Ursulines Alive Spring 2005

Spring 2005 Volume 3, No. 2

Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph Proclaiming Jesus through Education and Christian Formation

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From Our Congregational Leader Sister Michele Morek, OSU

In this issue

Dear Friends, Springtime in Kentucky is a celebration of diversity, with flowering trees and a rainbow of blossoms. This issue of Ursulines Alive celebrates some of the diversity of Ursuline ministry — our missions in New Mexico.

You might say my mother and I went looking for the Ursulines. We moved from Gallup to Farmington just because there was an Ursuline school there, and according to my mother (who knew things like that), “Ursuline schools are supposed to be very good.” I did find a good school, and more: I found a group of adventurous, loving, funny and holy women.

Ursulines introduced me to the joy of learning and taught me to love poetry, choral singing, and creative writing. In our multicultural classrooms Navajo, Ute, Apache, Pueblo, Hispanic, Black, and Caucasian children learned lessons of tolerance. We met Angela Merici, founder of the Ursulines, and learned to love her through her daughters. We learned lessons of faith from both books and from their example.

I remember with gratitude all my Ursuline teachers, who came as missionaries to a strange land to love and teach the children of ranchers and farmers and oil executives and sheepherders and social workers and trading post/shop owners…. There are many testimonies to the hearts that were touched and the minds that were empowered by this community: in Farmington, a stained glass church window of Saint Angela and a peaceful spot called “Sister Dorothy’s Garden”; in Aztec, a church window dedicated to the Ursulines; and across the nation, successful alumni of all those little schools where the Ursulines welcomed the children…all the children who came. We Ursulines continue to hold these places in our hearts and rejoice that they are part of our history and our continuing ministry.

Full of Courage and High Hope ....... 3 Ursulines minister more than 80 years in the Southwest A New Day is Coming .......................5 Memphis group begins Dorothy Day House Soli Deo Gloria ................................ 7 We rejoice in the gifts of our sisters, given for the kingdom of God In the Joy of Eternal LIfe .................. 7 Journey to Jamaica .......................... 8 Vounteers minister in Mandeville, Owensboro’s sister diocese The Journey Continues ................... 10 Funds from the Flatboat Adventure enrich our ministries In Remembrance and Gratitude .......13 We give thanks for the generosity of our friends Habemus Papam! ........................... 16 A tribute to Pope John Paul II and his successor, Pope Benedict XVI

Feliz Pascua de la Resurrección!

Sister Michele Morek, OSU Congregational Leader, Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph Ursulines Alive is published by the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, Maple Mount, Kentucky. Two Issues __ Spring and Fall __ will appear during the year 2005.

Editor: Sister Ruth Gehres, OSU Photography and production assistance: Jerry Birge, Kelly May. Mission Advancement Staff:

Sister Suzanne Sims, Director of Mission Advancement Sister Annalita Lancaster, Director of Mission Effectiveness Sister Pam Mueller, Director of Vocation Ministry Jerry P. Birge, Director of Marketing and Communications Marian Bennett, Sister Marietta Wethington, Co-directors of Ursuline Parterships Sister Ruth Gehres, Associate Director of Communications Melanie Austin, Kelly May, Administrative Assistants

We welcome your response to Ursulines Alive. You may contact us at: Ursulines Alive, c/o Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, 8001 Cummings Road, Maple Mount KY. Phone: (270) 229-4103. Fax: (270) 229-4953. E-mail: ualive@maplemount.org. Web site: www.ursulinesmsj.org.

Cover photo: Sister Sara Marie Gomez, director of religious education for St. Joseph Parish, Aztec, New Mexico, enjoys a break with (at left) Suzanna Ortiz, grade 2, and Tylyn Clements, grade 3. The Gomez family’s relationship with the Ursulines of Mount Saint Joseph dates back to1926 at Sacred Heart Academy, Waterflow. Sister Saras father, Juan Cristobal, and his brother attended SHA. His eight sisters are all graduates, along with Sister Sara Marie and many other Gomez relatives. An aunt, Agapita Gomez, is a graduate of Mount Saint Joseph Junior College. Sister Sara’s sister, Melesia, attended Mount Saint Joseph Academy. Branda Parker, a cousin, is a 2004 graduate of Brescia University.

OUR MISSION We, the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, sustained by prayer and vowed life in community, proclaim Jesus through education and Christian formation in the spirit of our founder, Saint Angela Merici.

OUR VISION As Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, we will: • Commit ourselves to simplicity, hospitality, justice and service; • Reverence the values of our founding rural heritage; • Live and minister contemplatively as women of hope; • Witness gospel values through the charism of Saint Angela Merici; • Bind ourselves to one another in charity, celebrating and respecting the uniqueness of each person; • Invite and mentor new members; • Respond to the signs of the times and the needs of the Church and the world through collaborative relationships; and • Stand in prophetic witness to the world by living in right relationships with the earth and the human family to effect justice through systemic change.

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Full of Courage and High Hope Ursulines minister more than 80 years with the people of the Southwest

by Sister Sheila A. Smith, OSU

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he story of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph in the Southwest doesn’t begin with their arrival in Farmington in 1919. It begins May 1, 1906, in Fort Smith, Arkansas, with the dreams of three young men: David Watson of Georgia and Joseph and Lorenzo Stallings of Daviess County, Kentucky. As soon as they met, these three young men began spinning dreams about seeking adventure in the Southwest.

They had all heard about the Territory of New Mexico’s blue skies and wonderful climate, of its picturesque mesas and its abundant mineral wealth. Stories about Billy the Kid, Geronimo and Kit Carson also ignited their imaginations and drew them irresistibly. But the adventurous threesome needed money, so they took jobs with a railway company in Fort Smith. Some time before leaving for the West, the Catholic Stallings brothers invited their friend, Dave Watson, to attend a mission with them. He did, and eventually became Catholic.

In 1909, the trio headed farther west, eventually settling in a spot in northwest New Mexico which they dubbed “Kentucky Mesa.” In the south face of a barren bluff of this beautiful mesa about 15 miles west of Farmington, they burrowed out a little home for themselves — “the Dugout.” Their entire worldly wealth at the time was three horses and nine dollars.

Sister Dorothy Payne, who served 58 years in the Southwest, became a legend in the New Mexico missions.

Dave, Lorenzo, and Joe fell in love with the area. They lived in the Dugout about two years, farming the fertile land along the San Juan River.

Despite their chickens dying, a flood destroying their corn crop, and other hardships, their enthusiasm for the venture did not fade.

The one thing these young Catholic men longed for was a local church where they could worship and nourish their faith. They began thinking about inviting their friends and families to join them and start a Catholic settlement there on Kentucky Mesa.

