Wholeness of Life Gala

The New York City HealthCare Chaplaincy Network (HCCN) was honored at the Wholeness of Life Gala on Thursday, November 4, 2021. Sister Margaret Theresa Oettinger, OP, director of spiritual care at Hospital for Special Surgery, was joined by her chaplaincy staff and members of the HSS spiritual care committee, along with the chaplains from Mary Manning Walsh Home to be recognized for their extraordinary service during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to honoring the chaplains, the Gala also commemorated the lives members of the HCCN Board of Directors who were lost during the pandemic, and their enduring contributions to the mission of caring for the human spirit.

A global health care nonprofit organization, HCCN reached a milestone this year as it celebrates its 60th anniversary. “For six decades, this organization has led the way in the integration of spiritual care in health care through clinical practice, education, research, and advocacy,” said the Reverend Eric J. Hall, president and CEO of HCCN. “During its long history, HCCN has helped many people faced with illness and grief find spiritual comfort and meaning,

Sister Margaret Theresa expressed her gratitude for the HealthCare Chaplaincy Network’s mission of practicing healthcare with an appreciation for the interrelated functioning of body, mind, and spirit. She said, “We are ever so thankful and blessed to be chaplains who are privileged to minister to the sick.” She noted that they share the words of teacher Julia Cameron with their patients: “You do not need to work to become spiritual. You are spiritual; you need only to remember that fact. Spirit is within you. God is within you.”

The Wholeness Of Life Gala was held at the Guastavino’s in New York City.