8 minute read
Capturing HERstory
The HERstory Time Capsule Project
seeks to “recognize and honor those who have been at the forefront of the climate crisis, the racial justice uprising, and in the political sphere as we lived through the consequential and tumultuous year of 2020.”
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Over the last year, some of us have grown tired of masks. Some have grown tired of skipping large gatherings. But all of us have grown tired of the phrase “unprecedented times.” Yet here we are, looking back at a year like no other, and wondering what to make of it all. For the women of the S. Nancy Hynes Institute for Women’s Leadership (IWL), the answer was a time capsule. “It came up during a board meeting,” recalls Danee Voss ’21, program coordinator for the IWL. “We were talking about the number of stories not being documented during COVID isolation. We’re all going through something … unprecedented. And we’re not going through it together. We should share these stories.”
And, as a women’s center on a women’s college campus, they’re clear about the stories they want to capture and amplify. “All too often, the experiences of women and non-binary folks, and especially young people, are pushed to the margins of history books or are simply a footnote in the greater story,” explains Flannery White ’21, Hynes Scholar coordinator for the IWL. “This project recognizes women and those of other marginalized genders as shapers of the world whose stories must be recorded and deserve to be remembered, not just as a brief annotation, but as full and complex persons who have contributed to history.” In collaboration with the CSB Student Senate and the College of Saint Benedict Archives, they’re creating a space to save these stories. And they welcome submissions of experiences from between March 2020 and March 2021 – photos, artwork, journal entries, first-person accounts, physical objects – from students, faculty and alumnae. Even beyond COVID, 2020 was a remarkable year. The HERstory Time Capsule Project seeks to “recognize and honor those who have been at the forefront of the climate crisis, the racial justice uprising, and in the political sphere as we lived through the consequential and tumultuous year of 2020, in harmony with the IWL’s mission and vision to empower women and facilitate dialogue.”
The CSB Women’s Center began operating in February 2004. In September 2007 the center was dedicated to S. Nancy Hynes, OSB. In 2009 the S. Nancy Hynes Center for Women became the S. Nancy Hynes Institute for Women’s Leadership. The change in name indicates the change in the institute’s focus. The primary focus is now on gender issues and women’s leadership.
Sampling some submissions
Students, faculty and sisters have answered the IWL’s call for the HERstory Time Capsule. These next few pages showcase some of the photos, observations and insights that will help provide perspective on this past year.
The Future Is Feminist
Dr. Sucharita Mukherjee, CSB/SJU Economics Department Chair
Feminism in its quest for equality has been an overarching movement drawing attention to myriad, intersectional inequalities around the globe. The pandemic has once again revealed the fragile progress in racial and gender equality with women and people of color bearing a disproportionate share of the burden. We can ignore inequality and the need for gender and racial justice no more. The future is feminist.
A Letter to My Younger Self
Charlotte Rose Bjorn Frisk ’21
My last day in my study abroad program in Madagascar before I was evacuated. I played Ambar Lucid’s song “A letter to my younger self” about a hundred times that week. I was reassured by the following lyrics: “I promise all of this is not gonna last. Trust me, I know. Ya no quiero que llores. The universe is gonna give you muchas flores. Quítate ese miedo. You’ll be a lot more trust me, yo te entiendo.”
Sunflowers
Brigit Stattelman-Scanlan ’21
Being a senior in college during these times is especially difficult. Being on campus and having that “normality” of going to class and the library, but also not being able to spend it with all your friends at football games or Thanksgiving dinner is very hard. This picture was taken during the first weeks back. It was a warm, sunny Friday after classes had finished and I rushed to the St. Joseph Farmers Market and bought a bouquet of my favorite flowers – sunflowers. Finding the small and simple things got me though the semester.
