Most of us know that guests at St. Anthony Foundation have amazing stories. Not everyone realizes that some of our donors do, too. A woman who escaped from China during the early years of Communism has left St. Anthony’s $100,000.

Mary Westwood Hyndman was born in Shanghai and went to Catholic schools there, where she learned fluent English. She married in 1945. Four years later, the Communist Party took control of the city. She and her family endured 8 years of government surveillance and intermittent questioning. Finally, they decided to leave.

The family made the 18-day voyage to San Francisco in 1957, and never went back. The only time Mary left the U.S. again was a trip to London to visit the grave of her father, who had served in Shanghai under British rule. The refugee experience left its mark. Her family says she chose St. Anthony Foundation for her bequest partly because she was touched by our no-questions-asked service to immigrant families.

St. Anthony’s unites vastly different people in an unlikely community. Mary’s bequest will help us serve immigrant families from Mexico, Central America, and Southeast Asia. It will feed, clothe, and counsel people with mental and addictive illness who come from Mongolia, Korea, and California. It will pay for supportive housing for elderly women from China, Russia, the Philippines, and the Fillmore. All of these people are one community in St. Anthony Foundation; all will share in Mary Hyndman’s bequest.

Learn more about Planned Giving »

“There’s no such thing as us and them. There’s no them. It’s all us.” This is one of the things that the JEVA (Justice Education, Volunteers, and Advocacy) department tells volunteers during the introduction to our work at St. Anthony’s. One of the most profound things that our volunteers experience is the reality of the common humanity among all people, regardless of income, disability status, or age.  Every time I think about this phrase, I am reminded of a story that I’ve heard many times …

It was around 1910 when his parents decided to come to America. They knew that their future in southern Italy was bleak. All they had ever known was poverty. Neither his mother nor his father could read or write Italian, and neither could speak English. Yet, when they heard of an American textile company that could offer employment, they decided to leave everything they’d ever known to come to the United States. It’s impossible to know whether they realized that they’d never see Italy or their parents again. They probably didn’t allow themselves to think about such things — they realized that the best chance for their family’s survival depended on their ability to make the 2-week long sea voyage from Italy to New York. As the date of their voyage drew closer, they surely, as they had many times during past uncertainty and strife, they prayed to St. Anthony for help, strength, and comfort.

(more…)