Alice LeBaron of St. Joseph Parish in Howell is a homebound minister for the parish’s outreach program and works full time at one of the community's nursing home facilities.

She attributes spending time with the Lord in adoration and participating in prayer groups for giving her strength and faith to share the love of Jesus.

WITNESS: There are times when I have opportunities to witness; even in passing at the grocery store, people start telling me about their problems. I tell them about Jesus. I tell them there is a God who loves us, and he is merciful. And when they put their faith in Jesus, things will start coming into place.

PRAYER: I love my job. I love caring for people. The most impactful part of my job is being with and praying for the dying. I pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and tell them, “It’s OK for you to go, Jesus is waiting for you.” I can see the peace of God comforting them, and it is beautiful.

ACCOMPANIMENT: At my job in the nursing home, not all of my patients are Catholic, but sometimes they talk to me about issues, or pain they are having, and they are open to allowing me to pray for them when I ask. I give them pictures of Jesus, and tell them about the Rosary, and it makes them happy.

INVITATION: It’s always nice to have a support group, especially with what is going on in the world right now. We have prayer groups that meet regularly at the parish. The Padre Pio prayer group meets every Tuesday night, and I invite people to come.