Priests from Farmington occasionally came to Kentucky Mesa. On February 22, 1912, Franciscan Father Fintan Zumbahlen stayed overnight in the Dugout, and the next morning he said Mass there, the first Mass in the area. It was to Father Fintan that the three confided their hopes and dreams of a Catholic settlement.

The Colony After two years in the Dugout, Dave, Lorenzo, and Joe moved to a small adobe hut and then to a large building on top of the mesa, where several other young men joined them. The new dwelling was called “Bachelors’ Hall.” These young men — Clyde Drury, Fred Wethington, Felix Warren and Damien Stallings — all from Daviess County, Kentucky, represented families who were considering coming to Kentucky Mesa.

On June 11, 1914, the Franciscan priests from Farmington — Father Fintan , Father Albert Daeger, and Father Felician Sandford — stayed at Bachelors’ Hall. The next morning, three Masses were offered there, the first Masses actually on Kentucky Mesa. Afterwards, the entire group went outside and looked over the surrounding mesa as the site for the soon-to-beformed Catholic colony.

Lucy Phillips, center, was the first Navajo convert at Waterflow. Her fellow first communicants are children of the pioneer settlers. Back row: Mayola Stallings, Anthony Stallings, Johnny Warren. Front right: Lucy Stallings. The girl at front left is unidentified.

Exact date is unknown.

In June 1914, just two and a half years after New Mexico became the 47th state, the first settlers arrived, bringing Kentucky names like Stallings, Wethington, Warren, Clements, and continued on page 4

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Full of Courage and High Hope continued from page 3

Thompson to Kentucky Mesa. The group included Edgar and Loretta (Stallings) Warren and their five children, the youngest of whom had been born just nine months earlier in Saint Joseph, Kentucky. This Kentucky-born “pioneer,” little Thelma Warren, would someday return to Mount Saint Joseph, Kentucky, where she would become Ursuline Sister Ancilla Marie, along with her younger sister, Mary Beatrice (born on Kentucky Mesa in 1918), who would became Sister Sister Elizabeth Kelly, Mother Agnes Mary Edgar.

O’Flynn, and Sister Bartholomew Walsh

at the sisters’ first residence in Waterflow, 1919.

The colony grew.

Young adults married, babies were born, children grew and developed. More families came, both from Kentucky and other states.

A frame church, to be replaced later by a brick one, was built.

As families grew, the need and desire for Catholic education for the children grew as well. And who better to request this than the sisters whom the settlers already knew were excellent educators: the Ursulines of Mount Saint Joseph!

Through Father Fintan, the Kentucky Mesa Catholics petitioned Mother Aloysius Willett, asking her to send sisters to New Mexico. In

August 1918, Mother Aloysius and Sr. Robertus Wethington visited the Catholic colony on Kentucky Mesa, and Father Fintan suggested that the Ursulines might also open a school in nearby Farmington and teach in the school in Blanco.

While visiting Kentucky Mesa, Mother Aloysius met many former Kentucky friends, including Mrs. Ellen Lancaster-Kellenaers, an 1891 graduate of Mount Saint Joseph Academy. She realized that the Ursulines would be joining their fellow Kentuckians in this pioneer endeavor, which was so much in the spirit of Saint Angela.

The Missionaries On September 8, 1919, nine chosen Ursulines left their Kentucky home for a new home in the Southwest. Some, however, almost didn’t make it to New Mexico; in the confusion of changing trains in Saint Louis, three of the sisters nearly missed their connection.

As their train began moving, they were hurriedly helped into the last car — the baggage car! They settled themselves on the boxes and baggage until Mother Agnes noticed their absence and sent a conductor to search for them.

The Ursulines arrived in Farmington on Friday, September 12, where they enjoyed their first meal in New Mexico at the home of fellow Kentuckian Ellen Kellenaers. On September 13, they were taken to Waterflow, as Kentucky Mesa was eventually named. The next day, Father Fintan offered a Mass of Thanksgiving and the sisters enjoyed a happy reunion with the Kentucky colonists.

Rose Benjamin Bartholene Benita Grayhorse — Sister Rose Ann Boone’s godchild — was named in honor of her parents’ Ursuline friends at Waterflow.

(1932 photo)

Full of courage and high hope, the sisters lost no time getting to the work for which they had come. On Monday, September 15, three went to Farmington to start Sacred Heart School. Three made the long trip to Blanco, about 45 miles by dirt road, to teach in the public school there, and the last three stayed in Waterflow to found Sacred Heart Academy.

In each location, living conditions were rustic, with cold, drafty rooms, cramped quarters and makeshift solutions to shortcomings in the buildings. Sisters who lived through those pioneer days said that it was hard, but they always said, with emphasis, that they were Crossing the San Juan River from Blanco to Archuleta offered an adventure for Sisters Ursulita O’Bryan, Dorothy Payne, Andrew Lamkin, and Pierre Brady. (Photo from early 1920s.)

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A New Day Is Coming Memphis group begins Dorothy Day House by the Dorothy Day House community, with portions by Marilyn Sadler, as published in the March 2005 Memphis magazine

nyone walking or driving down Poplar Avenue in Memphis would have little idea that something very important is happening at the stately residence located at 1429 Poplar. Although a dumpster has been in the front yard for several months, the trees along the driveway have been tagged for removal, and hundreds of people have crossed the threshold, no sign announces that, after many months of prayer, discernment and renovation, a dream is unfolding. The Dorothy Day House of Hospitality, a home that will provide transitional housing for homeless families, is coming to birth.

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Mount Saint Joseph Ursuline Associates from the Memphis area. “We are grateful that our associates have been involved in so many different ways and have been instrumental in getting other people involved too,” said Sr. Margaret Ann. “Their support and encouragement have helped to keep us going when the task seemed overwhelming.”

The idea for such a home arose during a 2003 workshop about Dorothy Day, co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement in 1933, who devoted her life to helping the poor and promoting justice according to the Gospels. The workshop was sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Memphis. At its conclusion, the participants shared a desire to respond to the poverty in the city of Memphis in the spirit of Dorothy Day.

In the beginning , the Dorothy Day House of Hospitality will shelter two families. When a planned 3,000-square-foot expansion for the house is complete, the number of families will increase to six or seven.

As the families try to get back on their feet, volunteers will lend a hand. “We have hundreds of people who want to get involved,” says Sister Maureen. “Whether they’re donating furniture, finding employment opportunities, washing dishes, answering the phone, or cutting the grass, they see it as outreach to those who need our help.”

