Change Font Size:   A A A

Aug 11, 2014

St. Vincent’s House to Celebrate Sixtieth Anniversary September 27-28

St. Vincent’s House will mark 60 years of social service ministry to the greater Galveston community with a weekend of celebration, September 27-28, 2014. The celebration commemorates six decades of unwavering service to the underserved population of Galveston, welcomes a new executive director and bids farewell to Michael Jackson, retiring executive director and community leader.

                 

The installation of the Rev. Freda Marie Brown, new executive director, takes place  Saturday, September 27 at 10 a.m. on the campus of St. Vincent’s House, 2817 Alfreda Houston Place. The Rt. Rev. Jeff Fisher, bishop suffragan for the Diocese of Texas will officiate. The tenth annual presentation of the Alfreda Houston Community Servant’s Award and the annual homecoming block party will follow. There is no charge for any of the Saturday events and the public is welcome.

 

Brown received a BS in medical technology from Xavier University in New Orleans and worked for more than two decades at St. Paul University Hospital in Dallas. She earned a master’s of theological studies at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and served as a palliative care chaplain in hospice and hospital settings for seven years, prior to ordination in 2010. She served at the Episcopal Church of the Annunciation in Lewisville, Texas until her appointment to St. Vincent’s House, June 1, 2014.

 

The festivities conclude with an anniversary banquet and community tribute to retiring Director Michael Jackson on Sunday September 28 at 3:00 p.m. at the Garten Verein, 2704 Avenue O, Galveston.   

 

Jackson and the St. Vincent’s House ministries have touched many lives in the past 15 years; those who have served and those who have been served. The St. Vincent’s House staff and board members invite anyone who has been associated with St. Vincent’s House--past and present--to attend the celebrations.

 

“We want to fill the Garten Verein for MJ,” said Vicki Buxton, St. Vincent’s House Board member, “with all the clergy, volunteers, former board members, summer mission group alumni, Episcopal Church Women and Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s who have served St. Vincent’s.  What a perfect way to truly celebrate homecoming and say goodbye.”

 

Tickets for the banquet can be purchased at St. Vincent’s House. As a special part of the event, the St. Vincent’s board is hoping to fill the souvenir booklet with tributes from the community and around our diocese.  For more information, call 409.763.8521.

 

Jackson has been an active advocate for the Galveston community since his arrival in 1999, with a focused commitment to serving God’s and being an agent of change and hope. Jackson is well known for his eclectic collection of life’s discarded treasures, which cover his desk, for playing a mean game of basketball on Saturday morning with the “old ballers” and for his a collection of quirky hats.

 

Jackson was an active lay person, serving on various boards throughout the Diocese and was instrumental in many diocesan, Union of Black Episcopalians and Jubilee events during his tenure at St. Vincent’s House.

                 

During Jackson’s tenure, St. Vincent’s House expanded the scope of its services, and increased accessibility to affordable quality day care, free health care and emergency assistance services tenfold.  The social service agency has become a lifeline to the community and an anchor through the storm, a fact never more evident than during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the evacuation from Hurricane Rita and the recovery from Hurricane Ike. 

                 

The capacity of the day care was expanded with the addition of two nutritious meals a day for every child.  The curriculum was upgraded to preschool status offering early childhood bi-lingual education, with a focus on science, art, music and technology to children aged 2-5 years old in a loving Christian/faith–based environment. The preschool’s artist-in–residence program was the inspiration for the colorful murals throughout St. Vincent’s House.  

 

In 2012, the Hope Academy offered alternative educational opportunities, career guidance and mentoring for students who were not succeeding in the traditional education system.

 

In collaboration with UTMB, St. Vincent’s House implemented the WelCare Initiative that provided a comprehensive approach to medical service delivery, eventually offering free annual health and wellness screenings, education and advocacy for the whole family. The HOPE mile, a walking path, was designed and diabetes management, breast cancer awareness and smoking cessation programs were initiated. Jackson increased the days and hours of service for the clinic, now open six days a week and two evenings. Jackson will be remembered for his hospitality and the intentional invitation to hope and wellness he shared: “Come hope with us.”

                 

Read an interview with Jackson at: http://mydigimag.rrd.com/publication/?i=186236, page 26. Learn more about St. Vincent’s House at: