Local woman honored for volunteer spirit and community contributions

Gloria Renda of Steubenville presented St. Clare award

STEUBENVILLE -- A well-known local "giver" of time and compassion has been honored with the St. Clare Award for her spirit of volunteerism and community involvement.

Gloria Renda of Steubenville was honored Sept. 22 during the annual Sylvania Franciscan Gala in Sylvania, Ohio, near Toledo.

Sister Mary Jon Wagner, congregational minister of the Sisters of St. Francis, presented the award at the gala, which was attended by 250 people.

The St. Clare Award annually recognizes an individual for the depth of his or her volunteer spirit, spiritual base and whole-hearted ministry to those in need.

Renda was applauded for having lived her life by the words of the St. Francis prayer of peace -- "for it is in giving that we receive."

It was 1964 when Renda, then in her mid-30s, found herself widowed with four children after her husband, Anthony, died of a massive heart attack while the family was vacationing in New Jersey. On her husband's funeral card were the words of St. Francis, a message that ultimately would be a guide and reminder of how to live life.

Renda raised her four children and had a 27-year career as librarian and media specialist in the Edison Local School District, taking disability retirement in 1987 at age 57. Life-saving bypass surgery provided a renewed perspective -- a second chance at life she said in an earlier interview that she wasn't going to waste.

Recalling the words on the funeral prayer card, Renda embraced with gusto the opportunity to volunteer.

She founded the Upper Ohio Valley Adult Literacy Council, volunteered at the Ohio Valley Hospital to encourage literacy, became a charter member of the Academy of Lifelong Learning at Franciscan University in Steubenville, and trained to be a Global Volunteer who went on to teach English as a second language in Ostuni, Italy and Zihuatanejo, Mexico.

For her role in the Upper Ohio Valley Literacy Council, Renda received the "Point of Light Award" in 1991 from President George H. W. Bush's nationwide program that honored ordinary citizens.

And in May 2016, Renda was one of 10 older Ohioans inducted into the Ohio Senior Citizens Hall of Fame, singled out by the Ohio Department of Aging, the Ohio Association of Area Agencies on Aging and members of the Ohio General Assembly. The ceremony was held in Columbus and celebrated "Golden Buckeyes who continue to grow, thrive and contribute throughout their lives, and who are leaders, advocates and role models. They demonstrate the many ways our elders are a precious resource for our state, nation and beyond."

The gala is a tradition of 19 years, according to Teri Bockstahler, director of communications and marketing for the Sisters of St. Francis, Sylvania. The highlight of the event is the presentation of the St. Clare Award and the St. Francis Award, which is given to a person whose life and ministry reflect beliefs and commitment to Franciscan values. That recipient was Janet Robinson of Sylvania, former Lourdes University interim president, provost and director of nursing.

"The Sisters of St. Francis, especially those who ministered in health care at Trinity Health System in Steubenville for many years, became acquainted with Gloria," Bockstahler explained. "Sister Magdala Davlin, former nurse and pastoral care associate at Trinity, was the sister who nominated Gloria," she noted, adding the original Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania came to Steubenville in 1931 to serve at Gill Hospital in downtown Steubenville.

"Her spirit of St. Clare is distinguishable because of the energy and passion she funneled into service to her community," Bockstahler noted. "She spent 20 years volunteering for Special Olympics, a decade helping the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life and initiated the restoration of the 1880 Pleasant Hill One-Room Schoolhouse Museum. She volunteers at Trinity Health System and continues to promote literacy and provide tutoring," she added.

Renda also has served as Eucharistic Minister at Triumph of the Cross Cathedral Parish, at Trinity Health System and is "a warm, friendly visitor to her homebound neighbors."

"This award is very special to me because St. Clare was a follower of St. Francis of Assisi," Renda said. "My mantra for most of my life has been from a phrase from the Peace Prayer of St. Francis -- 'It is better to give than to receive.' I thank the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania for this extra special blessing," said Renda, who was accompanied to the awards by retired Edison educators Connie Crawford and Karen Lundquist; her daughter, Mary Ann Gwin; and Dr. Belen Vargas.