St. Mary's to offer AIDS respite care for children of victims

For Nursing senior Louise Duncan, service to the community has become a way of life. And to the people she serves, her work has given them a reason for living. For the past three years, Duncan has dedicated herself to a program known as the St. Mary's Family Center, which was created to aid the families and children of West Philadelphia. With Duncan's help, their dream is becoming reality. The Center, housed in the basement of St. Mary's Episcopal Church at 3916 Locust Walk, is planning to provide respite care for children affected by HIV and AIDS. "Respite care," according to Susan Greenbaum, Nursing School spokesperson, "is intermittent, short-term relief for parents and primary caregivers who need 'time off' while their children are attended by trained caregivers." Although not affiliated with the University, the Center is looking for student volunteers willing to make a commitment to the community. Duncan described the need for the Center as "profound." "This program is bringing the reality of AIDS to students," she said. "We need to know AIDS," Duncan said. "We need to know the devastation more than on TV and more than in the newspaper. "We're dealing with families who are living with this every day," she added. "The population of people affected with AIDS is so diverse in this area." The Center's core membership is diverse as well, she added. "We have young people and old, homosexuals and heterosexual. We have them all," Duncan said. Yet Duncan is the only University student currently represented. "My one personal hope?is that University [students] take this opportunity because it is personally, educationally and professionally a great opportunity," she said. "I'm saddened that I'm the only student and I hope there will be more." According to Duncan, the Center is looking for students interested in the legal, economic, social, educational or medical aspects of the program. Plans are underway to open the center in late March or early April, after volunteer training sessions are held. The training sessions, given by a specialist in respite training, are planned for March 18 and 19. "We are currently recruiting and interviewing volunteers," Duncan said. "We are looking for people who have altruistic intentions and are caring and compassionate and driven to do this," she added. "We're looking for people who will stay in for the long haul," Duncan said. "We hope to have everyone work for at least 4 hours a week." Although not funded by the University, Duncan said she is working on creating University ties. Presently, several University faculty members are involved with the project and a group of University students helped in painting the facility, Greenbaum said. "I'm trying to work with the University on a much larger scope," she added. Duncan said the issues that students will face are issues facing society. "It's much more a world-wide issue?in that it's a human issue," she said. "[Getting involved in the community] is the wave of the future. It's not high-tech, but its answering a need that is so profound." The Center plans to be open three days a week, on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, in four hour blocks. All interested students should call Patricia Roux, director of the St. Mary's Respite Center, at 387-7730.