Sunday, March 14, 2010

Nuns Win Fight to Keep Mission Open


The following comes from the Local 12.com site:

Emotions run high at a Covington meeting where a group of nuns fought for the right to continue their charity work. In 2006, the city of Covington rezoned the entire city to place all social services in one area.

Under that rezoning the nuns who operate the Rose Garden Home Mission were recently denied a permit to continue their work. The mission argued it does not provide social services, but rather counseling. Mother Seraphina Marie says, "Theres no case work, there's no tracking of people, there's no follow up."

The mission does give out maternity clothes, food, and medical services when needed by the people who come there. One neighbor told the Board of Adjustments, "Does the city have this many people in need or do we attract the folks in need? I live a block from the place. There are long lines to give out turkeys and stuff which I can really appreciate, my church does the same thing. But I seen cars with Ohio license plates, double, tripled parked, up and down and stuff and so I'm wondering where do they all come from."

The mission argued that when they moved to their current location from another, smaller building a few blocks away, they were told by the city that zoning would not be a problem.

In the end, Board of Adjustments allowed them to stay, saying their mission can be defined as a "place of religious assembly" because there is prayer. Mother Seraphina Marie told Local 12, "I can't say that I am surprised. God is in charge, he's the one who put this together, he's my boss so God's will be done."

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