by Sr. Mary Hanley MMM                                          Ireland                             18.01.2025

On December 13th last year I was standing at a bus stop down in Drogheda, waiting for the local bus that would bring me back closer to the convent. A man in the queue looked familiar. He asked me:” Do you still go up to the Capuchin Day Centre in Bow Street, Dublin?” “No”, I explained, “I have arthritis, and I am waiting fir a hip replacement. But after the operation, I will go there again.”

He said: “You worked well when you went there.” I was curious as to how he knew I worked there but I just said: “Thank you, some days I worked well. Then he said: “I was happy to go there on Wednesdays and collect the bag of food. It helped me for the following week.”

He went on to say how the staff there were wonderful, and he mentioned particularly the men and women at the door. These are five security people who are multitasking. They greet the people coming to the Centre, they get a particular item for them, usually milk, brown bread, clothing or toys. People’s needs are met as far as is possible. These five people also maintain the plumbing, man the showers, oversee the waste management and the recycling.

Our conversation continued. I saw that he had a bag full of food and presents, with a Christmas cake on the top. He said he was going to see his daughter in a nearby town/village. He was wearing a red coat, and he laughed: “I will do Santa Claus in three prisons this December!” He told me that he will call into the Capuchin Day Centre “just to greet them” and will also call to see Fr. Peter McVerry. (The McVerry Trust works with the homeless.)

Here was a man who benefited from the Capuchin Centre when times were tough. He is now giving back to the community. This is a man who seems well integrated, who appreciates the ordinary things in life and is at peace with people, thinking largely of others.
This story is typical of some of the people who come to the Centre. You could meet them there for a few months and then suddenly they are off the radar. Many have moved on to a better life.

One day, a man came in, now ell dressed and said: “Thank you for the food and hospitality for the past eighteen months. I am now off the drink, and I have a job.” Others receive food for a few months and when they get work, they come back and make a donation. Others, sadly, may not have had such a good experience.

In December 2024 the Centre gave out over 5500 vouchers, each worth €50. These can be used for food or clothe, but not alcohol. Some of the people interviewed in the queue at the Centre spoke of the welcome they got every time they came to the Centre.
As everybody knows, the services are broad-based. It is staffed by a nurse six days a week. Other services are given on specific days, such as doctor, dentist, chiropody, optician and hairdresser.  In my eyes it is a very well-run Centre. Some days 1,000 dinners are served, and 1,400 food parcels are given out each Wednesday. Brother Kevin Crowley has truly left a legacy. Please God it will continue in the tru spirit of the Centre –‘No one will go hungry.’

I am happy to be associated with the work the Centre provides. My service as a volunteer is only a drop in the ocean. Please God I will return there as a waitress at lunchtime and listen to anyone who wants to talk.