April 2, 2014

By Shan Moore
Staff writer

Sister Carla is back on her feet.
The Serviam Sister, who works with the poor in Granada, Nicaragua, had been critically ill in December with a serious case of dengue, a tropical disease that can prove fatal.

She also suffered from four tumors, two kinds of parasites and a bacterial infection, according to North Country Mission of Hope Executive Director Sister Debbie Blow.

The humanitarian-aid organization, headquartered at Seton Catholic Central School in Plattsburgh, spread the word about Sister Carla's need for prayers and medical treatment, and a flood of donations came in.

Among them were contributions from Bishop Terry LaValley, the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and the Good Samaritan Fund of the Diocese of Ogdensburg.

Sister Carla, who is in her late 20s, had surgery and treatment for her many ills. She was given a water filter that provides clean and safe drinking water.

And when Sister Debbie was in Nicaragua in January with a small MOH contingent, she found the nun much improved.

"I gave her the extensive list of donors who reached out to help," she said. "She is praying for each of those people by name.

"And when I told her thousands were praying for her around the world, she got teary."

Sister Debbie visited Sister Carla again during MOH's 53 mission trip in February.

"When I hugged her in January, it still felt like skin and bone," the Plattsburgh woman said.
The nun had gained some weight, she said, "and was doing much, much better.

New cardinal celebrated
Other good news to Mission of Hope was the recent elevation of Nicaragua's Archbishop Leopoldo José Brenes Solórzano to that of cardinal.

He was installed in February. In February 2009, then-Archbishop Brenes Solorzano asked to meet with Mission of Hope members and requested they visit both Velez Paiz Children's Hospital and a center that provides treatment for those with leprosy.

"He profusely thanked Mission of Hope for all that we do," MOH Leadership Team member Yamilette Flores said from Nicaragua after that visit. "It was a very touching, very deep expression of gratitude."

Since then, MOH has counted both those health-care facilities among those it assists.

The cardinal has been devoted to helping the poor, Sister Debbie said. In fact, he chose to live with his mother in her small home rather than the ornate bishop's residence.

She visited that home in January to deliver a cane to the cardinal's elderly mother.

"It’s great joy for the Mission," Sister Debbie said of the appointment. "More significant, it's about the joy and hope it brings to the Nicaraguan people.

"The symbolism of this appointment is an acknowledgement of the cardinal's service to the poor. For the Nicaraguan people, it's an acknowledgement that the world knows (they exist).

"There was great celebration, dancing in the streets."

"He profusely thanked Mission of Hope for all that we do," said mission Leadership Team member Yamilette Flores. "It was a very touching, very deep expression of gratitude."

The Plattsburgh group left that meeting deeply moved by the archbishop's commitment to his people.

"It's so refreshing," said volunteer Judy Charland. "He's not someone who believes in the top-down model — he is very much for equality."

Brenes, who wears his blond hair long and jeans under a black robe, chooses to live in a tiny house with his mother rather than in the ornate bishops residence. He requires that seminarians live with the poor for 24 days so they better understand their situation.

"He was so cognizant, I think, of the real problems of his community," said Charland's husband, Marcel.

The bishop's outspokenness has not won favor with the Nicaraguan government, which recently cut off funding to the Catholic Church used for programs for the poor, Blow said.

Brenes has issued a plea to the Catholic Diocese of Ogdensburg, which includes Clinton, Essex and Franklin counties, to consider providing financial assistance.

The need in Nicaragua seems endless, Murray said.

"You keep peeling back the onion, and there's another layer of poverty and distress. You just have to focus on the hope.

"The good news is there is so much good that we do here."

To help Mission of Hope
Learn more about North Country Mission of Hope at: ncmissionofhope.org.
• Cost to sponsor a child's education is $140 a year. That also covers clothes, shoes and a daily multivitamin.
• Feed a child for a year for $75.
• Sponsor an orphan, including some who have HIV, for $300.
• Partial scholarships are available. • Donations can be made for general purposes.
Send checks to:
North Country Mission of Hope, P.O. Box 2522, Plattsburgh NY 12901.

photo supplied
Sister Carla, left, a Serviam Sister who works with the poor in Granada, Nicaragua, is shown with Sister Debbie Blow, executive director of the North Country Mission of Hope. Sister Carla continues to recover from a potentially fatal tropical disease after Sister Debbie spread the word about her need for prayers and donations, bringing on a flood of donations.