able to bring a project to fruition. “Being able to see how your work helps people is so

Young women from the parishes in the Sacred Heart Southern Missions area spent a week doing service in their community. (Photos courtesy of Laura Grisham)

rewarding, and is the Jesuit way,” she said. (St. Ignatius was the first Superior General of the Jesuit order of religious. Part of Jesuit formation is the undertaking of service specifically to the poor and sick in the most humble ways.)
These are just some of the volunteers that have made a difference recently. Anyone interested in participating in the volunteer program should contact Laura Grisham at lgrisham@shsm.org or 662-342-3316
(Reprinted with permission from the Sacred Heart Southern Missions June 18 newsletter.)

Little sister, Sadie, age 3, wanted to get in on the action too.
SHSM’s Lee Smith (left) and volunteer Paul Dixon (right) pause with homeowner “Henry” to show him the progress on his new wheelchair ramp.