Faith

Mr. Charles Murphy and Miss Sarah lead the way for children in the missions at Murphy Insurance, Braintree, Mass.

Propagation of the Faith

Take the Missions to Work Day!

Friday, August 18, 2023Faith

Here at the Pontifical Mission Societies of Boston, we don't have to bring the missions to work -- the missions and the support of missionaries IS our work. And we love our ministry -- so much so that we encourage other people to help us do it. We are always on the lookout for volunteers. Whether it is helping in the office or giving us a hand when we run events, we depend on a very special group of people who love the missions, too.
Recently, one of them took the missions a step further and decided to take us to work with her. Already a monthly donor as well as one of those extra pairs of hands at our movie nights, World Mission Sunday, and any other events we run, Sarah Puliafico decided that she could do more after she spotted a jar of change sitting on a counter at her office. When she is not spending her spare time volunteering for the missions, Sarah is an insurance agent.
Sarah asked around the office. "What is that jar of change for?" No one seemed to have an answer, so she went to her boss and was told it collected people's change if they used office postage or some other kind of supply. Knowing that the owners of Murphy Insurance Agency of Braintree, Massachusetts are lifelong Catholics and have been for generations, Sarah asked if the change jar could be converted into a "missions jar."
The answer was a resounding YES! (Of course, our Sarah is known to be very persuasive!)
When we were asked to provide a good-sized jar for her office, it became a moment of collaboration between two Archdiocesan offices of The Pontifical Mission Societies: Boston and New Orleans. A few years back, one of our staff members was a speaker at the New Orleans Mission Education Day for students and came home with a decorated mayonnaise jar turned into a mission bank. It displays a world map, there is a slit punched into the lid, and the label proudly proclaims that the contents of the jar will help children in the missions through our Missionary Childhood Association. Why keep it on display in our office when it could be put to better use at the Murphy Insurance Agency, raising funds for missionaries who minister to children -- it was a win-win!
So, thanks to Charles Murphy, Jr., his son, Charlie, III and our indomitable Miss Sarah, every day is Take the Missions to Work Day in Braintree at Murphy Insurance!
Want to follow their lead? Email us for your own office mission bank!

- Maureen Crowley Heil is Director of Programs and Development for the Pontifical Mission Societies, Boston.