A community of sixteen Poor Clare nuns, founded in Greenville in 1955 and since 2008 at Travelers Rest, South Carolina. They rely mainly on donations, with some income from prayer cards and their retreat house.
What it needs
In autumn 2026 the sisters ended their 71-year altar bread distribution, a long-time source of income, because the work had become too heavy for them. At the same time the inverter on their solar array failed and their electricity bills surged. Their Fall 2026 appeal asks for $17,000: $9,000 to replace the inverter and $8,000 for a five-year maintenance contract on the array.
Before you act. The stated shortfall is small and specific. The larger issue is the permanent loss of altar bread revenue, for which no figure is given.
Wildfires forced the monks to evacuate in August 2026, and the hermitage is closed through the winter of 2026-27, with no monks in residence and no retreat guests. The property and its systems still have to be maintained, the two-mile access road needs constant costly repair (the hermitage keeps a road maintenance fund), and the monks are at the same time reviewing whether their small, aging California communities are sustainable. The hermitage says most of its monthly needs are met by donations.
Cement plaster applied in the mid-twentieth century trapped moisture and damaged the decorated facade; conservators are removing it and stabilizing the original plaster in seasonal phases, with later phases to replace lost columns and the balcony. The Spring 2026 newsletter adds that the Convento and Granjon wings need foundation reinforcement, adobe wall rehabilitation, new water and electrical systems, treatment of insect-damaged mesquite beams and hazardous-material abatement. Donations to Patronato San Xavier pay for the conservation team, outside experts and the next stages of work.
