Archdiocesan grief ministry helps families of those lost to acts of violence

Baltimore City has just completed another violent year.

For the seventh consecutive year, Baltimore reported more than 300 homicides. In the midst of the uncertainty and sadness that comes from losing a loved one to violence, the Archdiocese of Baltimore has stepped in to provide support to the families of the victims.

In partnership with the Baltimore City Police Department (BPD) and other nonprofits and businesses in the city, the archdiocese started a grief ministry program that assists families who have lost loved ones to violence.

“We’ve tried to identify effective partnerships between the archdiocese and other agencies in the city to address challenges in the city,” said Mary Ellen Russell, the former director of community affairs for the archdiocese who spearheaded the launch of the program. “Clearly the violence in the city is one of the bigger challenges we’re all facing.”

Along with the BPD, other partners include Harris Teeter, Roberta’s House, ShareBaby and parishes throughout the city and beyond.

Russell, who retired at the end of 2021, said the goal of the grief ministry is to raise awareness and to make real the pain that so many families are suffering. Violence in Baltimore should not be normalized, she said, and should receive the same outcry from the public that the 2018 shooting at The Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis received.

“It’s to help us all remember that these are not just statistics,” Russell said. “These are human lives that have been cut short. This isn’t something that people should be used to.”

Made up entirely of volunteers from Catholic parishes, the grief ministry asks parishioners to pray for families during weekly services; provides sympathy notes to families that have suffered a loss in the past month and those experiencing the one-year anniversary of losing a loved one; and provides care packages to those who have lost a loved one in the past month. The care packages include groceries, diapers and reusable grocery bags, along with a prayer journal.

James Dixon, victims services manager for the BPD, said he and his unit have worked with the grief ministry in delivering supplies and care packages to those families since its inception.

“It’s a great thing that we’ve been able to do with BPD and the archdiocese,” Dixon said, noting that about 50 to 60 families have benefitted from the partnership. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has put a damper on things, the goal is to deliver groceries and other supplies to two to three families a week.

“Every single time we drop off something, people are very grateful,” Dixon said. “We’ve had people break down in tears just realizing that there are people out there
who care.”

Yvonne Wenger, the new director of community affairs for the archdiocese, said grief ministry gives people an opportunity to show others people care and want to support them in the face of all the trauma and violence in the city.

Going forward, Wenger said it’s her goal to build on what currently exists with the ministry and sees it as an opportunity to build on the connections it has made with communities
in Baltimore.

“How can we meet people in their moment of grief and bring them back to the church to find the richness and love that comes out of the church community?” she asked. “This is a chance to begin a conversation with members of our community who are grieving, to know that the church and many volunteers are here and ready to support them.”

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