Digital Marian Helper Spring_2018

30 M arian H elper  • S pring 2018   • marian.org MH I n the early 1960s, Joanne Clough, a devout Catholic, noticed a small bronze medal that she did not recog- nize on her coffee table at her home in Albany, New York. The medal was engraved with Polish lettering and bore an image of Christ. “I don’t know how it got there,” she said. “I’m an Italian and was living in an Italian neighborhood. Who would give me a Polish medal?” She put this mysterious token away in a small box and did not think about it for a long time. In the 1980s, Joanne traveled to Stockbridge, Mass- achusetts, to visit the Marian Fathers o n Eden Hill. There, she discovered that what was stamped on her mysterious bronze medal was the Divine Mercy Image. After that bus trip, Joanne started bringing her nine chil- dren to the Marian Fathers on Divine Mercy Sundays. “The crowds were not nearly as big as they are now,” she said. Ever since they first started attending these Divine Mercy Sunday observances, Joanne and her family have felt a strong connection to the Marian Fathers and the message of Divine Mercy. In fact, in April 2000 — the same month that St. Faustina was canonized — Joanne’s husband of 55 years, Ken, was confirmed into the Catholic faith. He had been a non-practicing Episcopalian most of his life, but thanks to Joanne’s encouragement, he embraced Catholicism. “Now we go to daily Mass and pray the Rosary a nd the Chaplet e very day,” Ken said. In 2002, Joanne and Ken began volunteering at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy. “People ask me why I volunteer here so much. I tell them that it’s because I have a lot of blessings,” Ken said. “We have nine children, 16 grandchildren, and four great grandchildren. We want to give back.” The Cloughs spend just about every weekend at the Shrine. Ken volunteers to chauffeur pilgrims around Eden Hill, and Joanne works in hospitality, answering pilgrims’ questions. Joanne said that she first felt inspired to volunteer at the Shrine because of Pope St. John Paul II’s message to the world at St. Faustina’s canonization. “ He asked us to turn to God’s mercy to answer the problems of our time,” she said. “So we decided that we wanted to help those who visit [the Shrine].” For the past decade, Joanne and Ken have been in charge of organizing the Adoration tent on the Shrine grounds during Divine Mercy Sunday weekend. “The crowd seems to grow every year,” he said. “We’ve met people from all over the world and all walks of life. People [from] as far away as Australia.” The Cloughs said that they keep coming back to the Shrine because of the community there. “It feels like a family,” Joanne said. “We have a chance to get to know [all the pilgrims], and pray for them. In turn, they pray for us.” Even though Joanne has been volunteering all her life, she says that she still has hesitations when assigned a new task. “Sometimes, when I volunteer I’m unsure whether or not I can do the job,” she said. “When I feel that way, I just go before St. Faustina’s and John Paul II’s relics in the chapel and ask them to help me know what to do.” Even when bad weather overshadows Divine Mercy Sunday weekend, Joanne and Ken have seen this incon- venience as an opportunity to practice mercy. “When it rains or snows, we just offer it up for the Holy Souls, because that’s what St. Faustina is all about,” Joanne said. “I encourage people to sign up as volunteers,” Joanne continued. “God is full of surprises and you’ll be amazed at how many talents you have.” This year, the Shrine has a particular need for parking lot attendants and crowd control volunteers, among other positions. To volunteer for Divine Mercy Sunday, please contact the volunteer coordinator, Peter Markavage, at [email protected] o r call (413) 298-1114. — Marc Massery Ken and Joanne Clough have been volunteering at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy since 2002. Volunteering creates feeling of family