Dear Friends of Joseph House: Here we are in the middle of winter, and although it can be a dreary time of year, there are also treasures to behold, such as the pale colors of the winter sky and the muffled stillness of freshly fallen snow. When we are out and about in the frosty…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: After a short break over Christmas, we are ready to get started in this new year and new decade. There’s always plenty to keep us busy. First of all, at the Joseph House Crisis Center we have our Financial Assistance program, our Food Pantry, Soup Kitchen, and Hospitality Room for…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: We’re all familiar with Christmas carols but some of our favorite songs of the season are Advent hymns. They tend to get drowned out because Christmas music starts playing on the radio at Thanksgiving and stops on Christmas Day. This doesn’t make a lot of sense unless Christmas is just…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: A lovely custom with many people when they gather for Thanksgiving Dinner is to take turns saying what they’re thankful for. Expressing gratitude is good for the soul—and it’s what the holiday is all about. In our humble cubicles at the Joseph House Crisis Center, sitting around tiny desks with…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: When someone is homeless, he or she needs many things. At the Joseph House, we can’t do everything, but one service we do provide is laundry. We have to set limits since we only have one washer and dryer in our Hospitality Room, but we try to give each person…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: A friend of ours has been going through a difficult time. Worries keep her up at night. She will go for a walk to clear her head but that doesn’t help. She prays to God a lot. She prays very simply and honestly. When we spoke with her we did…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: The Joseph House has been in Salisbury for more than 40 years. When Sr. Mary Elizabeth first arrived on the Eastern Shore, she was more or less a nomad, staying with friends and becoming acquainted with trailer parks. Her wandering came to an end in 1978 after she found the…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: When we consider people in need—”the poor”—we may focus on how they’re different from us. Do we ever consider how we’re the same? Does that change how we want to respond to them? Our founder Sr. Mary Elizabeth once shared a story from the early days of the Joseph House…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: The month of June is the turning point of the year. As we approach the summer solstice, the days stretch out with long hours of sunlight, while the darkness of night takes a temporary retreat. But for human beings, darkness isn’t confined to the night sky. Summer days notwithstanding, darkness…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: We were talking not that long ago about what it means to be in charge. We laughed because being the “head honcho” is not always glamorous. In our line of work, it usually means you’re the one pushing a broom, cleaning up after everyone has left. This shouldn’t be too…