“We spent six months in prayer and discernment. Many people attended gatherings at which we talked about the needs in Memphis and spent time thinking about how we could respond to Dorothy’s example,” says Sister Maureen Griner, OSU. “Again and again, we asked for the guidance of the Spirit. Finally, in response to a great need in our city, it was evident that we were being called to provide transitional housing for families who are homeless. In addition, we will provide numerous resources for those families and other families in need — food, clothing, furniture, employment assistance, transportation, advocacy and other services.”

Dorothy Day said, “Once the work of starting houses of hospitality is begun, support comes. One pot of soup or a pot of coffee and some bread is sufficient to make a beginning. You can feed the immediate ones that come and God will send what is needed to continue the work.” Although that approach seems a bit risky in 2005, Dorothy’s trust in God has inspired those who are leading this new ministry.

The mystery of the poor is this: They are Jesus, and what you do for them, you do for him.

Dorothy Day Under the direction of a core team, made up of two Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph — Sisters Maureen Griner and Margaret Ann Zinselmeyer, three Ursuline Lifetime Associates —Judy Gray, Paul Gray, and Carolyn Head, and house manager Therese Cullen, a 4,200square-foot house, built in 1917, was purchased in September 2004.

Since that time, thousands of hours have been spent in cleaning the house out and renovating it. Many of those hours have come from

Many elderly and homebound persons want to contribute, but they sometimes lack transportation, money, or stamina. They will be asked to pray for a specific need or family.

Prayer and a “personal connection” are at the heart of the Dorothy Day mission. According to Judy Gray, many social service workers may be driven by faith, but they aren’t able to express it on the job. “Here we will be able to express our faith,” says Gray, “and we will invite others, including the guests, to pray with us. We want to provide a peaceful home environment and the one-on-one emotional support they need.”

Serving as the house manager is Therese Cullen, 29, whose parents knew and worked with Dorothy Day. “She died when I was 5; she held me as a child,” says Cullen, whose master’s degree in theology included a thesis on Day and other countercultural church figures.

“We’re here to help the people feel like guests, not clients. Our goal is to keep the families together and to help them reclaim their dignity.”

One of 185 such houses in the United States, the Dorothy Day House of Hospitality won’t be Memphis’ first. Two others operated in the city in the past, but both closed for various reasons. Without looking too far ahead, Cullen knows the new one can fill a need, especially with Memphis’ poverty rate the third-highest in the nation.

“We’ve gotten calls from people living in their cars,” says Cullen.

Although the doors of the Dorothy Day House of Hospitality are not yet open, support has come from numerous individuals and companies — “miracles,” as Judy Gray describes them: “Scripture continued on page 6

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says, ‘Ask and you shall receive.’ We started receiving before we had a chance to ask. That’s the biggest miracle.” Even now, it is nearly impossible to list all that has been donated to help get this new ministry off the ground: furniture, bedding, toys, books, kitchen items, new ceiling fans, appliances, canned goods, paper products, drapery material, a stereo system, and much more. Monetary donations began to arrive in the mail even before the ministry was formally announced, and many people have come forward to offer their time and talent to make the house beautiful. Ursuline Sister Mary Louise Knott came from Mount Saint Joseph to spend several weeks upholstering furniture and making drapes for the house.

Local parishes are also getting involved in this Dorothy Day project in many

Who is Dorothy Day? Although many people have heard of Dorothy Day, few really know who she is or her impact on the church.

Born 1897 in Brooklyn, New York, Dorothy lived with her family in San Francisco and Chicago. Both cities were formative experiences. She studied journalism at the University of Illinois at Champagne Urbana. While there she became involved with the women’s suffrage and communist movements.

From the sales of her autobiographical novel, The Eleventh Virgin, Dorothy bought a cottage on Staten Island. Here she fell in love with Forster Batterham, who would become the father of her child, Tamar Teresa. Dorothy saw this new pregnancy as a miracle. She had had an abortion and did not think she could have another child. This pregnancy drew her closer to the church and the Catholic faith. She saw that the Catholic Church was open to all people; she felt that so many of the proletariat and masses found comfort in the church. After Tamar Teresa was born in March 1927, both Dorothy and her daughter were baptized.

Even though the Catholic Church was a church of the poor and of the masses, it often lacked the human touch, which Dorothy sought to bring to it throughout her life. Now as a Catholic, she wished to use her passions for the poor, for writing, and for her faith together in a job. She was now a Catholic, but she still lacked formation.

Ursuline associates and sisters are working together to prepare the Dorothy Day House to open this summer. Front row from left: Meg Synk, George Horishny, Carolyn Head, Judy Gray with Adasia Jackson, Sister Margaret Ann Zinselmeyer, Sister Mary Louise Knott, Sister Maureen Griner. Behind front row: Mike Synk, Paul Gray, Lorna Horishny, Michael Lemm, Mary Jo Johnson, Thurman Mullen, Mary Lyne, Bobby Smyth.

Covering the 1928 Hunger March in Washington, she went to the shrine of the Immaculate Conception on its feast day, December 8, to ask God to lead her so that she could use her passions for the betterment of the church.

different ways. Some have used the project as a way to introduce their youth to Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement. Groups of students from Davidson College in South Carolina and Catholic University, Washington, D.C., have spent time moving and sorting donated items, getting the house ready for its first guests.

Returning to New York, Dorothy met Peter Maurin, who introduced her to the lives of the saints and truly became Dorothy’s theologian. Peter’s vision of cult, culture and cultivation were part of the backbone of the Catholic Worker. He provided a framework for the movement and was its co-founder.

Many people have asked “When will you be open?” The opening date is still uncertain because a bathroom is to be added on the first floor and the kitchen is being enlarged and renovated. The house needs to be in tiptop shape when the first guests arrive at the door. Currently two volunteers reside in community at the house while it is being renovated.

Dorothy Day wrote: “I offered up a special prayer, a prayer which came with tears and anguish, that some way would open up for me to use what talents I possessed for my fellow workers, for the poor.”

Prayer is essential to the structure of the house and gives the foundation to this commitment to the poor. Prayer gatherings, open to all, are held at the house at 6:30 each Friday night. !

Even from a distance, other Ursuline sisters, associates, and friends can be involved in this new ministry, the Dorothy Day House of Hospitality. For more information, see our web site — www.DorothyDayMemphis.org — or call Sister Maureen Griner, OSU, at (901) 725-2707

Peter had the vision; Dorothy was able to make that vision into a reality. Peter convinced Dorothy to help him start a radical Catholic paper which would highlight the plight of the workers of the world and help transform society — a paper that was both revolutionary and nonviolent. The Catholic Worker was born. The paper led many of its readers to want do something. Thus began the Catholic Worker houses of hospitality.

