Dave Heininger, the longtime director of the Joseph House Crisis Center, died on September 11, 2025, after a short hospitalization. We are deeply saddened by the loss of our colleague and friend. He brought dedication, humor, and a genuine love for others to his work. As a valued member of the Joseph House family, Dave…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: The mission of the Joseph House is to “Cry the Gospel with your life!” We strive to do that at our Crisis Center, the Workshop, and at home in our convent. And also the grocery store, the post office, on the road, and anywhere we might be. In other words,…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: God is the Author of life, the only One who can create, but from the very first moment of our existence other people are indispensable. Pope Leo spoke to this in a homily from earlier this summer: Dear friends, we received life before we ever desired it. As Pope Francis…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: We are so used to thinking of the Joseph House Workshop as our newest ministry that we were surprised to realize this year marks its 20th Anniversary. The time has really flown by! The ribbon-cutting for the Workshop was in June of 2005. Sr. Connie did the honors along with…
The Joseph House Workshop turns 20 in 2025, although its beginning goes back further in time. In 1998, Mountaire Farms of Delmarva approached our founder, Sr. Mary Elizabeth Gintling, with an offer to donate an unused industrial building the company had acquired. Sister quickly said yes; she was a woman of vision and was never…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: In June of 1931, Angelo Roncalli, the future Pope John XXIII (and canonized saint), spent time on retreat reflecting on his life. He was 49 years old and described himself as “a mature man on the road to old age.” His self-examination proved to be humbling, and he wrote in…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: A mother’s heart knows no bounds. It is deeper than the ocean and wider than the sky. It is the closest thing on earth that measures up to the unconditional love of God. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the model of all motherhood. She held her Child in her…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: For many people — us included — Fridays in Lent mean going to church for a service called the Way of the Cross. It’s also called the Stations of the Cross, and this devotion leads us prayerfully along the mile-long journey Jesus made from Pilate’s court to Mount Calvary and…
The Little Sisters of Jesus and Mary describe their way of life as being active-contemplatives. What does that mean? Sr. Mary Elizabeth Gintling, the community’s founder, wanted the Little Sisters to be “people of deep prayer and silence,” and then bring this contemplative spirit to their work with the poor. It’s a way of life…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: March has arrived, and on the 17th many people, Irish or not, will be wearing green in honor of St. Patrick. But in case you forgot, there is another saint we celebrate this month who is also associated with the color green. That saint, of course, is our beloved patron,…