Friendsgiving
Emily Kling ’21
“Friendsgiving” 2020 in Leutmer 340. We prepared and cooked all day for our elaborate Thanksgiving feast. We successfully attempted a full turkey in our college kitchen, so we decided to commemorate the moment. The clock reads 8:07 pm. Our festivities continued into the early hours of the morning. This is my favorite picture of us together. Our collective joy will be forever immortalized.
Lonely Ghost
Capri Potter ’23
It’s not the most profound thing, but I’m a photographer for the school and I’ve always enjoyed dark humor, so I thought it was fitting for the year. Plus, it made the people (and their kids) who stumbled across us taking these laugh. This was taken in the woods outside Rochester, Minnesota, directly after the end of A Block.
The Radiance of Our Love
S. Lois Wedl ’53, OSB
In March 2020, after having lived in Evin Hall for eight years and in Margretta Hall for 26 years, I was asked to move out of Margretta because the county had asked CSB, SJU and SCSU to prepare one or two residence halls that had single rooms with baths in case the St. Cloud Hospital could not handle all the patients possibly affected by the coronavirus. Both Margretta and Lottie were chosen for this possible need. At the same time, both the administrators of the college and monastery agreed that to protect the Sisters from getting the virus from the students, the Sisters would not have any one-on-one contact with students. Not only had I been living with students, I’d been living with students for 34 years. I’ve been privileged to interact with more than a thousand of the finest young women and men in my 25 years in the Education Department and First-Year Seminar program. I have the reputation of being the #1 fan of the Bennies/Blazers and have hardly ever missed a home game. (I’m also prone to hopping the bus to travel to a few away games.) And I also direct the Benedictine Friends Program, which involves many students. So, for me to not have this personal contact was exceedingly hard. Early in the semester, Head Basketball Coach Mike Durbin and the members of his team, knowing how I would be missing this contact with coaches and athletes, sent me a lovely red plant with a card telling me how much they missed my presence. Both VP Mary Geller and Interim President Laurie Haman called and/or texted me wondering how I was doing. All I can say is thank goodness for Zoom, phone calls, email and letters. I, for one, will welcome the day when we can hug one another, welcome all into our monastery and smile without a mask covering the radiance of our love.
Just Keep Swimming
Samantha Bruce ’21
March 13, 2020, is a day I will never forget. It was like life changed overnight. I remember waking up and talking to my roommate about the virus, debating whether or not getting sent home was a real possibility. Every class I had that Thursday and Friday discussed what online learning might look like. It was surreal. When we got the email sending us home for two weeks, I cried. I felt a combination of fear of what was to come and sadness over having to leave my friends for an unknown amount of time. We said our goodbyes with no idea of what was to come. I went from being occupied as a full-time student with a research internship lined up for the summer and a stable plan for taking the Medical College Admissions Test and applying for medical school, to having no clue what was going to happen. I moved back home and went back to work at a local family-owned greenhouse – the same job I’ve had since high school. I went in looking for some extra cash and ended up taking on a new project. A group of colleagues and I were tasked with the challenge of putting together a new curbside and delivery department for the store. This had been scheduled to release in 2021 but had to be rushed because of the pandemic. Having very little business experience outside of customer service, I was surprised to find myself heavily involved in this. However, it ended up being an incredible learning experience. I learned more than I ever thought I would about business. I was able to work on my teamwork and communication skills as we quickly found ourselves swamped with orders. Though I never saw myself participating in anything business related ever, I am really glad that I took on this challenge.
I Can’t Breathe
Danee Voss ’21
This year, from climate change to racial injustice to the pandemic, has had a profound impact on what I value. I want to be able to share some of the moments of 2020 that challenged me and brought me joy for people in the future to be able to witness the resiliency of Saint Ben’s students. (Danee submitted a series of photos from the year. This one is from her time at the first protest immediately after the death of George Floyd, May 26, 2020.)
As an alumna, your voice is welcomed in the HERstory Time Capsule project.
If you would like to submit your own photos, artwork, journal entries, first-person accounts or physical objects, snap a photo of this QR code to visit the submission form. But please move quickly!
