St. Gianna Molla home will contribute ‘hope’

Tim and Cindy Legamaro, primary benefactors of St. Gianna Molla Home, had the honor of digging the first shovel of dirt at the site of the new facility that will help mothers in crisis pregnancies.

Alfredo E. Cardenas, South Texas Catholic
 

Tim and Cindy Legamaro, parishioners at St. Philip the Apostle Parish in Corpus Christi, are admirers of St. Gianna Molla who willingly gave up her life for her unborn child. The Legamaros, who have six children of their own, are the sole benefactors of the St. Gianna Molla House being built to help mothers in crisis pregnancies care for their children. 

St. Gianna Molla is “a modern day saint,” Tim Legamaro said. She is the patron saint of mothers, physicians and unborn children. Expecting her fourth child in 1961, doctors told Molla—a doctor, wife and mother—that she was growing a tumor alongside her unborn child. The doctors gave her three choices: to abort her child; to have a hysterectomy, which would result in the child’s death and her not being able to have children in the future; or to remove the tumor which offered the opportunity to save the baby but also had other potential life threatening complications. Molla chose the third option.

"If you must decide between me and the child, do not hesitate: choose the child. I insist on it. Save the baby," Molla told her family. The baby survived, but Molla died a week after giving birth. Pope John Paul II canonized her in 2004, after a second miracle was attributed to her intercession.

The St. Gianna Molla House, which will be located at 630 Robinson St. in Corpus Christi, will serve pregnant single mothers who are homeless due to abandonment, abuse or domestic violence, said Debra Arsuaga, Director of Client Services for Hope House. “It’s a great feeling knowing that as a community we come together to try to help homeless people,” Arsuaga said.

Ray Reeves, Chairman of the Board of Corpus Christi Hope House, displays architectural renderings of the agency's newest facility, the St. Giana Molla Home.   Alfredo E. Cardenas, South Texas Catholic

Ray Reeves, Board Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Hope House, under whose umbrella the St. Gianna Molla House will operate, said that despite the years of maneuvering the city’s requirements the house will open in three months, weather permitting. The $180,000 project was made possible by a generous donation of $200,000 from the Legamaros. The remaining $20,000 will be used for any immediate needs of the new shelter.

Turner and Ramirez, Architects and Planners designed the 1,500 square-foot house, which includes five rooms to accommodate five mothers and five newborn babies, Reeves said. Stella Maris Construction is the General Contractor. Work on the project is already underway.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Wednesday, Dec. 12, with the Legamaros doing the honors of turning the first shovel full of dirt. Father James Farfaglia, pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Corpus Christi, performed the blessing. 

Father Farfaglia said the house would “help women and children and those most in need. It is a great effort on the part of the Christian community.”

According to its website, Corpus Christi Hope House helps pregnant women “who are seeking escape from domestic violence, poverty, addiction, abandonment, homelessness and especially when faced with crisis pregnancy situation.” It also provides shelter services for single fathers with children 17 or younger, as well as, to households with two or more adults with children 17-years and younger.

Through its Life Skills Training Program, Hope House aims to improve their clients everyday lives by teaching them skills from prenatal care to time management. Through its Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing program, Hope House provides rental and utility assistance to residents transitioning out of the shelter into permanent housing. 

Hope House also uses the Gabriel Project Community Outreach Program as an extension of its Community Outreach Program to provide direct assistance and referrals to women and children in need in local communities. The project involves churches and faith-based groups of various denominations across the Coastal Bend area. 

Founded in 1986, Hope House has expanded through the years to meet the needs of young pregnant mothers in need of help. It currently has two shelters, Faith Home and Birth Haven, both located on Robinson Street in Corpus Christi. St. Gianna Molla Home will be located behind Faith Home and will increase the agency’s shelter capacity for women, children and babies by 30 percent.

Hope House helps some 4,000 clients annually through its various programs. More than half of its previous clients were homeless and nearly half were in a domestic abuse situation. The average length of stay for shelter residents is 74 days. 
 

Father James Farfaglia blesses site of the new St. Gianna Molla Home to be operated by Hope House in Corpus Christi. Board members and supporters of Hope House joined in the groundbreaking ceremony. Alfredo E. Cardenas, South Texas Catholic