Bishop Kevin Farrell said he hesitated only briefly before offering up the Catholic Diocese of Dallas conference center as housing for Louise Troh and her family.
The fiancée of the Dallas Ebola victim and her family spent more than 15 days in a four-bedroom cabin at the Catholic Conference and Formation Center in Oak Cliff as they waited to see if they had contracted the deadly illness.
Farrell said he never second-guessed his decision to offer them shelter.
“I had to think of the consequences, but it was in my heart all the time that I had to do something,” Farrell said Monday, just outside the iron fence that encircles the compound. “We help people because we’re Catholic, not because they’re Catholic. ... It is an example of what it means to care for our brothers and sisters ... irrespective of where they come from, what race or what religion they were.”
Troh, a member of Wilshire Baptist Church, will remain at the site with her 13-year-old son and two adult nephews until they can find suitable housing elsewhere, Dallas officials said.
Troh was set to marry Thomas Eric Duncan, who was staying at her Dallas apartment when he got sick. The family was told to remain in isolation during the 21-day incubation period to see if the virus developed. That period ended at midnight Sunday.
Farrell said he offered the cabin after being approached by Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins. Officials had no place else to put them, he said. “I considered every property the church owned,” he said.
The conference center, nestled on 2.5 acres in an Oak Cliff neighborhood, provides facilities for retreats, conferences and seminars, with cabins for overnight visitors.
The compound includes St. Joseph’s Residence, an assisted living center for the elderly.
Troh and her family were placed in a cabin on the outskirts of the compound, set apart from other facilities.
Events that had been scheduled during the waiting period were canceled, diocese officials said.
Because Troh and the others did not develop the illness, there is no need to decontaminate the property, Farrell said.
Farrell praised Rawlings and Jenkins for their leadership in helping Troh and her family, and with helping keep the community focused amid fears the illness has spread.
Farrell said he joined Wilshire Baptist senior pastor George Mason in prayer Monday with Troh and her family before speaking with reporters.
“They’re doing very well,” he said. “[But] Louise just lost a loved one. Prior to that ... she lost a sister. These are difficult times for them.”
He called on other members of the local faith community to help stop the spread of fear and panic over Ebola. “I hope the whole community can now come together,” he said.
Follow Dianna Hunt on Twitter at @DiannaHunt.