Once the houses were established, young and old alike were drawn to the Catholic Worker Movement and to Dorothy Day. They saw in it a hope for the renewal of the church and themselves.

Dorothy Day, heroic foundress of the Catholic Worker Movement, still inspires thousands to dramatically change their lives because the poor are forced to live in subhuman conditions. Dorothy Day died in 1980 at the age of 83. Her legacy continues.

Information courtesy of the Dorothy Day Archives, Marquette University

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Soli Deo Gloria We rejoice in the gifts of our sisters, given for the kingdom of God

Sister Betsy Moyer is the new administrator of Saint Joseph Villa, the long-term health care facility of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph.

She is a Licensed Practical Nurse with more than nine years’ experience in long-term care. She served as director of nursing for St. Joseph Villa in 2003-2004.

Sherry Gainer, post office operations manager for South Central Kentucky reads a retirement certificate to Sister Francis Joseph Porter at a luncheon on February 28. Sister Francis Joseph served 18 years as postmaster of the Maple Mount office.

Sister Rita Scott has been appointed to a two-year term on the Kenergy Commercial Resource Committee. The group provides input on Kenergy plans, progress, and goals.

Members have the opportunity to learn more about the energy business in general and electric cooperatives in particular. Sister Rita is plant administrator at Mount Saint Joseph.

Sister Emma Anne Munsterman has received the Doctor of Naturopathy diploma from Trinity College of Natural Health, Warsaw, Indiana.

Specializing in wellness, naturopathy deals with lifestyle causes of disease through natural approaches such as proper nutrition, rest, and stress management. Sister Emma Anne is nationally certified in reflexology, hypnotherapy, and massage. She serves at Caritas Peace Center in Louisville as a licensed massage therapist and a bodywork practitioner.

Sister Fran Wilhelm was named 2005 Distinguished Graduate of St. Anthony Elementary School in Hereford, Texas.

A 1942 St. Anthony graduate, Sister Fran is currently director of Centro Latino in Owensboro. St. Anthony principal Ann Lueb presents the award to Sister Fran in a January 30 ceremony in Hereford.

The 2005 Rothko Chapel Oscar Romero Award for Commitment to Truth and Freedom was presented to the Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition International (TASSC). Sister Dianna Ortiz, TASSC founder and executive director, accepted the award April 3 in Houston, Texas. On March 19-20, Sister Dianna received the “Voice of the Voiceless” Award from Annunciation House, a sanctuary for refugees and the homeless located in Houston, Texas.

Sisters Rose Marita O’Bryan, Rita Klarer, and Annalita Lancaster presented “A Legacy of Partnerships” at Brescia University on three evenings in February and March. In exploring the most influential partnerships for the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, Sisters Annalita and Rose Marita focused on founders Father Paul Joseph Volk and Mother Aloysius Willett. Sister Rita spoke in the persona of Mary, the mother of Jesus, reflecting on her life with her son and her husband, Joseph.

Sister Rose Marita is the newly appointed director of the Contemporary Woman program at the University. Sister Annalita is Director of Mission Effectiveness for the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph. Sister Rita is pastoral minister for St. Patrick Parish, Kansas City, Missouri.

A follow-up program on “Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph: Changing America in the 21st Century through Education and Christian Formation” featured panelists Sisters Rose Marita, Monica Seaton, and Amelia Stenger.

In the Joy of Eternal Life The union of prayer which exists among us continues after we enter eternal life. Through prayer, the bond of love which unites us forms a vital link with those who have died. (From The Ursuline Way of Life)

Sister Charles Ann DeNardi, 95, died December 17, 2004, in her 74th year of religious life. A native of St. Mary in Marion County, Kentucky, she was an educator for 43 years in Kentucky, Missouri, and New Mexico.

For 13 years she served in outreach ministry in Louisville. Survivors include her brother, Rev. Charles DeNardi of Owensboro.

Sister Mary Bartholene Warren, 102, died April 13, 2005, in her 83rd year of religious life. A native of St. Mary in Marion County, Kentucky, she was an educator for 57 years in Kentucky and New Mexico. During her 16-year ministry in New Mexico, she knew Mother Katharine Drexel.

She often said, with pride and reverence, “I knew a saint.” As a centenarian, Sister Bartholene was an inspiration to all her knew her.

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ometimes in life there are events or experiences that have a dramatic, life-lasting effect on a person. We experienced such a moving, soul searching, spirit-changing time when we, with nine other volunteers from the Diocese of Owensboro, traveled in the middle of the night from Owensboro, Kentucky, to Mandeville, Jamaica. The original purpose of the trip was to be a mission immersion. It was soon changed to a hurricane relief mission trip after the horrible devastation left by Hurricane Ivan. The group left Owensboro at 2:30 a.m. October 4, 2004, with approximately one ton of material among the 11 of us and returned at 1 a.m.October 12, 2004, with just our backpacks.

Little did we realize how those eight days would make an indelible mark on our spirits.

How blessed we were to walk among God’s poor yet beautiful ones — women, children, and men.

JOURNEY TO JAMAICA Volunteers minister in Mandeville, Owensboro’s sister diocese

by Sister Barbara Jean Head, OSU, and Sister Jacinta Powers, OSU

Each morning started early with two members of the team preparing breakfast for the group, followed by each person’s preparation of a bag lunch, then traveling an hour or more to the various work sites. Members of the team were divided into groups according to the work chosen for the day.

After supper each evening, the team ended the day with the Liturgy of the Eucharist and breaking open the Word of God. On our first day in Mandeville, we moved four Mercy Sisters completely out of their rented house — which had been damaged by Hurricane Ivan — into a home next to the Mission Center in Mandeville. The sisters had been without electricity and water for over a month.

On the following days, some groups worked at the medical clinics, while others worked at St. Vincent Strombi High School or helped assemble prefabricated Food for the Poor houses for some of the residents. The typical house is a 12 x 12-foot wooden building with a zinc roof and a front porch, without plumbing or electricity. A family sometimes has to wait two years for this dwelling.

We were privileged to walk the roads and climb the mountains to visit face to face these indigent yet radiantly happy people. We met Ivy, a woman bedridden from paralysis for 20 years, yet gifted with a deep faith and an inspiring compassion. We met Charlie and his family of four children living in a one-room dwelling. Charlie works four days making one bag of charcoal which sells for $1.50 in Kingston. Proudly he showed us the tree that produces bananas for his family and a few for selling. While Charlie hung the hand-washed clothes on the line to dry, his wife was using a sewing machine held together by tape to mend and make school uniforms for the children. We visited a mother and daughter, Lillian and Pauletta, who endured the hurricane that completely leveled the mother’s house.

