REVEREND JOHN NOEL FULLEN
CO-FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN & SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR

Reverend John Noel Fullen (Father Jack) was born December 25, 1939 in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from Erasmus High School in 1957 and attended University of Bridgeport, Connecticut. He graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in 1962 in Business Administration. Courses included in this pathway included psychology and sociology.

In September 1962 he was married and entered the United States Marine Corps as a second lieutenant. He and Sandy had 3 children. He later worked for Harris Corporation as a manager of marketing for the Washington, D.C. field office. He and his wife Sandy were also on the national board of Worldwide Marriage Encounter, a weekend experience for married couples to enrich their marriage. He attended many seminars related to marital and family counseling.

In 1986, his wife of 24 years died of a short illness. Father Jack then entered the Catholic seminary in 1990. Courses he studies while in seminary included 12 credit hours of pastoral counseling and family life counseling and spiritual direction. He graduated with a Master’s in Divinity from Pope John XXIII. He was ordained a Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Baltimore on May 27, 1995. He retired from active ministry in 2001 and is currently a resident in the Diocese of Arlington.

In 2005, he co-founded the Missionaries of Our Lady of Divine Mercy with Kellie Ross as a spiritual outreach organization at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Gainesville, Virginia. He also continues to serve the Church at St. Raymond’s Parish, Our Lady of Hope and Holy Trinity Parish as well as hearing confessions, offering spiritual direction/retreats and pastoral counseling in the Diocese of Arlington Virginia.

KELLIE MARGARET ROSS
CO-FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Kellie Ross was born on October 5, 1967 in Spokane, Washington. She graduated with honors from Deer Park High School and then attended Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri graduating with an Associate’s degree in liberal arts in 1988. She graduated with a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in International Studies in 1990.

After working as a program assistant and secretary, she decided to return to school to work with the sick and dying. She entered Marymount University and graduated with her nursing degree in 1993. Kellie worked as an ICU nurse for 5 years at local area hospitals and later married her husband, Dr. Scott Ross, a family practitioner. They have two boys and reside in Bristow, Virginia.

In 2004, Kellie left the clinical setting in the hospitals and sought to do work in the local community directly with the poor and needy. After many hours of prayer and petition, she underwent a dramatic conversion and began taking an active role in her parish. Teaching religious education classes for the Diocese of Arlington for 3 years and joining prayer groups deepened her faith and calling to serve Christ.

Her prayers were answered in November 2005 when she formally met Father Jack Fullen. Discussing the need for mercy in today’s difficult times led them to prayer and the formation of the Missionaries of Our Lady of Divine Mercy, an outreach ministry of Holy Trinity Catholic Church located in Bristow, Virginia.

Kellie’s love of the poor as well as her devotion to Divine Mercy has propelled the ministry to serve at local nursing homes, shelters and parks where each person is treated as though he were Christ. Kellie’s motto is: Mercy is a verb.

OUR HISTORY

The Missionaries of Our Lady of Divine Mercy was founded on January 6, 2005. What began as a small prayer group has grown into a movement of mercy. Our first meeting took place in the basement of one of the prayer group members. We prayed the Rosary, read Sacred Scripture and read from the Diary of Saint Faustina.

Each week members would meet, pray and offer prayers for the sick and dying. As the ministry grew, so did our zeal to perform corporal and spiritual works of mercy. By February 2006, we were taking food into Washington, D.C. to feed the homeless in the parks.

This ministry became known as Feeding with Mercy because we believed that the people we were serving should not only receive food and drink, but compassion as well. We found that the more we entered into with these people, the more we saw Christ in each homeless person.

Within a few months we began bringing hot food, toiletry items and clothing to expand our services to the poor. Washing the feet of each homeless person was a natural progression in what we saw as loving our neighbor. With wet wipes, lotion, gloves and stools, our volunteers sat on the ground while the homeless removed their shoes to have their feet washed. Many of the homeless wept as we tended their wounds and spoke words of compassion. Volunteers shared stories of inspiration and hope with each person that sat down hoping that when they left the park that day they would know that God loved them.

While the ministry was continuing to grow to provide corporal works of mercy, weekly prayer groups and monthly spiritual talks, the turning point for the ministry was opening up the House of Mercy which became a hospitality center that offers free clothing, new shoes, a catholic lending library and fellowship to the underprivileged and marginalized in Manassas, Virginia. The majority of our apostolate works directly with women and children in need.

OUR SPIRITUALITY

Our Christ-centered ministry is rooted in the Franciscan spirituality. We truly believe that we are called to imitate Christ through the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. The House of Mercy is the fruit of this charism which allows us to be servants of the poor and to embrace poverty as a way of building community. If you were to walk in the House of Mercy the first thing that you would probably notice is the cleanliness of the center. Each day, volunteers scrub the floors on their hands and knees as a sign of love for our neighbors who visit us each day. EWTN television or Gregorian Chant plays softly in the background, while the clothing racks are adorned with icons of saints. In essence we are trying to bring the face of the Catholic Church to each person. The face of hope, the face of faith and the face of charity to those who have lost sight of our Lord.

Half of the center at the House of Mercy is dedicated as a library and prayer area for our volunteers and neighbors in need. The San Damiano Crucifix is the centerpiece of this prayer room with the handwritten prayer intentions of people from all over the country lying beneath it. Anyone who wishes can come and read a Catholic book, borrow family movies or listen to Christian music in our library area. The purpose of this space is to remind people that heaven is our final home and we are only on a journey here. Interestingly, we have had many customers come in who have no heat, water or electricity come in just to have a volunteer pray with them for help. It is always moving to see the faith in these people. Each volunteer is encouraged to spend time in our prayer room to pray for the intentions of the ministry, the sick and dying and their own personal intentions.

FRUITS OF OUR LABOR

In 2007, we expanded our services to include a sewing ministry, Stitches of Love which makes rosaries and scapulars for the families who visit us. We also have volunteers who knit or crochet hats, blankets and mittens from all over the country that are given away to the needy who enter our center. Words cannot describe how wonderful it is to see a family receive beautiful handmade items. We are very grateful for all who donate their time so sacrificially.

In 2008, the fruits of our work continue with a greater emphasis on the needy women and children in our area. The Passport to Hope program was inspired to build relationship between our donors and the poor in the community. We wanted people to see the face of real children who are benefiting from their sacrifice.

Through the Passport to Hope Program children and their families are personally interview to determine the nature and severity of need. Aid that is given to them is tailored to their specific needs. For some, the need is new shoes. For others, the need may be for financial assistance or food. Whatever the request, we strive to provide and perform each work of mercy with love.

In 2009, we expanded our Passport to Hope program to include children internationally knowing that poverty knows no boundaries. It is our long-term goal to build out an orphanage in one of the poorest markets in the world….the Adjame Market in Cote d’Ivoire, Africa. Through novenas and other prayers we trust that in the future, this dream will become a reality.

From our earliest beginnings to our future hopes, our motto is simple:

Mercy is a verb—let us act now.