By Founder Ed Heemskerk

It was 10 pm one weekday night in 1994 and I felt a strong need to call Sr. Immaculata in Peru. She shared her immediate need for playground equipment and wrought iron fencing to keep the children from running into busy streets. Calls the following day to a few active Cursillo groups quickly produced the $2,500 needed. Several months later, we learned Sister would be passing through Boca Raton — and she told us that the Shining Path terrorist group had been all but eliminated, reopening the schools. But there were no chairs, tables, or books. $10,000 was needed.

The Bible verse "the 72 went out…" came to mind. I wrote a list of 11 of Sister's friends and asked each to invite 5 people to a gathering at our home. The theme: "Say, pray, pay and be on your way." After everyone left, we counted: $9,900. Later that week, the Women's Guild delivered a check for $200, apologizing it needed two signatures.

When Sister next passed through, friends scheduled her to speak at all the masses at Saint Joan of Arc. A tired Sister Immaculata received over $38,000 in donations that day.

A friend suggested we call ourselves the Ministry of the Good Shepherd. We applied for tax-exempt status, began keeping a list of donors, and Sister began writing her annual Thanksgiving Letter. Then we began a Newsletter.

"God has been with the ministry from the very beginning. It has grown beyond our expectations and often develops a life of its own. We have built churches, libraries, and a dental clinic; sent children to school including special needs; funded day care centers; and supplied Sister with funds for her various projects." — Betty Heemskerk, Co-Founder