By Rita McInerney

A milestone in the new Atlanta history of the Missionaries of Charity occurred Oct. 22 as Archbishop John F. Donoghue blessed their newly refurbished chapel and dwelling during and afternoon Mass.

Their new home is an expanded and renovated garage behind a large house on St. Charles Avenue that, when remodeled, will serve as a home for indigent persons with AIDS.

The small white chapel overflowed with friends and benefactors of the four sisters serving here: Sister Regi Paul, local superior; Sister Jasmin, Sister M. Laurita, and Sister Johnette. Sister M. Dolores, regional superior for the Missionaries of Charity in the eastern U.S. and Canada, came from New York for the blessing.

Concelebrating with Archbishop Donoghue were Father John Fallon, chaplain for the Missionaries of Charity; Father David Dye, campus minister at Georgia State; and Father Jim Hurley, MS, of St. Ann's Parish in Marietta. Serge Ward, a seminarian for the archdiocese, assisted the archbishop.

In is brief homily, Archbishop Donoghue told the sisters he was honored to take part in the blessing of "this house of the Lord, truly a house filled with His peace and love."

"We cannot begin to measure the dedication and courage of you sisters, who have joyfully cast off the attachments of this world in order to bring the light of Christ wherever you are sent. The whole Catholic church in North Georgia welcomes you, and extends to you the embrace of Christian love,"

Archbishop Donoghue went on to say that with the will to do good, the strength of vocation, there is the stark reality of human weakness to be faced every day.

St. Paul calls this weakness by its proper name -- sin -- and cries out "Who will rescue me?" the archbishop continued.

"No matter how much time we spend in prayer, no matter how fervently we work for good ... we are failures without the supporting hand of Jesus Christ to urge us on," Archbishop Donoghue said.

Christ gives the light by which is seen the way of His truth, he continued. "By its discipline we regulate our own behavior, by its healing effects we bring the light of salvation to all the nations ... from the great cities of the Indian subcontinent to the streets and backyards of midtown Atlanta."

Joining the sisters at Mass in the light-filled chapel were both supporters of Mother Teresa's missionaries and first time visitors eager to help.

One supporter, Dr. Sharne Sheehy, a physician at Grady Infectious Disease Clinic, was acutely aware of the need for this compassionate ministry when she appealed directly to Mother Teresa for sisters to help the indigent AIDS/HIV patients she treats at the new facility on nearby Ponce de Leon.

Many are children and women, some infected through rape. "A lot of (the women) are passing it along to their babies," according to Dr. Sheehy.

When the residence opens, "it initially looks like it will be for women and children," she mentioned. It will be a sanctuary for those living in abusive situations or other undesirable living arrangements, or on the street, she said.

Dr. Sheehy says her employer, Emory University School of Medicine, can offer training to the sisters and volunteers thought the Emory AIDS Training Network. Another service available will be Grady Clinic home health visits.

Carol Braun and her husband, John, working together as Braun Contracting Co., built the addition to the two-story garage. Added were a chapel, parlor, foyer and an upstairs dormitory where the sisters sleep.

The refectory and kitchen downstairs and bathrooms upstairs were gutted and remodeled and the exterior faced with synthetic stucco.

Mrs. Braun says there were structural repairs to be made to the foundation. Damage from termites and heavy rain; insulation and heating had to be installed.

The Knights of Columbus from St. Theresa's parish in Douglasville helped gut the building tearing out rotted wood in ceiling and floors. Dan Marnell was one of the Knights' crew who started working soon after the sister acquired the property. They would arrive after work and labor until about 10:30 p.m. They did most of the painting including the 32 windows in the building. They expect to do a lot of the work in "the big house," Marnell says.

Roma and Mike Clark, parishioners of St. Matthew's in Winder, donated the labor and material for insulating the building and also gave an altar they acquired from a church in Lawrenceburg, IA, for the sisters' 15-by-24 foot chapel.

Mrs. Braun said they are "about ready to start" work on the main house. "The sisters are anxious to get their ministry going." The Brauns were able to reduce their quoted price on the cost of redoing the building by $10,000 because people and firms donated cash or building materials. Now, donated materials such as sheet rock, lumber, insulation, windows, and painting materials are needed for the house remodeling.

One of the Brauns' suppliers, Plymart, donated lumber for the windows and doors and some sub-contractors contributed extra work at no charge. "Whether Catholic or not, people felt they wanted to do something," Mrs. Braun said.

Other supporters help the sisters in varied ways. John Kerrigan drives them to Mass each Sunday at Our Lady of Lourdes Church. Sherry Williams got to know them when they arrived in Atlanta and their first home was the convent at St. Anthony's parish in the West End. She was drawn by their deep spirituality and the "joy shining in their faces."

Here less than a year, the Missionaries in their sari-type white and blue habits are now a welcome sight in the neighborhoods of people in need. Walking or riding MARTA, they travel to Grady, to Hispanic, Vietnamese and inner city areas to meet and serve "the poorest of the poor," their chosen constituency.

Although their life is spartan, their devotion to their own spirituality is extravagant, admirers are quick to say. With all their serene visibility on Atlanta's streets, their prayer life is the most important aspect of their vocation with hours spend daily in praise and prayer to God and the Blessed Mother.

A holy hour is open to anyone each afternoon, except Thursday, at 2 p.m. at the rear building at 995 St. Charles Ave., Atlanta.

The Atlanta foundation of the Missionaries of Charity came about through invitations from Archbishops Eugene A. Marino, SSJ, and James P. Lyke, OFM. Archbishop Marino appealed to Mother Teresa in 1988. Later, Archbishop Lyke repeated the request after Dr. Sheehy made her appeal and learned that the sisters will only come if asked by the diocesan bishop to work in a city.