Embarking on the biggest and most ambitious building campaign in their 78-year-old history, the Sisters of Social Service launched a $15 million construction project April 7 at their Holy Spirit Retreat Center in Encino during a groundbreaking ceremony attended by over 150 supporters and dignitaries.

Social Service Sister Michele Walsh, general director, called the event "a long awaited day" after five years of strategic planning to centralize the community's motherhouse, assisted living center and retreat center at the Encino location. The sisters' historical motherhouse on Westchester Place in Los Angeles was sold a few years ago due to prohibitively costly structural damage sustained in the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

"This groundbreaking is taking place against a background of faith," declared Sister Walsh. Because of escalating construction costs, the sisters have decided to start the project before reaching their $15 million fundraising goal. The sisters have already raised approximately $6 million through community donations and foundation grants. So far, the largest gifts include $2 million from the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Foundation, $500,000 from the Carrie Estelle Doheny Foundation and $250,000 from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.

Development director, Social Service Sister Jennifer Gaeta, declared the sisters were making a "public statement that we believe we have a future and are a solution to today's problems." According to Sister Gaeta, the 50-year-old retreat center serving 12,000 people annually has been a "life-saver" for many. "We're very important to people," she said.

Recognized as the first religious community in the U.S. solely dedicated to professional social work, the Sisters of Social Service offer a number of programs for children, adults and seniors in Los Angeles, including drop-in centers for homeless teens and low-income women, parenting education for inner-city mothers, meals and companionship for the elderly, psychotherapeutic counseling for low-income children and families, and multiple services to at-risk families.

The sisters currently work with some 30 organizations in Los Angeles, including the Southern California Industrial Areas Foundation, Esperanza Community Housing Corporation, Archdiocese of Los Angeles, L.A. Unified School District, St. Joseph Convalescent Hospital, Citrus Valley Home Health, Bayside Settlement House, Kedren Mental Health Services, Hope Street Family Center and Vitas Innovative Hospice Care, among others.

The new Motherhouse planned at Holy Spirit Retreat Center will consolidate offices for the sisters' programs and also provide workspace for the various ministries and fundraising support groups. The 18-bedroom Assisted Living Facility will provide for the future needs of frail and elderly sisters, currently occupying the crowed and inadequate Stella Maris facility in downtown Los Angeles, as well as provide housing on a space-available basis for aged residents from the wider community.

Los Angeles City Councilmember Cindy Miscikowski, who helped facilitate city approval of the project, said preserving the Encino property for continuation of the sisters' work is important for the community. "The sisters do work here that sometimes government talks about doing," said Miscikowski.

San Fernando Region Auxiliary Bishop Gerald Wilkerson, who blessed a patch of earth before turning it over with a shovel as one of the official "groundbreakers," said he's delighted that the sisters are going ahead with their project because it means so much to the community. "It's a step in faith," Bishop Wilkerson told The Tidings after the ceremony conducted in the retreat center's garden. "I believe it's a real gift to us in the Valley."

Social Service Sister Rochelle Mitchell said she's excited about the building project, which is expected to be completed in 2005. "We've waited for such a long time. I'm anxious to get the retreat program going again," said Sister Mitchell.

"It's a new beginning," said Social Service Sister Merita Dekat, community archivist in residence at Camp Oliver for at-risk children in Descanso. "It will enable the sisters to continue the work we've begun in helping people." Currently, 100 Sisters of Social Service are serving in California and four other U.S. states, as well as in Mexico, Taiwan and the Philippines.

Editor's note: For more information on the ongoing capital campaign, contact Sister Gaeta at (818) 784-2926 or the Sisters of Social Service, 2303 S. Figueroa Way, Los Angeles, CA 90007, (213) 746-2117; www.sistersofsocialservice.com.