One morning we spent with the orphaned children at Our Lady of Hope Children’s Home. In the afternoon, we traveled to the nursing home for the abandoned elderly, Mary Help of Christians Home, and visited with the residents. This home is staffed by the Missionaries of Charity (Mother Teresa’s sisters). Among the residents were a group of blind women gathered in a large hot, humid room waiting for a kind word or touch. One of the women started dancing and singing. What a gift she was giving to us as we watched!

Many families who lost their homes to Hurricane Ivan may have to wait two years for replacement homes from Food for the Poor.

Paralyzed for 20 years, Ivy inspired the volunteers with her compassion and faith.

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Sister Jacinta tests for hemoglobin at St. Vincent Strombi School. Her young patient seems not to mind the pin prick as she smiles for the photographer.

Mary Danhauer visits a resident of the Mary Help of Christians Home in Balaclava. In June, Mary begins an extended period of service in the Diocese of Mandeville. She is a nurse practitioner and an Ursuline associate.

Sister Barbara Jean (left) conducts health interviews with patients , while Martha House assists them with various health needs outside the clinic in Bull Savannah. Martha and Sister Jacinta Powers, both nurses, will return to Jamaica in September for three weeks.

The country was beautiful with its lush, green plants and trees. Amid the green countryside, we saw many fallen trees, torn-off roofs, and homes destroyed by the hurricane. The luxury of these people is the countryside and their radiant spirit. Material wealth they have none, and yet their eyes are filled with joy. The children walk sometimes as far as ten miles to school. Since they have only one good pair of shoes for school, they sometimes take off their shoes before they begin the long walk. They need to save those good shoes for school, and they want them to last as long as possible.

In Jamaica, we were introduced to a culture totally different and distinct from our own. We witnessed a faith that is not dependent on earthly possessions or material wealth. We witnessed a deep appreciation from the Jamaican people that we had come and given of our time to help them. We were gifted and graced by the presence and spirit of the Jamaican people. Our lives are richer for having spent these days with these cheerful, warm and grateful people.

The entire Owensboro group gathered at the home of Bishop Gordon Bennett for this photo. Lower row, from left: Dick Murphy, Sister Naomi Rosenberger (a Benedictine working in Jamaica), Mary Danhauer, Sister Jacinta Powers, Martha House, Bishop Bennett, Sister Barbara Jean Head, Dorothy Tipmore, Father Richard Powers. The four men in the back row are Kenneth Phelps, Aaron Jahn, Michael Bogdan, and Mark Johnson.

Sister Barbara Jean Head is a member of the leadership team of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph. She is celebrating her 40th jubilee in religious life this summer.

Sister Jacinta Powers, a registered nurse, is an AmeriCorps volunteer aiding in prescription assistance for Medicare beneficiaries. She has been an Ursuline sister for 32 years.

The Diocese of Mandeville Mandeville is the youngest, and poorest, of the three dioceses in Jamaica, an island nation in the West Indies about 90 miles south of Cuba and 600 miles south of Miami. With a population approaching three million, the island is about the size of Connecticut. Although it is a tourist destination sometimes described as a tropical paradise, Jamaica is the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Ninety-eight percent of the people are descended from African slaves. The languages are English and Creole.

Mandeville became a diocese in 1997. Bishop Gordon Bennett, S.J., a Colorado native, succeeded the first bishop, Paul Boyle, C.P., in July 2004. The diocese’s approximately 8,000 Catholics comprise less than two percent of the area’s population. The people of the area are served by about 26 resident priests, 40 sisters, and a number of lay volunteer ministers.

In 2002, the Diocese of Owensboro entered into a “twinning” relationship with the Diocese of Mandeville. Since then there has been an annual — and generous — collection for Mandeville. In May, the fourth volunteer group from the diocese will travel to Mandeville to continue the ministry of assisting in building and repairing houses, providing medical care, teaching, and responding to the many other needs of the people of Owensboro’s sister diocese.

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The Journey Continues Funds from the Flatboat Adventure enrich our ministries

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he Ursuline Flatboat Adventure, August 11-15, 2004, provided more than enough excitement for the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph and their many friends who followed the voyage of Angela’s Ark from Louisville to Owensboro. Now, thanks to the many generous persons who donated to this historic event, Angela’s Ark is enriching Ursuline ministries from Washington, D.C., to Española, New Mexico, and from Horse Branch, Kentucky, to Chillán, Chile.

The goals for the Flatboat Adventure included 1) highlighting the 130-year history of educational mission and service of the Ursuline Sisters; 2) stimulating interest in vocations to the Ursuline community; 3) involving others — particularly schoolchildren — in a virtual historical experience; and 4) raising funds to support Ursuline missions.

The photos and stories on these pages document the use of these funds — $60,000 to date — for Ursuline ministries in keeping with the Ursuline mission of community, Christian formation, service to the poor. The six ministries that received major grants were determined by the congregational leader and her council. Leadership then invited community members at large to apply for “Angela’s Ark Grants” — mini-grants of up to $500, with applications to be reviewed by a committee of Ursuline sisters. In this way these donors to the Ursuline Flatboat Adventure join the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph in their mission and ministries. This is also a way for us to express our gratitude and that of countless people who will benefit from their generosity.

St. Mary School System, Paducah, Kentucky, received a mini-grant to support faculty and staff training in the three schools that are working toward a Positive, Accepting, Catholic Environment (PACE). Based on a national program, PACE seeks to empower school personnel with practical techniques to help all students behave responsibly and respectfully. Shown in a PACE planning session are, seated from left, Chelsea Urhahn, Kayla Mayfield, Lisa Clark, Mark Hewitt, and Sister Mary Celine Weidenbenner. Standing are Michae Word, Ryan Lutz, and Rhonda Webb. Sister Mary Celine, who wrote the grant application, teaches sixth grade at St. Mary Middle School.

A mini-grant to the Contemporary Woman Program at Brescia University will help bring Dr. Carolyn Hannan, director of the United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women, to Owensboro in October. Dr. Hannan’s experience and publications have covered gender perspectives in areas such as water supply, sanitation, health, population, statistics, human settlements, natural resource management, governance, and poverty Dr. Carolyn Hannan eradication. She will speak on progress over the past decade in promoting gender equality and empowerment of women. The writer of the grant was Sister Rose Marita O’Bryan, newly appointed director of the Contemporary Woman Program.

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Mount Saint Joseph Conference and Retreat Center received a major grant to purchase a videoconferencing system for the use of the Center, the Ursuline Community, the Owensboro Diocese, and others interested in spiritual and educational programs available through this medium. The first use of the system was on March 15, when diocesan and school administrators gathered at Mount Saint Joseph attended — through technology — a National Catholic Educational Assocation workshop being held in Shreveport, Louisiana. Center director Sister Amelia Stenger indicates that the system will be used for at least five more programs this year.

