What started as a casual lunch time conversation about languages and cultures during the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress in Quito, Ecuador in the summer of 2024, has served for the creation of The International Eymardian Family English Institute - an Eymardian family gathering in the USA for an immersion experience with the Religious and members of the Aggregation of the Blessed Sacrament at our headquarters in Highland Heights, Ohio. Our first Institute experience hosted members of our extended family, representing Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Viet Nam. We hope to expand more international participation in 2026!
Each weekday starts with morning prayer, followed by breakfast and then daily Mass. Formal English classes are held in the Zoom Room until lunchtime which is enjoyed with the SSS Religious in the community’s dining room. Being part of a family, all participants help with cleanup and washing the dishes. After a short rest time, opportunities for conversing in English are offered in small groups of English learners and native English speakers playing card games, practicing original dialogs, organizing service projects, or preparing for various church events – collaborating as one Eymardian family!
Every day at 4:45, all gather in the Saint Ann Chapel for Evening Prayer, followed by social time and then dinner. Evenings are reserved for completing homework assignments, attending to personal responsibilities, watching DVD movies, or spending quiet time after a very busy day.
Our local Aggregation members and parishioners host several activities in their homes to share our North American culture with our extended family. We tour downtown Cleveland and Lake Erie, celebrate the 4th of July with a picnic and yard games; enjoy a pizza party; and visit a friend’s farm in the countryside.
We also include several cultural activities such as visiting the Cleveland Art Museum, the Cleveland Zoo, a boat ride on the Cuyahoga River, and sharing a meal with our Interfaith group of Muslim friends. We schedule one all-day out of town excursion.
As one international Eymardian family, we celebrate Eucharist, join the church choir, worship together in the morning and evening, lead a Holy Hour, pray together in the Presence of the Blessed Sacrament, visit our Eymardian Religious at Regina Health Center, remember our deceased family members at the local cemetery, and lead ministries at our Closing Mass.
Each day presents an abundance of grace-filled opportunities to open heads and hearts and welcome a “stranger” into our local Eymardian family. The countless moments that are shared, and the precious memories that are created truly reflect Saint Peter Julian Eymard’s desire to set the world on fire by sharing the love we find in sharing Eucharist with one another; a gift that will be cherished by all those whose lives are touched by this month-long engagement.
We are offering this incredible Eymardian family gathering again this summer from June 15 through July 15, 2026. Please contact Mona if you are interested in participating in this international family adventure. Scholarships are available.
Mona Grigsby-Suárez
Director, Center for Eucharistic Evangelizing
Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament Saint Ann Province, USA
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1-(216) 379-7447
