Community steps up to help nuns upgrade Lufkin monastery

LUFKIN, TX (KTRE) - When the Lufkin community heard about an important need for the infirmary at the Monastery of the Infant Jesus in Lufkin, they stepped up to make it happen.

The need started with a storm.

On the grounds of the Monastery of the Infant Jesus, more than two dozen nuns have called this place home for almost 70 years. So when a big storm caused them to lose power and left two elderly sisters helpless, the sisters knew improvements had to be made.

"We had two sisters that were actually dying, both of them needed oxygen, and one of them needed oxygen and a feeding machine, and we were without electricity," Sister Mary John said.

Sister Mary John said after the power outage, she knew the monastery needed a permanent back-up generator to power the infirmary.

Friends of the Monastery took on the task of organizing a fundraiser to purchase a generator. Then, out of nowhere, a friend of a friend gifted a generator to the monastery.

"She said she had a generator that was on a warehouse or something, and it was quite large and she said they can have it."

But they still have a ways to go before the back-up generator can be used."So now the only thing that we're lacking at the moment is that the gifted generator is propane, and we're going to have to convert it to natural gas," Sister Mary John said.

So, now the Friends of the Monastery are serving up hot spaghetti to help finish the conversion.

"I guess people haven't always thought of us as needing help because we've been managing to do so much on our own, ourselves," Sister Mary John said. "But once a need has been made, they're really responding beautifully."

The sisters are thankful and happy to see the community coming together to help them with his life saving need.

The chicken spaghetti fundraiser and raffle is Thursday from 4:30 to 7 p.m. at Lufkin First United Methodist Church located at 805 Denman Avenue. The dinner is free, but donations are requested.

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