A mini-grant is providing books, DVDs, and DVD players for the Religious Education Program at Immaculate Parish, Owensboro, Kentucky. The grant writer was Sister Julia Head, pastoral associate and director of the religious education program at Immaculate. The materials will benefit catechists and their young students and their families, as well as adults involved in study groups around scripture and church teaching. In the photo, scripture group members Betty Wells and Patrick Doyle review the DVD version of The Visual Bible: Acts that was purchased through the grant.

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Brescia students David Henley, George Gray, and Sister Monica Seaton examine some of the books, videotapes, and CDs acquired for the personal enrichment and inspiration of faculty, staff, and students at the Father Leonard Alvey Library at Brescia University. Director of Library Services Sister Judith Nell Riney, who wrote the grant application, says that it will help the library “go beyond the academic budget to enrich the spiritual dimension.”

A portable electronic keyboard now graces liturgies at New Mexico’s Santa Clara, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque Pueblos, thanks to an Angela’s Ark Grant. Sister Cecelia Joseph Olinger, who offers music leadership and many other pastoral services for Franciscan Tewa missions, applied for this grant. In the photo, she demonstrates the keyboard for an admiring group of Tewa children. From left: Tamara Garcia, Sister Cecelia Joseph, Hailey Gonzales (front), Brandon Escalanti, Edward Valdez, Ivory Gonzales (front), Mariah Pena (back), Lance Pena, Devon Martinez, and Lorenzen Gonzales.

Updated materials for religious education came to the rural Kentucky parishes of St. Anthony, Axtel, and St. Mary of the Woods, McQuady, through an Angela’s Ark grant. Sister Joan Walz, director of the K-8 program for both parishes, introduces some of her students and staff to the materials, for which she wrote the grant.

From left, front: Sister Joan, Airyonna Leffel, Dalton Payne, Allie Blandford and Brittany Carwile (both seated); back row: Nina Hazelwood, Jacob Henning, Brianna Henning, Gloria Meredith.

The ministries described on these pages are only about half of those so far supported by funds generated by the Ursuline Flatboat Adventure. Watch for the fall issue of Ursulines Alive, which will feature more Angela’s Ark Grants. Again, thanks to all those whose generosity makes these ministries possible. May God bless you abundantly!

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A mini-grant to Sacred Heart Retreat and Conference Center near Gallup, New Mexico, will enable more Native Americans to come to the center for retreats and days of prayer. “They want to come,” says center director Sister Mary Matthias Ward, who wrote the grant, “but they often can’t afford it.” The center offers and hosts programs in a desert environment of peace and tranquility for people of all ages and faiths. In the photo, Sister Mary Matthias makes the outdoor stations with Stephanie, of the Ute tribe, and Adrian, a Navajo.

A major grant went to Hope House in Memphis, Tennessee, to expand the computer program and to initiate an art and music program for the children. Hope House is a nonprofit agency committed to family-centered, community-based, coordinated care for children ages six weeks through six years who are infected or affected by HIV and AIDS. The grant request was submitted by Hope House Director of Operations Sister Margaret Ann Zinselmeyer. Here, three Hope House children playfully work on a an Explorer computer — a tool equipped with learning tools and games that enable children to expand their computer skills.

An Angela’s Ark grant is sponsoring ten children from three families in the Religious Education Program at Precious Blood Parish, Owensboro.

“We don’t turn anyone away,” explains pastoral associate/DRE Sister Rosanne Spalding. “The funds from the grant will help fund the program so that even more children will be able to be helped by it.” Seven of the children benefiting from the grant are (front from left) Cierra Berry, Lane Dickens, Lydea Dickens; (middle) Alexandra Muñoz, Luke Dickens; (back) Katashia Berry, Patricia Teasley.

A desire to offer a Gratitude Day for long-time faithful supporters of the Contemporary Woman Program at Brescia University inspired Sister Marita Greenwell to apply for an Angela’s Ark mini-grant. The celebration, on April 2, included prayer, memories, music and art, fellowship and fun. Among the 30 persons who gathered at Mount Saint Joseph Center for his event were (from left), Barbara Knott, Evelyn Lipscomb, and Marjorie Richmond. After more than 25 years, Sister Marita is retiring as director of the Contemporary Woman Program.

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Full of Courage and High Hope continued from page 4

Blanco When Sisters Gertrude Pike, Andrew Lamkin and Florence Monarch arrived in Blanco on September 15, 1919, they found themselves in another world. The new Saint Rose Church had just been dedicated. The school was a large consolidated public school. The convent, however, was a small and primitive adobe hut of two and a half rooms.

The “half room,” which was to serve as kitchen, was a small annex with an incomplete roof and dirt floor. The wood stove had a pipe, but no flue — smoke just went out through the opening in the roof! The little convent was so cold in winter that water in the wash pans and pitchers froze solid!

By 1921, a more comfortable convent was built, but it burned in 1929. The next convent was still quite primitive, and the sisters ingeniously created furniture out of orange crates! There was no Sister Ancilla Marie Warren poses with her music students at Sacred Heart School, electricity, so they used a generator to get power Farmington, in 1986. The daughter of Kentucky Mesa pioneers Edgar and Loretta for a few hours each evening. Nor was there (Stallings) Warren, Sister Ancilla Marie served 33 years in the Diocese of Gallup. running water. The sisters had to siphon water from the irrigation ditch and prepare it for drinking and other uses happy. Practical jokes and humorous situations produced lots of by a crude purification system involving filtering it through pebbles, laughter — which balanced the severity of their living conditions adding chlorine, and boiling. and probably preserved their sanity. True to the spirit of Saint Angela, they found their refuge at the feet of Jesus, thus sustaining their hope As late as the 1950s, the sisters still had no plumbing. The story is and dedication. told of how Sister Francis Mary Wilhelm accidentally burned the outhouse down in 1951. After burning the used toilet paper, she Farmington didn’t notice that a spark somehow had flown into the toilet paper In Farmington, Sisters Margaret Mary Barrow, Antoinette Krampe box, which she returned to the outhouse. When another sister and Veronica Benedict lived at San Juan Hospital until a convent headed for the outhouse during recess, she found nothing but was built. Farmington at that time was a town of nearly 800 people smoldering ashes! After this adventure, indoor plumbing was finally and no paved streets — a cosmopolitan town of Hispanics, Anglos, installed in the Blanco convent. and Navajos who still wore their colorful traditional garb as everyday dress.

