Becoming all God wants us to be

7th September 2011   ·   0 Comments

By Fr. Jerome LeDoux
The Louisiana Weekly Contributing Columnist
payday loans in west los angeles
My most enduring vision of Daisy Reed Rouselle occurred as the work of “Divine Restoration,” a Canadian spiritual makeover TV company, was bringing its 48-plus-hours marathon to a close. In a frenzied weekend spanning Thurs­day evening to Sunday morning, Aug. 6, 2006, a baptismal pool and renovated confessional were completed.

Also, luan boards were added to the side walls of the church nave for pictures or prayers. Finally, the entire interior of the church was repainted within that weekend.

As the project was drawing to a close Saturday afternoon, Daisy Reed Rouselle sat down on one of the benches set in the meditation garden by volunteers from Wal-Mart. Beaming from ear to ear, she sat in a natty dress, snazzy shoes and fancy hat, clasping her classy parasol, looking for all the world like the sophisticated southern belle that she was.

At that time, Daisy was 85 years old, but her spirit and vigor belied the sum cash store san angelo of her years punctuated by her clear status as one of the reigning matriarchs of her church. That reign had its roots in the young Daisy Mae Reed, second of a clutch of five children born to Onzelou “Son” Reed and Joe Lee Doss in Magnolia, Arkansas.

From childhood, she clung to the Forest Grove Church right up to her graduation from high school in 1940 and subsequent move to Fort Worth where she met and married Leemon Rouselle after several years. Whether it was with or without Leemon’s influence, she found Our Mother of Mercy Catholic Church and became an ardent member.

A very giving person always doing for her fellow members, Daisy plunged into all activities of her newfound church, avidly participating in bazaars, bake sales, programs, book fairs and the like. She established her own niche with Florida Johnson, Sylvia “Mama Sue-Sue” Williams, Betty Harris, Josephine Smith, Elouise Gouthia, Lorenzo Brown, Joyce Brown Thomas and other pillars of payday loans in pittsburgh pennsylvania Our Mother of Mercy Church.

The St. Anne Altar Society was the home base of those church pillars. Then, as now, nothing in the church building, especially around the altar, went unattended. They cleaned the church regularly, washed the altar linen and organized the calendar, cloths, pendants and flowers for various liturgical events both within and without the Mass.

As church seasons and feasts unfolded during the year, the church members could readily discern one from the other by liturgical colors, signs and decorations placed on the walls of the sanctuary by Daisy and her fellow workers of the St. Anne Altar Society. To this day, they continue their work of bringing the devotion and joy of celebrations.

Since working constantly for God through her sisters and brothers was all Daisy had in mind, she was the most surprised person in the world a couple of decades ago when her St. Anne Altar Society comrades voted her same day loans in edinburgh unanimously as churchwoman of the year. Her Christian modesty found this honor more than a little difficult to swallow.

Daisy left no doubt that her daily, hourly determination was to become all that God wanted her to be. Divine intervention was part of her life as events showed on Super Bowl Sunday 2007 when a good friend Addie knocked at her door and found her lying helpless on the floor. A call to Richard O’Brien and his wife Beverly saved the day.

How providential was that? Dear Addie was dead within several days, but only after she had completed her final service to God through her friend Daisy. So obscure was this angel of mercy, Addie, that I cannot find anyone who knows her family name.

In every church, it is a great inspiration and comfort to all the members that there are matriarchs and patriarchs who are pillars of the church. The biggest caveat here is that those pillars like Daisy must go out of their way to conscript young members who will follow in their footsteps. Sadly, it is very difficult to interest youngsters in such activities.

With an unnerving analogy, we find more and more that children are not interested in working the family business, not even when it falls into their lap. Thus, some years ago, the parent owners of a very profitable musical instruments store in New Orleans told me they were about to close their doors because their children had no interest in the work.

A church, of course, is more than a business. But, since we want more Daisy Reed Rouselles around to inspire us by their presence and example, we must find a way to spark the interest of children, adolescents and young adults in God’s work among us.

This article originally published in the September 5, 2011 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.