Operating ‘prayer line’ a special calling for Redford parishioner

Redford — When Audrey Bolstrum’s husband, Joe, passed away eight years ago, she knew she needed the support of her faith family at St. John Bosco Parish in Redford to help her through it.

“They knew; the whole parish knew because I was involved in quite a few things,” said Bolstrum. “They knew Joe because he was an usher at the 4 o’clock Mass. He was a quiet man.”

Bolstrum also knew she and her children needed prayers, so she turned to a trusted group of Catholics who had served as the parish’s “prayer warriors” since 1996.

While many parishes print the names of parishioners requesting intercessions in their parish bulletin, St. John Bosco’s “prayer line” operates a little differently. It offers a phone number to call. Usually, that number is Bolstrum’s.

“A lot of times when people call, they need encouragement,” said Bolstrum, who has operated the prayer line for nearly 20 years. “I’ve heard later, people have said ‘Oh, you made me feel so much better.’ I’m not saying it’s (because of) me, but when a person can do this, it helps a person in need. Their loved ones are so worried, and they need encouragement and to know that God is there for them.”



But the best part of the prayer line isn’t just getting to speak to a real, live person; it’s getting the personal, dedicated intercessions of up to two dozen real, live people. That’s because Bolstrum’s prayer line is actually more of a “prayer tree.”

 

Call on me

It operates like a game of “telephone” — quite literally. Besides offering her own support when someone calls asking for prayers, Bolstrum records the person’s intentions, and then gets to work calling the first numbers on her roster of volunteers.

“I call each one (at the top of the list), and each person calls the next person. If she’s not there, you can leave a number on her machine, but you go ahead and call the next person to make sure that it goes on,” said Bolstrum.

While she admits that “sometimes you end up doing the whole line” if people are busy, that’s only to ensure God hears as many prayers as possible. And that’s the most important thing, she said.

Though St. John Bosco is a relatively small parish at just 378 families, the prayer line has continued for 20 years because the need is constant, Bolstrum said.

“We might have gone a whole week without any requests, but sometimes we get four or five. We just never know; that’s just the way it goes,” she said. “Just this week, it’s everybody we know. One of the fellows (was) having brain surgery on Friday, going to the Cleveland Clinic.”

Other recent calls included a man who was hospitalized with breathing problems, a woman with back pain, a man having hip surgery, and a family grieving the loss of a loved one.

Not all calls are emergencies or medical problems, Bolstrum said.

“(Another woman) wanted prayers to have a safe pregnancy and to pray for her family to find a new home that they like and can afford,” Bolstrum laughed. “Because this new baby is their fourth one!”

If it’s a very personal request, Bolstrum said, often people don’t want their name to be passed on, “but we know that God knows who it is, and we just say ‘pray for a special intention,’” she said.

 

Letting God know

Sometimes, people are so appreciative of the prayers they receive that they volunteer to give back as a member of the prayer line, such as a woman who asked for prayers for her sick husband recently, Bolstrum said.

“She called back — I don’t think she was even a parishioner — and asked what you had to do to be on the prayer line. So she ended up being one of our people,” she said.

Though down to about 15 people now, coinciding with a decline in parishioners over the years, the prayer roster once included as many as 30 intercessors in its heyday.

“I’ve made several friends. I don’t even know who they are — I’ve never met them — but they’ll call because they need somebody to talk to, and I always tell them I’ve got big shoulders,” Bolstrum said.

While God’s ears are open to anyone who needs Him, Catholics can play a role in increasing those prayers by interceding for one another, Bolstrum said.

“You try to see God in everyone and let them know that He’s there for them all the time. But maybe we are the vocal voice letting Him know that they’ve got prayers, and they’re not alone,” she said.

Though Bolstrum has been active as a volunteer in other ministries at the parish — such as chairing the worship commission, coordinating the adoration chapel, preparing sign-in sheets and schedules for liturgical ministers and volunteering as a lector or extraordinary minister of holy Communion — she sees the prayer line as a special calling, no pun intended. But she doesn’t take credit for its effects.

“It’s funny, I never really thought of it as a ministry,” she said. “I’m just doing it, but that makes me feel good and like I can do more.

“It gives a good feeling to the person praying to know that they’re doing God’s work.”