by Linda Petersen, Intermountain Catholic
PARK CITY — Holy Cross Ministries will honor five community leaders at its annual Autumn Harvest Benefit on Oct. 8 at St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Park City. Celebrating the 150-year legacy of the Sisters of the Holy Cross in Utah, the organization provides health outreach, bilingual counseling, legal immigration aid and early childhood education across several Utah communities. Holy Cross Ministries was created by the local Holy Cross “to respond to the needs of underrepresented communities in Utah,” according to the organization’s website. The funds came from the sale of Salt Lake City’s Holy Cross Hospital in 1994; the mission of the Holy Cross sisters is to “do what needs doing.”
“Even though Holy Cross Ministries has only been around for 30 years, [at this event] we really want to honor the amazing legacy of social justice, compassion, companioning that the sisters did in a variety of health and education ministries,” Holy Cross Ministries CEO Emmie Gardner said.
The current political climate and anti-immigrant rhetoric have challenged the non-profit to expand and adapt its services, particularly through legal representation for families navigating ICE detentions or deportations, Gardner said.
The mission of Holy Cross Ministries rests on three pillars: health, education and justice, which “still remain very strong,” Gardner said, noting that they are continuing to serve the same population, “but given the current sort of attitude in our country about not really wanting to welcome the stranger, whether immigrant or refugee, we’re really having to lean in and figure out new and creative ways to support our staff. Given the current attitudes in state as well as federal government, we need to be leaning in with the true kind of spirit of the Sisters of the Holy Cross, which is that idea of doing what needs doing. … Just really needing to bring back the compassion, really needing to companion people on their healing journeys, and really providing that social justice and service that says, love God and love your neighbor, no qualifications.”
The benefit on Oct. 8 will celebrate “individuals whose lives and work embody the Sisters of the Holy Cross mission to “do what needs doing,” according to the organization’s website.
Among those being recognized as Holy Cross Heroes are Dr. Kristen Ries and Maggie Snyder, whose work with people with HIV/AIDS was featured in the documentary “Quiet Heroes.” Ries and Snyder “were doing work in a time when there was such a stigma around HIV and AIDS, and yet they offered compassionate medical care and hospice care in an inpatient infectious disease unit at the Holy Cross Hospital,” Gardner said, adding, “They were the only health system in the State of Utah that responded to the need of the HIV and AIDS patients.”
Monsignor Robert Bussen, a retired priest of the diocese, will also be honored for his decades of pastoral ministry and commitment to welcoming Latino immigrants. “Fr. Bob Bussen has always been so supportive of Holy Cross Ministries and the Sisters of the Holy Cross in general,” Gardner said, noting his “commitment for social justice. He always stood up for marginalized communities.”
Additionally, Sister Laura Guadalupe Tiburcio-Santos, CSC, alongside Jacky’s Recovery Support Services, will be recognized for bringing culturally responsive support to individuals navigating addiction and mental health recovery. “What is so cool about Sr. Laura and Jacky’s Recovery is that they really are working to respond with compassion, with cultural sensitivity and understanding and a lot of hope for folks who are struggling on their recoveries,” Gardner said.
Anna Williams, an advocate for expanding higher education access for first-generation students through initiatives like Latinos in Action and the Dream Big program, also will be honored. “When I think of her, I think how much her leadership reminds us of lasting change. [It] really just begins with one person just willing to step up and make a difference,” Gardner said.
The benefit will feature food and drinks on the parish patio, with the funds raised providing unrestricted support for the organization’s core programs. “We hope as people come to the event and they see that kind of courage and compassion [that it] inspires them to in their own way and in their own lives to try and make a difference to support our underserved community,” Gardner said, adding that the event “provides us some good, stable funding to supplement our grants.”
Holy Cross Heroes will be Thursday, Oct. 8, 6-9 p.m. at the social hall of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, 1505 White Pine Canyon Road, Park City. Individual tickets are $250; sponsorships available. Tickets must be reserved by Sept. 25; visit https://secure.qgiv.com/event/holycrossministriesauction for tickets.