On Saturday, March 25, 2023, we gathered in person for the first time in three years to start our current session of the Spiritual Care Visitor Training program.  We are grateful to St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, Park Ridge for providing such warm hospitality to us!  Our current group will continue to learn through our learning management system and attend monthly support calls via Zoom.  If you are interested in taking this training, our next session will begin with an in person retreat on Saturday, September 30 at Bishop Anderson House offices in Chicago.  For 2023 only due to a [...]

By Rev. Dr. Ebony D. Only On June 24, 2022, I lost a fundamental right to make my own healthcare decisions.  On that day, America reminded me once again, that my body is not my own.  The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade reversed more than 50 years of progress in women’s healthcare.  This decision essentially made our reproductive organs property of the state and has sentenced some of us to death. This may sound melodramatic, but it is not. If the past is any guide, ending the right to abortion will spark a public health crisis by [...]

Our next session of the Spiritual Care Visitor Training program is scheduled to start on Saturday, September 24th.  The retreat will be held virtually on the Zoom platform across three mandatory sessions (Saturday, 9/24 AM & PM and Saturday, 10/1 AM).  For more information, please contact Kim Lessner, Registrar, at 312-563-4825.  Or you may complete the application which can be found with other information on the program under the Spiritual Care Visitor Training tab on our website.

Parallels between World AIDS Day and COVID-19 By The Rev. Dr. Ebony D. Only Today is World AIDS Day, the first ever global health day!  Annually December 1 is an opportunity for humanity worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, to show support for people living with HIV and to commemorate those who have died from AIDS-related illness. For decades, HIV/AIDS was the health and human crisis that stood at the ground zero of marginalized people in a way that made it impossible for us not to see health disparities, political disempowerment, economic inequality, and the social and physical [...]

By The Rev. Dr. Ebony D. Only In our work at Bishop Anderson House, as the inaugural Community Chaplain Fellow, I am working to influence healthcare leaders to find creative ways to address the social determinants of health which have been proven to improve outcomes.  I have been encouraging those with the power and influence to do so, to implore health care systems to proactively screen patients for social needs (i.e., housing, food, legal assistance) and connect patients to existing community resources to address those needs.  These practices are critical while we work to change the policies that drive the [...]

Do you have a passion for helping others? Do you feel like you want to make a difference by being present to someone who is going through a transition on their life's journey? Bishop Anderson House is offering our Spiritual Care Visitor Training program beginning on Saturday, January 29, 2022.  The program starts with virtual retreat sessions held on Zoom Saturday, January 29–10:00a-12:00p and 1:30p-3:00p; Saturday, February 5–3:00p-5:00p / All Central Time. Attendance at all three is mandatory.  You will continue the self-paced program by taking seven online modules covering a variety of topics, completing two verbatims and providing two hours [...]

  On Saturday, November 6, we gathered via Zoom to honor Ann Ryba for her 30+ years of service to Bishop Anderson House. In recognition of her contributions, Ann was made a Life Trustee. If you were unable to join us, click here to see a recording of the event or watch Ann's history in pictures. As well, if you would like to submit a story to be included in her memory book, please email Kim Lessner no later than Friday, December 10.