[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 56 (Monday, April 29, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S4314]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       SISTER LUCILLE BONVOULOIR

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I would like to take a moment to pay 
tribute to a woman who has dedicated her life to battling homelessness 
in Vermont. Sister Lucille Bonvouloir is the unofficial Patron Saint 
for the homeless in Burlington, the State's largest city and only 
Enterprise Community. The Committee on Temporary Shelter [COTS], an 
organization that she has directed since 1988, provides a range of 
social services as well as basic shelter to help people who have hit 
bottom get back on their feet again. As the problem of homelessness in 
Burlington has grown, so has COTS under Sister Lucille's innovative and 
capable direction.
  In July, Sister Lucille will be taking on new responsibilities as the 
vice president of the Vermont Regional Sisters of Mercy. While she will 
be sorely missed and the shoes she leaves behind at COTS are large 
indeed, the homeless and the needy of Burlington have nothing to fear 
from the transition. They know as I do that their guardian angel will 
continue to watch over them and stand up for their needs as she has for 
so many years. I join them in wishing her the best in her new career.
  I ask unanimous consent that an article from the February 7, 1996 
Burlington Free Press on Sister Lucille Bonvouloir's life of service to 
Burlington be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

            Sister Bonvouloir To Work With Sisters of Mercy

                           (By Mike Donoghue)

       A Burlington nun known as a fighter for providing shelter 
     and vocational training for homeless people said Tuesday that 
     she would step down in June as head of the largest program 
     for the Vermont homeless.
       Sister Lucille Bonvouloir will leave her post as executive 
     director of the Committee on Temporary Shelter to become vice 
     president of the Vermont Regional Sisters of Mercy on July 1.
       Sister Bonvouloir and the agency, better known as COTS, 
     provided services to 1,100 individuals through seven programs 
     operated in Burlington last year.
       The Orwell native said she expects to face new battles when 
     she becomes part of the team managing the affairs of the 93 
     Sisters of Mercy serving Vermont. Among the expected scuffles 
     will be a proposed 93-unit affordable housing development the 
     sisters hope to build on the north side of Mount St. Mary's 
     Convent on Mansfield Avenue.
       The project will be ideal for single mothers who are 
     returning to school at nearby Trinity College, she said. It 
     is opposed by residents who say it is too large for the 
     neighborhood.
       Sister Bonvouloir, 53, has worked for the committee since 
     1986 and has been its director since June 1988. She helped 
     expand the programs to meet the needs in the community for 
     family shelters and vocational training.
       When the number of homeless families increased, the COTS 
     Family Shelter opened on North Champlain Street in 1988. When 
     there was chronic shortage of affordable housing, COTS 
     developed St. John's Hall on Elmwood Avenue.
       During 1993-94, Sister Lucille improved access to 
     vocational programs and created a voice mail system in 
     Burlington to increase employment prospects for those without 
     phones. Last year, 70 percent of the participants in the 
     vocational program were placed in full-time jobs.

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