[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 181 (Tuesday, November 7, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1521]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





    TRIBUTE HONORING THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE EDMUNDITE MISSIONS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. TERRI A. SEWELL

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 7, 2017

  Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the 
80th Anniversary of the Edmundite Missions at Our Lady of Queen of 
Peace Catholic Church in Selma, Alabama. For 80 years the Edmundite 
Missions has faithfully served poor and underprivileged communities 
throughout the Deep South.
   The Edmundite Missions, whose legal name is ``Fathers of St. Edmund 
Southern Mission'', is rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and focuses 
on providing food, clothing and shelter to poor and marginalized 
children and families, young adults and seniors of all faith 
traditions. Their work aims to address issues of systemic poverty in 
the region while sharing the hope they believe only comes through 
faith. While the Edmundite Mission in Alabama is headquartered in 
Selma, their outreach area includes the Alabama counties of Butler, 
Dallas, Lowndes, Monroe, Perry and Wilcox, and New Orleans, Louisiana.
   The inspiring story of Edmundite Missions began with a call to 
action when in 1936 Pope Pius XI appealed to the Society of St. Edmund 
to go minister to the African-Americans of the Deep South, whom the 
Pope felt had been neglected by both church and state. The Edmundites 
responded by selecting two young priests, Father Francis Casey, S.S.E. 
and Father John ``Barney'' Paro, S.S.E., to take on the assignment. 
They wrote to Bishop Thomas J. Toolen of Mobile, who invited them to 
set up a ``colored mission'' in Selma.
   Fathers Casey and Paro arrived in Selma on July 6, 1937, and moved 
into a former saloon on Broad Street. They discovered thousands of 
people living in extreme poverty, similar to that of a third world 
country. In response, they began their outreach by conducting door-to-
door evangelization of the black community and building a small chapel, 
St. Elizabeth's Mission. Initially, they were met with skepticism and 
resentment by both the black and white communities in Selma. But their 
services to the poor gradually won them respect from the community.
   The work of the Edmundite Missions helped to transform the 
communities of Alabama's rural Black Belt during some of the most 
turbulent times of race relations in American history. In 1940, the 
Missions welcomed the Sisters of Saint Joseph (S.S.J.) from Rochester, 
New York, who came to Selma to provide education and social ministry. 
The Sisters of St. Joseph started St. Elizabeth's School in 1941 and 
Holy Infant Inn (a nursing home) in 1943. In 1944, the Edmundites 
purchased Selma Good Samaritan Hospital, a rundown infirmary for 
blacks, and the Sisters set about transforming it into a modern 
facility. They established the Good Samaritan School of Nursing, the 
first medical training program for African-American women in the area.
   In 1947, Father Nelson Ziter launched the Don Bosco Boys' Club 
(1947-1966), named after the patron saint of youth work. For the next 
19 years until 1966, the club helped hundreds of black youth prepare 
and win the financial assistance needed to attend college. Father Ziter 
devoted countless hours and days to ensuring the success of every youth 
who came into the club.
   On a personal note, I can attest to the transformative power of the 
Don Bosco Boys' Club. My dad, Andrew A. Sewell and many of his close 
friends, credit the support, love and guidance of Father Ziter for 
changing the trajectory of their lives. My dad and many of his 
teammates received athletic scholarships to historically black 
colleges--becoming first generation college graduates. The Club and its 
ministry helped to break the cycle of poverty for these African 
American boys such that they became teachers, doctors, lawyers and even 
priests. The Sewell family is forever indebted to the generous support 
and assistance the Edmundite Missions has given to the communities of 
Selma and throughout the Black Belt for over 80 years.
   The Mission has a long history of seeing beyond color, creed or 
financial status. Their philosophy was never more relevant than during 
the turbulent years of the civil rights and voting rights movements. 
The Edmundites found themselves the center of controversy during the 
1960s, when they were the only whites in Selma who openly supported the 
voting rights movement. During the 1950s and 1960s, the Mission and its 
priest and sisters worked with Selma black and white leaders, its 
business community and its white ministers to open the lines of 
communication between the races. They believed that progress could be 
achieved in Selma without violence or confrontations.
   During the March from Selma to Montgomery, the Edmundites led by 
Father Ouellet, played a critical role. On March 7, 1965, the brutal 
confrontation at the Edmund Pettus Bridge caught the attention of the 
nation. Scores of wounded marchers poured into the emergency room at 
Good Samaritan Hospital, where doctors, nurses and Sisters worked 
around the clock to address the crisis. Good Samaritan Hospital won 
national praise for its treatment of the victims of the infamous Bloody 
Sunday confrontation, including providing medical treatment to our 
colleague, Congressman John Lewis.
   Father Ouellet left Selma in June of 1965, on orders from Archbishop 
Toolen of Mobile, who was angered by the Father's identification with 
the marchers and wanted a quieter response. When he said goodbye to his 
weeping parishioners, Father Ouellet urged them to remain loyal to the 
Church and to their dreams. ``All that we do we must do with love,'' he 
told them. ``Let there be no hatred, let there be no bitterness, and 
let there be no desire for any revenge.''
   Reconciliation was a long time in coming, but the Missions continued 
to work quietly for reconciliation and racial progress. The ``Selma 
Accords of 1972,'' which brought about significant progress in the 
city, was negotiated in part by Assistant Missions Director Father 
James Robinson.
   The incredible work done by the Edmundite Missions over the last 80 
years has had life-changing impacts that reach far beyond the immediate 
communities they support. Today the Edmundite Missions continue to work 
tirelessly to provide essential nutritional, education and healthcare 
services and programs throughout the region. In 2016 alone, the 
Missions provided more than 300,000 meals, helped house or assisted to 
clothe more than 6,000 people, aided in the healthcare of more than 
2,000 people and participated in the education of more than 10,000 
children.
   The citizens of Selma and surrounding Black Belt counties have come 
a long way since 1937, when Edmundite Missionaries began their work 
there. For 80 years, the Edmundite Missions has partnered with 
distressed, underserved communities to provide direct action and 
assistance to alleviate the conditions of poverty in Deep South. We are 
stronger, more inclusive and better resourced because of their efforts.
   I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 80th Anniversary 
of the Edmundite Missions and in recognizing its many contributions. 
May the glory of Edmundite Missions continue to grow and prosper for 
years to come.

                          ____________________