ADVOCACY Nun to resign as director of social center

Sister Clare Marie Beichner began in 1991 and has faced a constant struggle to maintain income.
FARRELL, Pa. -- She's not a carpenter, but she likes to think that for the past 14 years she has been rebuilding the community.
Sister Clare Marie Beichner, director of Prince of Peace Center, 502 Darr Ave., will be leaving at the end of the month to take a new job within her religious community, the Sisters of St. Joseph in Erie.
Her years here have been devoted to growing the center from one that addresses people's immediate needs to trying to move them closer to self-sufficiency.
She said a main focus of the center is encouraging life skills development, such as job readiness and training in decision-making, to try to break the cycle of poverty.
While providing food and clothing is part of the mission, addressing the causes of poverty is the larger picture.
"We are seeing the long-term impact of generations on welfare and the effects of alcohol and drug abuse and other addictions, and their impact on skill levels and the ability to hold a job," she said.
Programs she started
Under Sister Clare's direction, the center has introduced a project that provides transitional housing and supportive services to homeless women and their children. Also introduced is an advocacy program, a holistic approach to overcoming poverty through intensive in-home case management for families.
These programs specifically address the grim local statistics that show Sharon has three times and Farrell four times the state average number of women at poverty level heading households with a children under age 5.
The center also has a host of other programs such as a food pantry, soup kitchen, thrift store and emergency assistance.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity to work among the people of the Shenango Valley and address the issues of abuse and homelessness," she said. "At Prince of Peace, we have made a difference in strengthening families and providing faith-based services."
The center started out under founder Sister Benita Repasky as an organization that collected food and clothing in the basement of the old St. Paul Center in Farrell. From there it moved to the old Greek Club on Roemer Boulevard. In 1991, the center was built and has since expanded.
Since Sister Clare, a licensed social worker, arrived here in 1991, she has faced a constant struggle to maintain income. She said that, unfortunately, the federal government's recent support of faith-based initiatives has not meant more funding for the center's programs. Keeping the programs going means constantly searching for funding sources and raising money.
The center is an affiliate of the Erie Diocese Catholic Charities. It has a $652,778 budget made up of diocesan contribution, donations, grants, thrift store revenue, state and federal programs, interest income and special projects.
Greater need
The center's clientele has shifted over the past few years from welfare recipients to more working poor as well as those on fixed Social Security and Social Security Disability incomes.
One of her frustrations is seeing programs that should be expanded, because of the great need, being cut instead because funding is not available. "The demand is always greater than the capacity to respond," she said.
Many of the center's programs have waiting lists. And all are offered free of charge, Sister Clare said.
Another aim, she said, is to increase ecumenical outreach by encouraging involvement of all religious denominations in the work of the center. Response has been good in the community, especially in programs like Christmas projects, back to school help and the soup kitchen.
But, "we would like to expand farther," she said. Supplies and equipment, as well as volunteers, are always needed.
To this end, the center is always ready to send a speaker to any group that wants to know more about the many services available here. "We want to be known as more than a thrift store in Farrell," she said.
Sister Clare will be succeeded by Joe Flecher, who has worked at the center since 2002 in development and outreach.
Flecher said that while he is not as familiar a face as Sister Clare, he hopes to carry on the center's work and try to find more funding sources. He said Sister Clare "grew the center to what it is," and added, "I don't want to lose speed."
An open house is set for 3 p.m. Thursday at the center for Sister Clare. Guests will also be able to meet Flecher.
The open house will be followed at 4:30 p.m. by a dedication/blessing of the center's new memorial garden and grotto. Bishop Donald Trautman of the Catholic Diocese of Erie will preside.
A reception will be from 3 to 6 p.m. in the dining room. The public is invited.
More information about the center is available at its Web site, www.princeofpeacecenter.org.