The Practicalities – applying for stage

Whether you decide to go on stage by yourself or with a group, you must inform the Hospitalité Notre-Dame de Lourdes yourself in advance, preferably several months before you arrive. Usually the best way to inform the Hospitalité of your desire to do a stage is to write to them (writing in English is usually not a problem) or send them a form known as an Annonce de Stage. If it is your first stage, you must enclose with your Annonce a passport-type photograph and a letter of recommendation from your parish priest or an existing member of the HNDL. If getting a reference is a problem, let the main stage contact know.

Requests to do a stage must specify which of the six main ‘sections’ you wish to join. Until a few years ago each section was its own independent Hospitalité or a sub-section of another, but recently they have all been united under the umbrella organisation of the HNDL and the barriers between the sections are increasingly coming down. Each service below has its own page with contact details for CA representatives - each of these people can help with advice and questions:

• Saint Joseph: This section is for virtually all men working on stage. Sorry lads, we get little choice of where we're put!
• Saint-Frai: This section is for all women working in the Accueil Marie Saint-Frai building.
• Notre-Dame: This section caters for all the women volunteers working in the Accueil Notre-Dame building.
• Service-Piscines: which is where all women working in the baths are based.
• Accueil Formation: This section is responsible for welcoming and training all new stagiaires in the spiritual and practical elements of Lourdes. It is made up of more experienced Hospitaliérs who join this section by invitation only.
• Saint Michel: This section consists of stagiaires who work in the administration and allocation of lodging and accommodation, which they also maintain. This section also runs the Hospitalité's IT systems and the Hospitalité Foyer (social centre), as well as a workshop for repairing ‘material’ (wheelchairs etc). .

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