Dear Friends,

Our next volunteer days are January 28, February 4, and February 11, 10:00 – 4:00.

We haven’t scheduled future days but anticipate that they will be once or twice a month until the novices arrive in the summer.

Here are some special projects that I would like to mention – either because they require consistant thought or particular skills.  Please let me know ahead of time if you would like to take any of them on:

1.  We’re looking for three special volunteers on January 28 to assist our experienced exterminator in removing a big mess from the attic space above the chapel due to the presence of bats.  Please let me know if you would be interested in this challenging assignment.  Joe will bring masks and other equipment needed.  We need the space cleaned to add some spotlights for the chapel sanctuary.

2.  Windows in the New Wing (often called the dormitory).  This needs a team of 2-4 people who can work several times between now and Easter.  There are about 60 windows in the new wing.  They all need:     – Screens     – Storm windows     – Removal of the curtain rod     – A little WD40 and elbow grease     – Cleaning Some of the windows have storms and screens, some don’t.  There are some stashed around, too.  This will need a coordinated approach so we can determine if we have all the pieces and to get as many windows winterized as soon as possible.

3.   Main House Windows .  This is a smaller job, as it is just screens that need to be matched.  The windows in the main house are all double paned and most have been cleaned.  This could probably be done by 1 or 2 people in a day, and we’d like to do it before the end of February.

4. Preparing Novice cells **.  Our novices will arrive in the summer, and we have a little work to get the rooms ready.  Someone (or 2 or 3) with some carpentry skills would be helpful.  Some of them are missing a strip of veneer, others need a nail or shelf replaced or a door fixed, or a piece of tile glued down.  Each room will have its own problems, and it would be good to have someone with the overall vision who can work consistantly on these rooms.  It would be great to finish by Easter, but Memorial Day is the real deadline.

5. Ceiling Fans .  We have 22 ceiling fans to be installed.  Experience is required for this project.  Are there 5 people out there who could commit to putting up 4 fans each by the end of February?   The other projects we will be doing include: – Removing the vinyl tile floor in the basement – Cleaning all the rooms – Moving furniture – Flooring in the new wing – and at least a dozen other projects … stay tuned!

In Christ, our Life,
Sr. Dorothy Guadalupe, S.V.

** The custom of calling the bedrooms of religious men and women, monks and nuns, “cells” comes from the Latin word “chaelum” meaning heaven.  It indicates that this room is a sacred place for study, rest, spiritual reading and prayer.  In the cell, we can encounter the Lord Jesus in silence and solitude.  Our cells are kept clean, simple, and peaceful.  The freedom of this simplicity leads to a recollected heart an dmind, which gives space for the voice of the Lord to be heard.