Holy Family Ministry Center
Holy Family Ministry Center is the Mother Ministry of Loreto on the Plains. The Center was founded in Hartley, TX. in 1992 by Ed and Nan Weber, SFO. They came to the Texas Panhandle to answer the call to join their ministry vision with the Disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ where they lived and evangelized for 10 years. Leaving Prayertown they continued on their journey with the opening of the Holy Family Ministry Center in Hartley for the renewal and restoration of the family and Catholic family life through the spiritual and corporal works of mercy.
Mission Statement : Our mission is to provide an environment after the model of the Holy Family, in which God's love and mercy brings renewal and restoration to the family through reconciliation and healing thereby en kindling in them the flame of authentic Catholic Spirituality. By following Jesus in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi, we are called to live out the spiritual and corporal works of mercy and do so through the various programs of education, prayer and service provided by the center. We hold the value of all human life to be sacred from conception to natural death. The intensely Eucharistic environment of the center provides the source of grace and strength for living this calling in accordance with Sacred Scripture and in union with the Holy Father and the Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church.
The Center is the home of the Shrine of Divine Mercy, the Mercy Prayer Gardens and the Pope John Paul Family Life Center where the St Joseph's Eucharistic Chapel of Divine Mercy; the Bishop John W. Yanta Family Life Library, meeting rooms and a tiny gift shop are located.
An Image of Divine Mercy was placed at a bend in the road where many truckers and towns people see it going to and from work. The blessings of Jesus pour out from this 16 ft. high Image of Divine Mercy, to all people, regardless of faith, creed or color. People from all walks of life have contributed to the building of this peaceful spot on FmRd 998 in Hartley, Texas. The railroad contributed the huge railroad crossing beams; a long time supporter and Catholic friend of the Ministry Center just happened to have the 'shell' that the fountain is made from; an Indian whose life our Lord touched and restored, made the planters on the sides; several Hispanic brothers came to create the pool that the font empties into; this image was painted by a non-denominational man in a high security prison in Amarillo; the rocks were donated by a Baptist family from their ranch; the flowers were first planted by Nan and Fr. Francis Bagan who is one of the team of final translators of the Diary of St. Faustina called "Divine Mercy in My Soul"; The big pines were donated by the families of two local Veterans and stand guard over the Image in memoriam; many protestant and catholic brothers gathered on a cold misty January day to erect it and another brother in Christ arrived on December 12, to dig the trench that the beams stand in; and others have planted memorials of roses and trees around the shrine for loved ones who have passed away. Cures have occurred on Divine Mercy Sunday when the font is filled and blessed and the Great Feast of Mercy is celebrated. People come to take the water from the font to their homes on that day and the people from the town come and sit in the quiet presence of the Lord to receive healing in their heart as all cry out, "Jesus, I Trust in You."