Besides the primitive living conditions, the sisters’ greatest challenge was communicating with the Spanish-American students and Sacred Heart School opened on September 15, 1919, with nine families who spoke little or no English, especially at first. The students, but the enrollment increased so rapidly that the original school building was soon too small. continued on page 14 With many people supporting Father Fintan’s dream of Catholic education, the tiny convent was soon ready. The sisters fondly called it their little “cigar box.” They were so happy there that when the new church and school were built “on the hill” in 1928, they were reluctant to move.

The new Sacred Heart Church and spacious Saint Thomas School/ Convent were far superior to the original buildings near the hospital.

The combined school/convent building not only housed the sisters but also the eight grades of Saint Thomas School until January 1958, when construction of the current Sacred Heart School was completed.

The Saint Thomas building now serves as the Parish Center.

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The choir of St. Rose of Lima Church, Blanco, at Easter 1920. The Ursulines are Mother Agnes O’Flynn and Sisters Gertrude Pike, Andrew Lamkin, and Florence Monarch.

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In Remembrance and Gratitude We give thanks for these generous stewards of God’s gifts

by Sister Suzanne Sims, OSU

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he image of Gerard Manley Hopkins of “ah, bright wings” in his poem “God’s Grandeur” expresses the blessings we Ursulines feel from those whose lives have touched ours in so many ways before God called them Home. The eyes of faith help us to see God’s work in others’ lives each day. There are three special persons who will continue to be “bright wings” for the Ursuline mission. These friends planned their estates in such a way that our mission will prosper. We dedicate this special remembrance and say thanks in our prayers for each of them.

Frances Rosa and Bernard Frederick Head The parents of our Sister Julia Marie were like family to all the sisters.

For many years they lived and worked at the Mount. Mr. Head is remembered for his generosity and service as well as his wit and practical jokes. Mrs. Head befriended everyone with her beautiful smile and gentle, humble spirit.

PICNIC 2005

Peeling and slicing onions for the Mount Saint Joseph Picnic is obviously lots of fun for Sisters Margaret Ann Aull, Annalita Lancaster, Cordelia Spalding, and Mary Irene Cecil. The Picnic — our 35th this year! — is the event of the summer for sisters, associates, and our countless friends. Many assist in preparations and many more come to enjoy sumptuous Kentucky barbecue and all the trimmings, exciting games with great prizes, a big silent auction, and special attractions for children. All proceeds go for the benefit of the retired sisters. Mark your calendars now for Sunday, September 11. Games open at 11 a.m., with serving from 11:30 to 2, CDT. Questions?

Want to help? Contact Marian Bennett at (270) 2292006, mbennett@maplemount.org.

We all know where Sister Julia and her brother, Herman, received their deep faith and willingness to share it so well. Sister Julia currently ministers at Immaculate Parish in Owensboro. She was able to be present during her mother’s last illness and until Frances died earlier this year.

Above: Frances and Bernard Head.

Left: Mary Carpini

Mr. and Mrs. Head wanted the Ursuline mission to thrive and ensured that by the gift of their Owensboro home and a generous annuity to the Ursuline Sisters.

Mary O’Bryan Carpini Mary (Mrs. Sam) Carpini of Louisville had many Ursuline friends.

Mary’s own sister, Sister Aurea (deceased) and many of Sister Aurea’s classmates, were Mary’s lifelong friends. As an Ursuline Associate, Mary knew many of the sisters. Sisters Clarentia Hutchins and Mary Matthias Ward are two who remember her best. Both were able to minister to Mary in her later years.

Known for her motherly care to young GIs at Fort Knox, Mary supported her husband in his army career while she concentrated on making their home a place where she could use her skills of decorating and sewing. She worked as a secretary for a few years, but she never lost her interest in beautifully made clothing that made her look pretty . . . even shopping for a new dress just days before she died. Mary was full of creative energy and lived out her Cursillo commitment to love Jesus in her everyday life.

The Ursuline Sisters remember and honor Mary Carpini for bequeathing her estate to the Ursuline mission. May your heavenly dress always delight you, Mary! !

Sister Suzanne Sims is Director of Mission Advancement for the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph.

Is it YOUR WILL to continue your support of the mission and ministries of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph even after your natural death?

Please consider naming the Sisters as a beneficiary. To talk with someone about possibilities, contact Sister Suzanne Sims at (270) 229-2008, ssims@maplemount.org.

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difficulties were balanced by the sisters’ ability to find humor in trying situations, the hospitality of the Hispanic people, the kindness of their good pastor, Father Felician, and the natural beauty of the sunny desert environment.

Ursuline Vocations from the Southwest From the Kentucky Colonists’ Families Sr. Ancilla Marie Warren (Waterflow) Sr. Mary Edgar Warren (Waterflow) Sr. Consolata Stallings (Waterflow) Sr. Francis Mary Wilhelm* (Waterflow; Hereford, Texas) *granddaughter of pioneer Edgar Warren

From New Mexico Families, Educated by Ursulines

Waterflow When the Ursulines arrived in Waterflow in 1919, Mother Agnes O’Flynn, Sister Elizabeth Kelly, and Sister Bartholomew Walsh remained there to start the school the Kentucky colonists had dreamed of. A temporary school opened with 19 students. Since the convent was still just a blueprint, Fred and Lottie (Stallings) Wethington offered the sisters a small dwelling (photo page 4). Describing this makeshift convent, one sister wrote, “This small improvised convent on the Kentucky Mesa was rather crude in appearance, and the rays of the New Mexico sun found their way through the cracks and crevices.” The cold wind blew right through those cracks and crevices, too. In the absence of wallpaper, people brought in loads of newspapers, and the walls were soon papered with news items, want ads and even recipes! Besides helping to keep the wind out, this wallpaper provided interesting reading and was responsible for many tempting dishes served on the sisters’ table.

From this little dwelling, the sisters watched the construction, across the road, of the large four-story brick building which would be both convent and school.

Finally, in July 1920, the Ursulines moved into their new convent, though the interior was not quite finished or furnished. This move signified that the Ursulines were now truly established in New Mexico!

Sacred Heart Academy was dedicated on September 8, 1920 — one year after the Ursulines left Kentucky. Many friends and patrons attended the joyful event, including numerous Franciscan friars and other clergy. Among those was Santa Fe’s Archbishop Albert Daeger, OFM, who had said one of Kentucky Mesa’s first Masses in Bachelor’s Hall when the colony was still in the dream stage.

