The nonprofit faith-based healthcare organization Divine
Mercy Care hosted a gala Nov. 8 at the Marriott Westfields
Washington Dulles Hotel to support its medical practice,
Tepeyac Family Center.
The gala honored the 20th anniversary of Tepeyac, founded by
Dr. John and Carolyn Bruchalski in 1994. From humble
beginnings, the Northern Virginia medical practice has grown
to include five doctors, a certified physician assistant, a
certified nurse midwife, registered and licensed nurses,
certified staff, and partnerships with crisis pregnancy
centers and the Gabriel Project of the Arlington Diocese.
The gala opened with a salute to veterans and a blessing by
Father Paul D. Scalia, Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde’s
delegate for clergy, who was introduced by the master of
ceremonies, Divine Mercy Care board member Edward Grogan. The
event highlighted the three-pillar mission of Divine Mercy
Care: believing that practicing medicine is an act of mercy,
uniting social justice with the Scriptures and returning
Christ to the center of the patient-doctor relationship.
During the gala, founder John Bruchalski gave a personal
account of how the Tepeyac staff members uphold those
practices every day, citing the Romans 5 portrayal of
suffering, perseverance and hope as aspects that healthcare
professionals encounter as they work toward “this reunion of
medicine and mercy.”
Keynote speaker Susan Muskett of the National Right to Life
Committee described the challenges that at-risk women with
unintended pregnancies often experience, and how Tepeyac
“welcomes with open arms and offers pregnancy care in a
non-judgmental way.”
“Is there any question that the Tepeyac doctors and staff are
using their talents to serve God?” Muskett said.
Tepeyac doctors have delivered more than 10,000 babies over
the past 20 years. Photographs of the babies and their
families were shown on screens throughout the gala. In 2013
alone, the Tepeyac doctors delivered 106 babies whose mothers
could not pay for medical services, 118 Medicaid-subsidized
babies and 53 babies whose mothers paid through a sliding
scale discount program for patients in financial need. The
staff also has treated numerous other patients who needed
gynecology and obstetrics services.
In order to support Tepeyac’s work, the gala included live
and silent auctions in addition to a special “hero” auction
where individuals could help fund specific needs, such as
perinatal hospice and ultrasound exams.
The Susan M. Torres Award, which recognizes a Tepeyac patient
who has lived the “Gospel of life,” was presented to Kathryn
Doherty and her husband Paul Scolese. Doherty credits her
successful delivery during her high-risk pregnancy to the
Tepeyac doctors who supported her even though others in the
medical field had recommended she abort.
Catherine Muskett and Andrea Pearson were presented with the
Divine Mercy Care Award for their fundraiser “Run for the
Unborn,” a 5k run held annually on Labor Day at St. John the
Apostle Church in Leesburg.
The gala raised $100,000 to support medical services to low
income and underserved individuals, the future addition of
Tepeyac staff and the renovation of their medical office.
“We (Tepeyac Family Center) are innkeepers,” Bruchalski said,
thanking donors for their ongoing support of the Divine Mercy
Care mission to provide care to those who might not otherwise
receive it.
“There’s always room at our inn,” he said.
Colegrove is a freelance writer.
For more information
Go to divinemercycare.org.
