BUFFALO, N.Y. — Every morning at the break of dawn, Sister Mary Johnice spends an hour in peace and solitude and solemn prayer sitting a green chair she calls her 'Little Emerald Island.'
"I say God, give me direction. What do you want me to do today?" Sr. Johnice said.
And she says He certainly keeps her busy.
The Response to Love Center, at 130 Kosciuszko Street on Buffalo's East side, is bustling these days. Sister Johnice founded it in 1985. She grew up in that neighborhood, entered the convent after high school and was a teacher for 10 years. after an encounter with Mother Theresa.
"I said, 'Mother, I want to work with the poor and I don't know how to do it. Can I come to Calcutta and learn from the sisters?' And she said, 'No. You go back to your neighborhood and you go find Calcutta.' How do I do that? Where do I start? She said, 'The people will come. You just open your door and welcome them in."
So what started as a food pantry on the East Side is now a dining room providing homecooked meals for hundreds each day. The food pantry provides meat, fish, halal offerings, fresh vegetables along with non-perishables custom selected by the clients themselves.
The clothing room has brand new items with the tags still on.
"So what we've done was put dignity in the clothing people are receiving," Sr. Johnice said.
The center offers high school equivilency classes as well as classes for English as a second language for the growing refugee population.
"It's a beautiful feeling when they come gratefully and say, 'Sister, we are blessed and we are safe because we are with you,'" she said.
Mubarak Ismail escaped genocide in Sudan. He's now the doorman at the Response to Love Center and welcomes everyone with love, just as Sister Johnice welcomed him.
"Sister Johnice, she's really special. I'm so blessed that I'm in the US. I feel safe and just grateful to be here," he said.
The center is run by Sr. Johnice and other sisters who earn a small stipend, and only two paid employees, including Michael Gilhooly, the center's assistant director.
"It's an amazing place to work and see lives transformed," said Gilhooly.
"It's tough to keep up with her, but she's Sister Johnice, and that's why we are what we are here."
She might be small in stature, but Sister Johnice's energy, bravery, spunk, and love are immeasurable.
"It's a special ministry and you don't know from day to day, but you know that it's God's mission, so I go where he puts me," she said.
And what might Mother Theresa think about what Sister Johnice has accomplished?
"She's probably looking up saying, 'Sister, that's what I wanted you to do but there's more. There's more. There's little things you're doing. But there's greater things to do. And whether they're little or whether they're big, you do them with love.'"
At 76-years-young Sister Johnice has no plans of slowing down, especially because the need for help only continues to grow.
Response to Love Center can only do what it does because of donations, grants, and many volunteers. It does not accept government funding.
If you'd like to volunteer or make donations of cash or new clothing, click here to find out more.