Places of Worship
Working with congregations so Host-homes are
available to meet each patient-family’s needs.
Welcoming the Stranger
Hospitality is a core value shared by many faiths (see here). Various traditions express this value in different ways. Fundamental is the understanding that we all, sometimes, need someone to lean on.
The second Guests ever hosted by HOSTS for HOSPITALS were the wife and adult daughter of a man evacuated by medical helicopter from upstate New York to the Hospital of the University of Philadelphia.
It was a Thursday night in August of 2000. The Guests drove throughout the night, arriving early Friday morning to the hospital. At 9 pm they went to the Host-home.
There were 7 Host-families in our network at this time. These Hosts happened to be Jewish. They delayed their Friday night meal to include their Guests. They received this note from their Guests:
“I want to thank you both for your hospitality.
Sharing your Sabbath meal with us was a wonderful experience.
I am strong in my faith and sharing your faith brought me much calm and comfort.
Thank you for opening your hearts and home to us.”
How to Involve Your Place of Worship
- Arrange to have us speak about the reward associated with welcoming patient-families.
- Make Hosting and Host-recruitment an ongoing community activity.
- List information about HOSTS for HOSPITALS on the community website.
For Host-families with children, by Hosting they will learn Life-long Empathy.
As a first step, please call 484-380-2999 or send us a message below: