Friday, March 7, 2008 at 2:02am
Care for the caregiver's soul
Column: Executive Soul
At Joseph's House, a home for formerly homeless men and women with terminal illnesses in Washington, D.C., caregivers' souls get all the attention they need.
Patty Wudel, now executive director, first came to live at Joseph's House as a volunteer. Her introduction to Joseph's House came when a resident invited her to Sunday brunch. She was struck by the diversity: "I noticed the black folks and the white folks together. There were sick folks and well folks, and there were people in wheelchairs." Even more, she was struck by the quality of the food and the quality of the conversation at the family-style meal. She noticed the caring among the residents, the well residents feeding those who couldn't feed themselves.
Joseph's House includes staff and volunteers as well as residents. An experiment in community, Joseph's House stresses the value of people living with people, as opposed to the charity model of the haves giving to the have-nots.
Living with sick and dying formerly homeless people isn't always easy. How do the staff and volunteers get the strength they need to continue to create authentic community day after day, year after year?
First, they get strength through the relationships they form. In the community model of Joseph's House, the love isn't just one-way. Patty looks for volunteers who understand the mutuality of community, whose hearts are open to receiving as well as to giving.
Second, they get strength through regular retreats. Patty contracts with an outside facilitator to take the staff and volunteers off site:
"Two or three times a year, our facilitator — a dear friend of our community — takes half of our staff and volunteers away on a Tuesday for a day's retreat — a contemplative retreat — to reflect on all kinds of matters of the heart. Recently the reflection was on our resistance and openness to love and learning to bring that awareness of it into the context of what we said yes to, which is Joseph's House. The next day she takes the rest of the people away on retreat. This way we have enough staff in the house both days to keep things rolling. Then she comes back to our staff meeting on Thursday morning when we're all there anyway and brings the whole retreat together."
The staff and volunteers seek to bring the contemplative atmosphere of the retreat back into everyday life at Joseph's House. For example, at the last retreat, someone suggested they try to remember to inhale and exhale deeply every time the phone rings (which is constantly), in order to return to their grounded being in the midst of daily stress.
At Joseph's House, the caregiver's soul is just as important as the caregiver's hands. The holistic care for the caregiver helps build authentic community and provide steady, compassionate care for the residents.
— — —
Margaret Benefiel, Ph.D., author of "Soul at Work: Spiritual Leadership in Organizations," works with leaders in business, healthcare, churches, government and non-profits to help them develop spiritual leadership. Visit her website at www.ExecutiveSoul.com. © Copyright 2008 by Margaret Benefiel.
Patty Wudel, now executive director, first came to live at Joseph's House as a volunteer. Her introduction to Joseph's House came when a resident invited her to Sunday brunch. She was struck by the diversity: "I noticed the black folks and the white folks together. There were sick folks and well folks, and there were people in wheelchairs." Even more, she was struck by the quality of the food and the quality of the conversation at the family-style meal. She noticed the caring among the residents, the well residents feeding those who couldn't feed themselves.
Joseph's House includes staff and volunteers as well as residents. An experiment in community, Joseph's House stresses the value of people living with people, as opposed to the charity model of the haves giving to the have-nots.
Living with sick and dying formerly homeless people isn't always easy. How do the staff and volunteers get the strength they need to continue to create authentic community day after day, year after year?
First, they get strength through the relationships they form. In the community model of Joseph's House, the love isn't just one-way. Patty looks for volunteers who understand the mutuality of community, whose hearts are open to receiving as well as to giving.
Second, they get strength through regular retreats. Patty contracts with an outside facilitator to take the staff and volunteers off site:
"Two or three times a year, our facilitator — a dear friend of our community — takes half of our staff and volunteers away on a Tuesday for a day's retreat — a contemplative retreat — to reflect on all kinds of matters of the heart. Recently the reflection was on our resistance and openness to love and learning to bring that awareness of it into the context of what we said yes to, which is Joseph's House. The next day she takes the rest of the people away on retreat. This way we have enough staff in the house both days to keep things rolling. Then she comes back to our staff meeting on Thursday morning when we're all there anyway and brings the whole retreat together."
The staff and volunteers seek to bring the contemplative atmosphere of the retreat back into everyday life at Joseph's House. For example, at the last retreat, someone suggested they try to remember to inhale and exhale deeply every time the phone rings (which is constantly), in order to return to their grounded being in the midst of daily stress.
At Joseph's House, the caregiver's soul is just as important as the caregiver's hands. The holistic care for the caregiver helps build authentic community and provide steady, compassionate care for the residents.
— — —
Margaret Benefiel, Ph.D., author of "Soul at Work: Spiritual Leadership in Organizations," works with leaders in business, healthcare, churches, government and non-profits to help them develop spiritual leadership. Visit her website at www.ExecutiveSoul.com. © Copyright 2008 by Margaret Benefiel.