Recently the Teach Bhríde crew went out to the beautiful retreat center at Ballyvaloo for an end-of-year meeting with Fr. Martin, Fr. Denis, Fr. Jimmy, and a new addition to the Clonard Church staff, Sr. Mary, who is the new Coordinator of Ministries at the parish.
We spent the first part of our day looking back on our year of ministry, identifying the things that gave us the most energy, the things that frustrated us, the things that worked really well, and the things that could have gone better. Not surprisingly, our work with the primary school children took the forefront as having been the most life-giving for us and for the parish. Working with the kids this year has been more challenging, edifying, and entertaining than anything else we’ve undertaken this year, and next year will bring even more opportunities to serve the students of Kennedy Park and Scoil Mhuire.
Next year’s Teach Bhríde members will have an even greater role in sacramental preparation for Confirmation and First Communion at both the parochial and diocesan levels; they will continue to build and develop the music for the Vigil Mass at Clonard Church; they will provide more opportunities for education and renewal to the liturgical musicians of the Diocese of Ferns. In short, next year’s members will build on the foundation created by the efforts of this year’s community, and we hope that the programs put into place this year will continue to grow and bear fruit in the parish and diocesan communities.
It’s almost impossible to believe that we’re nearing the end of the pilot year for Teach Bhríde, but here we are, only 8 days from our return to the States. Over the next week we will begin the difficult task of saying good-bye to the people who have taken such incredible care of us this year, who have become an extended family to all of us. Sentimentality aside (and without sounding too much like a Best Actress winner), I am grateful to Chris and to Martha for their courage in committing themselves to this venture, for their patience as all three of us learned to navigate a foreign culture, for their pioneering creativity in discerning and responding to the needs of the Wexford community. Next year will seem strange without them, but their presence will remain in the work that they have begun this year as next year’s volunteers continue on in their place. I am also grateful to the benefactors who so generously support the community and its mission, and to the Board of House of Brigid, Inc., who work so tirelessly to ensure that the community’s work may continue. Finally, I am grateful for the incredible people we have met in Wexford this year, particularly Bishop Denis Brennan, the principals and teachers of Kennedy Park and Scoil Mhuire, the faithful members of our Vigil Choir and the Clonard Folk Group, the unforgettable parishioners of Clonard Church, and most especially the clergy of Clonard Church, whose guidance and support have been so vital to the success of the Teach Bhríde community this year.
