Marion House celebrating 25 years of service

A not-for-profit counselling agency is celebrating 25 years of providing superior service to members of the Vincentian public.

To celebrate their Silver Jubilee, the Marion House Inc is having a month of activities, which began on October 1 and will end on October 31.{{more}}

While speaking at a press conference last Thursday, spiritual director Monsignor Michael Stewart reflected on the impact that the institution has had on its clients over its 25 years of existence.

He noted that Marion House was created as a response to persons who needed help, particularly with managing their lives.

“We had needs like other societies, but some of our needs, especially counselling needs, were not addressed and because we did not have the resources on the ground to deliver such services,” he said.

“It’s really delivering holistic therapy rather than just dealing with the body or the mind. The spirit is very much a part of this and I think that over the years, Marion House has managed to deliver.”

Stewart, who helped to develop Marion House, shared his dream for the future of the institution, which involves attracting more resources in order to deliver even better service.

“My dream is that we will be able to attract more resources, people who are really trained and grounded in psychology, psychiatry, psycho spirituality; that we will be able to deliver this in some measure to the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines,” the spiritual director said.

In addition, he took the opportunity to urge persons to support the services offered by the Marion House free of cost to all its clients. Stewart also commended other institutions that provide counselling services in this country.

“Even though we do not charge for the services, we also expect you to take responsibility for supporting the service and that is by saying ‘OK, I make this donation in cash or kind to Marion House’,” Stewart said.

Legal advisor Nicole Sylvester pointed out that Marion House has been instrumental in providing effective services to the court in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

“From a legal standpoint, I have found and I know that other members of the bar have also found that Marion House services are very effective and helpful in matters that we present to the court, in particularly areas of family law and criminal law and we have utilized the service. It’s a service that the courts have relied on significantly,” Sylvester said.

The lawyer noted that reports from counsellors to the judges are relied upon heavily, as they can provide perspective for sentencing of the accused person, as well as the impact that it has had on a victim.

As a result of this, Sylvester took the time to thank counsellors who in many instances provide timely and detailed reports and provide services to their clients outside of the usual 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. work hours.

“I would like to deeply recommend to other practitioners who are not yet utilizing the services that it is a service that will be quite beneficial to their clients,” she said.

Marion House is a non-government and not-for-profit counselling centre that offers a wide range of services to the Vincentian public, free of cost. It was founded in 1989 by the Roman Catholic Church and a United Kingdom Methodist Agency, National Children’s Home.

Currently, Marion House is equipped with a total of five counsellors, who are ready to work with anyone in need of their services.(BK)