A career of doing “God’s Work” at Catholic Charities closing for Mahoney

Like many, if not most, retirees, Joyce Mahoney does not expect to miss working. However, she does expect to miss the type of work she did during 14 years at Catholic Charities: God’s work.

“I will miss the staff in the agency and the relationships I have formed,” Joyce says. “I will miss the looks on clients’ faces as they move into their home or get a job. Mostly, I will miss that feeling that I am doing God’s work every single day.”

Joyce is closing out a Catholic Charities career in which she first served as program director for Harbor House Domestic Violence Shelter. She became senior director of ministries in April 2016 and has been providing executive leadership for several Catholic Charities’ ministries since then. This includes the organization’s two shelters, Harbor and St. Anthony Family Shelter, along with their various outreach programs, Our Daily Bread Food Pantry, Foster Grandparent Program, Southeast Kansas Services and Supportive Services for Veteran Families.

Instilling hope in our clients

Her role in the organization allowed her to not only live out her Catholic faith every day, but also to observe God’s presence in the work of Catholic Charities.

“We see miracles every day – God’s hand in the coincidences we observe,” she says. “The success of our clients is proof of God’s presence.  The greatest gift we can give is hope.  If we can instill hope, then we can give our clients a reason to carry on and live life in the way that God intended.”

Joyce believes she is leaving the various Catholic Charities’ ministries in better shape than when she inherited them in 2016.

Impacting the lives of thousands in our community

“I have been able to assemble a team of compassionate and hard-working directors who believe and live the mission of Catholic Charities,” Joyce says.  “I am so proud of each and every one of them, and I leave them with the utmost confidence that they will continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus.”

Wendy Glick, executive director, and Joyce started in their current roles on the same date: April 4, 2016.

“Joyce and I have shared countless leadership challenges and celebrations over the past six years,” Wendy says. “Through her work, Joyce has had an impact on the lives of thousands of people, both clients and staff.”

Impacting the lives of thousands in our community

“I have been able to assemble a team of compassionate and hard-working directors who believe and live the mission of Catholic Charities,” Joyce says.  “I am so proud of each and every one of them, and I leave them with the utmost confidence that they will continue to be the hands and feet of Jesus.”

Wendy Glick, executive director, and Joyce started in their current roles on the same date: April 4, 2016.

“Joyce and I have shared countless leadership challenges and celebrations over the past six years,” Wendy says. “Through her work, Joyce has had an impact on the lives of thousands of people, both clients and staff.”

Keeping clients close in thoughts and prayers

Joyce will carry many of those client interactions with her into retirement, keeping them close in her thoughts and prayers. One in particular has stayed with her since her time as director at Harbor House. At that time, Harbor was providing shelter for a single mom who was pregnant with another child, one for which she knew she could not adequately provide.

“She came to me and we talked about options, and she chose life,” Joyce recalls. “We met with an adoption attorney who gave her notebooks from prospective parents describing their families. At first, she envisioned a typical family, a father, mother, children and a dog, but as she browsed the notebooks, one family stuck out to her. It was a single mom with multiple adopted children, a mom who had the means to provide the best of everything.

“Our client clung to the fact that she was giving this gift to her baby,” Joyce says.

Packing up and moving to Kansas City

Joyce is packing up more than her office at Catholic Charities. She and her husband, Tim, also are packing up the downtown Wichita rental they have enjoyed for the past year and will be moving closer to family in Kansas City.

“We have purchased a condo on the Plaza in Kansas City, which has been our dream,” Joyce says. “I look forward to lazy mornings drinking coffee on the deck, walking through the Plaza, eating out and being seven minutes away from our youngest grandchild.”

The Mahoneys have five adult children: two daughters in Kansas City, one in Albuquerque, NM and another in Westminister, CO; their son lives in Washington, D.C. All total, they have five grandchildren across the country to spoil.

“I look forward to family dinners and just hanging out with the family in Kansas City, and being a direct flight away from our children and grandchildren who live outside of Kansas City,” she says.