Archbishop's web site Denver Catholic Register Parishes Catholic Pastoral Center
August 16, 2000
Handicapped encounter Christ at St. Malo Center
By Fara Kearnes
Jesus welcomes all to draw near, but those who are handicapped often find themselves looking on from a distance. Not so at St. Malo Retreat Center in Allenspark.
Members of Handicapped Encounter Christ (HEC) assembled at St. Malo Retreat Center, Aug. 4-6, for a time to pray, share stories and bask in the spectacular beauty of the mountain setting. It was the second retreat for the Rocky Mountain chapter of HEC, coordinated by Michele James and Sue Lane, assisted by a group of dedicated volunteers.
HEC pairs disabled persons with a volunteer who joins them for prayer, meals, outdoor adventures and other activities. Handicapped participants, some 53 in all, came from New York, Texas, Missouri and other locations to take part in the retreat.
The HEC program was launched in New York by John Keck in 1973 and has since grown dramatically.
"What we are trying to do is to get people on retreat that normally wouldn't get to go on retreat," Keck told the Register. "The program has spread to 13 cities in the U.S., as well as the Philippines, Australia and Canada," he explained.
Michele James and her close friend Anita Hansen, a quadriplegic and parishioner at Light of the World Catholic Church, attended their first HEC weekend in St. Louis two years ago. They attended the retreat with Father Tom Nelson of the Colorado Vincentian Volunteers, who was the spiritual director for the St. Malo weekend.
James and Hansen were so inspired by the program, they decided to bring it to northern Colorado.
"These are not silent retreats," Hansen said, "they're boisterous and fun."
The retreat celebrates life, nurtures faith and offers support. Participants share the Good News of the Risen Christ and form a wider circle of friendships.
"The themes of this retreat were: one, what it means to be people and, two, what it means that we are broken," Keck explained. "In order to be brothers and sisters, we need to be with each other. There's a whole population of people that have been hidden and they can't be hidden anymore."
"St. Malo is a beautiful place [and is wheelchair accessible] which is why we choose it for our retreat," James said. "The staff totally went out of their way and we felt pampered.
"There was a lot of anxiety coming up to Malo ... but by breakfast the next day the comfort level had risen dramatically," she continued. "We hope we can get more volunteers so that we can offer a bigger retreat for next year."
HEC receives no agency funding and relies on volunteers. Participants are encouraged to financially support their retreat weekend but, "we don't want money to stand in the way," James said.
"We receive donations and we can offer scholarship money," she added. This is a light-hearted and spirited group that comes together as an interfaith community that searches for God together and in each other. HEC beautifully reflects the gospel message that there is neither disabled or non-disabled, slave nor master, for we are all one body in Christ.
For more information on HEC, contact Michele James, 303-797-2606, Anita Hansen, 303-932-2893; or Father Tom Nelson, C.M., 303-778-8197.
