by John Sorce
john.sorce@theleaven.org
TOPEKA — The first Kolbe Prison Ministries retreat for women at the Topeka Correctional Facility (TCF) was a life-changing event for the 52 attendees.
The retreat, held Oct. 18-20, was led by spiritual director Deacon Tim Ruoff of Mother Teresa Church in Topeka. He said he was very happy with how things went.
“Considering that at least half of the women were not Catholic, they were very open to what we were sharing with them and were participating well,” Deacon Ruoff said. “We were able to have Mass on Saturday and Sunday and had three priests that were able to come for confessions. The women who were not Catholic were open to receiving spiritual direction from me during that time, so they were just very open to what we were sharing with them.”
Diane Reinhart, a parishioner of St. Mary-St. Anthony Church in Kansas City, Kansas, and retreat assistant director, said the idea only became a reality when she learned from John Errante and Craig Cummins that the organizers could partner with groups from Texas and Louisiana on the project, since it was a new experience for all nine of the Kansas volunteers.
She said the hope from the volunteers’ perspective was all about bringing the light of Christ to the incarcerated women.
“There’s so much pain in a prison and everybody has a story,” Reinhart said. “There’s always a reason for why someone is there. They have done horrendous things, but they have been judged by the legal system, so all we have to do is bring the light of Christ into this very dark place.”
Reinhart said that one thing that stood out over the course of the three-day retreat was how resilient the women were in being vulnerable in sharing their stories, and the courage that gave others to do the same.
“There were four witness talks by members of the team, and what struck me was the resilience of the human spirit,” she said. “It’s hard to talk about things that happened in your past. A lot of abuse. A lot of betrayals. The stories would break your heart. But they managed to come through the valley of the darkness and into the glorious light of Christ.”
“I can’t tell you,” Reinhart continued, “how many women stood up after each talk and said, ‘That was my story.’ It was just a catharsis for them to stand up and put out there the things they had pushed down and tried to forget about. That allowed others to feel full of hope.
“We know for a fact that lives were changed, and it was beautiful to see.”
Lisa Lambert, who served as the retreat director and is part of the core Kolbe ministry team from Louisiana, said that she saw transformations at this retreat more quickly than at any other she has been to previously.
“This mission trip was probably the first time we saw a change immediately,” Lambert said. “By lunch time on the first day, they were so receptive to what we were offering them and you could see their appreciation.”
Cindy Kellick, program coordinator for the St. Dismas Ministry to the Incarcerated, wanted to see what the retreat would be like in preparation for the one her Wichita Diocese will be having in Winfield from Feb. 28 – March 2, 2025.
She said it went well beyond any expectations she had of it.
“It was so much greater than anything I could have expected,” Kellick said. “The women coming in were skeptical of us, but they left on Sunday so happy. And to be able to be a part of that with the help of the Holy Spirit was amazing.
“I can’t wait to do another one.”
While Kolbe Prison Ministries is rooted in the Catholic faith (and named for St. Maximilian Kolbe, the Polish priest who volunteered to die in place of another man at the German death camp of Auschwitz), the retreat was open to all faith backgrounds. Deacon Ruoff noted the goal was not to convert anybody, but to grow their relationship with Christ.
“Even though Kolbe is a Catholic- based ministry, I made it very clear that our intent was not to convert these folks to Catholicism, but to introduce them into a deeper relationship with Christ,” Deacon Ruoff said. “Now it’s up to them to figure out where the Lord is calling them to. The intent was to enhance their relationship with Christ, and I think that was accomplished.”
The goal is to have a full team of local volunteers established for future retreats, with the next one at TCF set for September 2025.
Anyone interested in learning more should visit the website at: www.kolberetreatsinkansas.org.
