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LORAIN, Ohio — For the 14th consecutive year, the parishioners of St. Nicholas Byzantine Catholic Parish have kept their community Lenten practice of almsgiving, collecting much needed personal items for local children in need.
The Shoebox for Kids initiative was originally a project of the Eastern Christian Formation program.
In more recent years, it has become a project for the whole parish. Parishioners donate new personal items for children, from newborns to 14-year-olds, including diapers, washcloths, soap, toothbrushes and socks.
The items are then organized into plastic shoeboxes and delivered to the local Catholic Charities to benefit the children who walk into their office at the St. Elizabeth Center.
“This year someone donated 68 packages of diapers,” said parishioner Sue Druga, who coordinates the initiative.
Her role includes sorting the items into boxes, making sure all of the items that are required are either donated or purchased, and delivering them to the Lorain Catholic Charities office.
At press time, Druga said 55 shoeboxes were filled. Last year, the parish donated 80 shoeboxes.
This year, the local Boy Scout troop that meets in the former St. Nicholas School building also helped with sorting and packing.
“We’re always trying to expand the project and get more people involved,” she said.
The parish also holds an annual Bagel Social during Lent to raise funds to cover the gaps in the donation of personal items. Druga then goes out to purchase the missing items. This year’s social was held March 24; about 40 people attended.
Druga said the parish administrator, Father Jan Cizmar, decided to twin the Bagel Social with a session of “I Believe” to encourage wider participation.
“I Believe” is the eparchy-wide faith formation initiative on the Nicene Creed, which Bishop Milan Lach, SJ, of Parma mandated for every parish during the Great Fast.
Later that afternoon, St. Nicholas Parish hosted the Cleveland-area Sunday Lenten Vespers, Father Andrew Nagrant celebrated Vespers and Father Cizmar preached on the cross of Christ.
A number of the parishes in the Cleveland area took turns hosting a Lenten Vespers service throughout Lent.
Caption: MaryAnn Giamboi, left, and Sue Druga pose in front of the plastic shoeboxes of personal items that fellow parishioners donated for the Shoebox for Kids initiative that benefits children in need in their local community through Catholic Charities. (Photo courtesy of Sue Druga)
As published in Horizons, April 21, 2019.
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