Sister describes Haiti work in Rogers

Nun from India has been promoting vocations, working with youth in sister parish

Published: January 12, 2013

By Alesia Schaefer
Rogers Correspondent

Alesia Schaefer

"(The people of Haiti) trust in the Lord despite their suffering a nd natural calamities that befall them, " explains Sister Shobha D'Souza, a member of the Missionary Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus working in Haiti.

Alesia Schaefer

ROGERS -- On her first visit to the United States, Sister Shobha D'Souza visited the place that seemed most like home.

Her destination was St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Rogers, the sister parish to the mission church she serves in Haiti. She received a king's welcome upon her arrival in December, meeting for the first time some individuals and parishioners she had previously only been able to correspond with through the mail.

This past spring, the 41-year-old sister had been the hostess to a team of St. Vincent de Paul parishioners of the Haitian outreach ministry. But her visit to Arkansas Dec. 1-10 gave her the opportunity to be the guest and to continue to share with others about the needs of the Haitian people at her parish.

While in Rogers, she spoke with middle school children at St. Vincent de Paul School, visited elderly parishioners and met with staff and members of the Haitian ministry team about the need for another school.

"When I am worried about something," said Sister Shobha, who made her final vows in August 2012, "God always provides for me through different people so that I can go on with my work."

Her work for the past year has been in the small town of Bombardopolis, Haiti, at St. Francis of Assisi Church where she works with the youth, promotes vocations, brings Communion to the elderly and visits smaller villages that have no church. Located in the hilly country in northwest Haiti, Bombardopolis captured the heart of Sister Shobha not long after she arrived in 2011. Even in extreme poverty, the Missionary Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus sister said the people of Haiti remain faithful.

"I have seen that the people of Haiti do not enter into depression over their situations," she said. "They trust in the Lord despite their suffering and natural calamities that befall them."

"It is not how much you have, but what you have," she explained about the Haitian people. "They have Christ's presence in their life, and they are always strong in their faith, despite their limitations."

Trusting in the Lord is a trait that Sister Shobha and the people of Haiti have in common. One of five children, Sister Shobha was born in Mumbai, India, where she and an older sister who has entered the Carmelites chose religious vocations with the support of her family.

"My grandfather was a sacristan and as a child I attended Mass with him every day at 5 a.m.," she said.

Even at the impressionable age of 16, she knew she wanted to be a missionary, but took her time assimilating her vocation and meeting with a spiritual director. While discerning, she helped her family financially by working in an office for three years. At age 26, she entered the Missionary Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus upon the recommendation of her two cousins who are Jesuit priests. Her congregation is made up of five provinces in seven countries.

"My province is in Colombia, South America," Sister Shobha explained, "that is the closest province to Haiti. The sisters of the province decided to open a mission in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in 2000 because of the great need there."

And so began her spiritual journey. The past nine years prepared her in ways she could not imagine by working in the mission field of India with the Gamit tribe as well as in Madrid where some of her responsibilities included visiting the elderly and caring for the aging sisters in her motherhouse and patients with HIV.

"This was an important time in my life, preparing me for my total consecration to God," Sister Shobha said. "It gave me time to prepare to become an instrument for God and to say, 'yes' to him."

A lifelong devotion to the Blessed Mother and to the Gospel of John have also inspired Sister Shobha to "do as he says."

"I am the clay and he is the potter, and he has molded and shaped me and is hoping something good comes from me," she said.

Her work in Haiti is a testament to the good that continues to come from her. Besides providing vocation direction for about 10 young adults, who are 18-22 years old, she helps with the formation of the 35 youth in her parish. But, Sister Shobha's biggest challenge, by far, is trekking to three villages in the mountains that have no church. Her journey by foot can take as long as four hours.

"We usually leave around 4 a.m. and after arriving will pray with the villagers, say the rosary and sing songs," she said. "The following morning we depart again about 4 a.m. and begin journeying to another village about three hours away."

"My vocation is God's love. When I entered Haiti, I saw my vocation strengthened," Sister Shobha said. "These people have been responsible for my joy and my strength and because of them I have learned to be a simpler and more humble person," she said.