Sr. Virginia Mary Nichols (Chinle, Arizona; Waterflow)* Sr. Sara Marie Gomez (Gobernador)* Sr. Michele Morek (Aztec)** Sr. Sheila Anne Smith (Farmington)** Sr. Dianna Ortiz (Grants)*** * graduate of SHA, Waterflow ** graduate of St. Thomas, Farmington and SHA, Waterflow *** graduate of Mount Saint Joseph Academy, Maple Mount, Kentucky

ran a bus to Waterflow, so Anglo and Navajo youngsters from Shiprock joined the student body as day students. By the 1950s, some students from Farmington carpooled daily to attend the Academy.

As in Blanco, the language barrier challenged the sisters at Waterflow, who struggled with both Spanish and Navajo.

Attempts at communication often resulted in humorous — and sometimes embarrassing — translations. Once a Navajo boy told one of the sisters of his brother’s death. Horrified, the sister told the others that the boy had been devoured by a wolf. The fact — sad enough —was that he had been found dead in a hogan on Wolf Run Mesa.

The Academy’s 38 acres provided “elbow room.” As at Maple Mount, the property accommodated a farm —“El Rancho Grande” —complete with various crops along with horses, cows, pigs, chickens, sheep and goats, all of which helped to provide nutritious meals for students and sisters alike.

With the dedication of the Academy, Mother Agnes’s work in New Mexico was finished. Coincidentally, that very night, word came that community superior Mother Aloysius Willett was dying. Father Lucian Clements, who had come from Sacred Heart Academy, Waterflow, in 1964, the year of its closing.

Kentucky for the dedication, took Mother Agnes to the train in Santa Fe the next day.

After Mother Aloysius’ death, Mother Agnes became superior of the Mount Saint Besides the farm and a large playground area near the Joseph Community. Throughout her term, the New Mexico missions she had school, there was also a spacious front campus, eventually helped to found remained most dear to her. beautified by three large sections of lawn and enhanced by cottonwood trees bordering the U-shaped entrance avenue.

On September 13, 1920, Sister Elizabeth opened Sacred Heart Academy with 28 The greenery and shade suggested an oasis in the desert students. A high school department was added a few years later. The spacious environment, and the sisters often referred to the Academy building housed not only the convent and classrooms, but also dormitories for as “Little Maple Mount.” Until recent years, when air travel boarders. Thus, the Academy served not only the colonists’ children as day became common, the New Mexico sisters seldom made the students, but also Anglo, Hispanic and Native American boarders from more long trip to Kentucky but usually stayed at Waterflow continued on page 15 distant areas. Eventually, when the roads were paved, the Franciscans in Shiprock

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Full of Courage and High Hope continued from page 14

during the summers, even making their annual retreat there.

Associating Waterflow’s campus with Maple Mount must have given them a more tangible sense of their connection with the sisters at the motherhouse.

Fast Forward From these modest beginnings, the Ursuline presence has spread throughout the Southwest. Sisters Elizabeth Ann Ray, Joseph Adrian Russell, Charles Catherine Medley and Frances Ursula Heimes took over Saint Joseph School in San Fidel when the Colorado Springs Franciscans left in 1956. Sisters Peter Claver Abell and Mary Mark Vissman opened Saint Teresa School in Grants in 1964. Sisters Elizabeth Ann Ray, Dorothy Payne, Ursulita Argabright, When her tooth came out, this Rosemary Pickett, and Marilyn little girl received loving Felhoelter were the first Ursulines attention from Sister Ambrose Martin. The photo was taken to serve at Saint Charles Borromeo, about 1972 at St. Joseph School, Albuquerque, when the San Fidel.

Presentation Sisters left in 1969.

Since then, Ursulines have ministered in many other locations in New Mexico and Arizona.

Reflection Who could have guessed, in 1906, when three adventurous young men met in Arkansas, that their dreams of venturing to the Sister Marie Brenda Vowels enjoys a pastoral “Wild West” visit with Albert and Lupe Paytiono at Acoma would be Pueblo. “Lupe was a good friend of all the instruments of Ursulines,” Sister Marie Brenda said.

God’s Providence? It was their dreams and those of the Kentucky Mesa colonists that brought the Ursulines, full of courage and high hope, to New Mexico. It surely must have been God’s way of bringing Saint Angela’s spirit and charism to Native Americans, Hispanics, and Anglos — and of enriching the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph with the multicultural heritage of the peoples of the Southwest. !

Sister Sheila Anne Smith, a graduate of Ursuline schools in New Mexico, lives in Albuquerque, where she is engaged in tutoring, writing, and consulting for Loyola Press. An Ursuline Sister for 43 years, she has ministered in New Mexico and Arizona since 1979.

Gratitude from the writer and editor also goes to archivist Sister Vickie Cravens for her substantial help with this story. Anyone interested in more details about the early history of the Ursulines in New Mexico will enjoy reading Sister Mary Michael Barrow’s book, Candles of the Lord, published in 1945.

Ursuline Ministry in the Southwest NEW MEXICO

ARIZONA

Tucson - 1968-75 Waterflow - 1919-64 St. Michaels, 1985-86 Blanco - 1919-51, 1985-86 Klagetoh - 1986-87 Farmington - 1919 to present Greasewood - 1986-92 San Fidel - 1956-96 Houck - 1991-93 Grants - 1964-96 Holbrook - 1992 Albuquerque -1969 to present Acoma Pueblo -1971-1986; 1989-91 Zuni Pueblo - 1980-82, 1991-95, 1997-99 Bloomfield - 1982-1988 San Rafael - 1986-88 San Juan Pueblo - 1986-89 Note: This list does not Santa Fe - 1988-93 include the many Aztec - 1990 to present “catechism missions” and Flora Vista - 1995-98, 1999-2000 summer assignments in 2002-present which Ursuline Sisters Belen - 1996-97 ministered during these Cuba (NM) - 1997-98 86 years . . . and perhaps Gallup -1997 to present other missions or dates Española - 2003 to present that we failed to find.

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NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 120 OWENSBORO KY 42301

Habemus Papam!

Father, eternal shepherd, hear the prayers of your people for your servant, John Paul, who governed your Church with love.

In your mercy, bring him with the flock entrusted to his care to the reward you have promised your faithful servants.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

From the Roman Missal

The prayers of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph are with our Holy Father John Paul II as he enters into eternal joy with God, and with our new Holy Father Benedict XVI as he leads our Church into the future.

Dear brothers and sisters, After the Great Pope John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me, a simple, humble worker in the Lord’s vineyard.

I am comforted by the fact that the Lord knows how to work and act even with insufficient instruments. And above all, I entrust myself to your prayers.

With the joy of the risen Lord and confidence in his constant help, we will go forward. The Lord will help us and Mary his most holy mother will be alongside us.

Thank you.

First words of Benedict XVI