Goodness in Action
July 2024 Updates
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Top: Sisters and Associates in Belmont, California, led by Sister Kathryn Keenan, SNDdeN blessing the outgoing leadership team.
Bottom: Sisters Ginny Scally, Maria Delaney, Pat O'Brien, Kathryn Keenan and Roberta Rzeznik, SNDdeN.
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Celebrating St. Julie, 10 Years of the East-West Province—and a new Leadership Team! | |
On July 12, our community united nationwide as Sisters, Associates and staff marked a momentous occasion: the 10th anniversary of our Province's formation and the birthday of our beloved foundress, St. Julie Billiart! Our shared mission was honored with vibrant celebrations in Belmont, California; Baltimore, Maryland; Windsor, Connecticut; and across Massachusetts in Boston, Wenham, and Worcester.
This event also marked the transition of our leadership teams. Join us in welcoming Sisters Maria Delaney, Kathryn Keenan, Patricia O’Brien, Roberta Rzeznik and Ginny Scally, SNDdeN who will serve for a five-year term.
We thank our outgoing leadership team, Sisters Barbara Barry, Elaine Bain, Eileen Burns, Patricia Chappell and Mary Farren, SNDdeN for their years of guidance, perseverance and dedication.
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Sister Julie Edwina Tucker, SNDdeN. | |
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Remembering Julie Edwina Tucker, SNDdeN (1928 - 2024)
Sister Julie Edwina Tucker entered the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in 1946. Sister Edwina enjoyed all her ministries, whether teaching in the classroom or serving in administration. She served at several schools in Massachusetts and Connecticut, including as principal of her alma mater, Notre Dame High School, formerly known as Sacred Heart High School.
Sister Edwina went home to her good God on July 9, 2024, at the age of 96.
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Top: Sister Ani Wihbey, SNDdeN poses with her family.
Bottom: Sister Ani delivers remarks.
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Celebrating a Century of Trailblazing Service
On Sunday, July 14, family, friends, Sisters and staff came to Ipswich, Massachusetts, traveling from near and far to celebrate a very special occasion—the 100th birthday of Sister Ani Wihbey, SNDdeN! Through her ministries in teaching, nursing, organizing and educating on public health in Nicaragua and Brazil, Sister Ani has touched countless lives. Those who could not attend in person joined via Zoom, reflecting Sister Ani’s powerful international impact.
Thank you to all who joined us in celebrating this intrepid and inspiring Sister of Notre Dame de Namur!
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Emmanuel College – Mission Made Manifest
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Emmanuel College is a Catholic, co-educational, residential institution with a beautiful 17-acre campus in the heart of Boston's educational, scientific, cultural and medical communities.
Learn more about the history of the college, from its foundation by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur to the present day, in this article by Sister Janet Eisner, SNDdeN, which originally appeared in The Boston Pilot on June 28, 2024.
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The Emmanuel College Quad with Wilkens Science Center pictured center and the Jean Yawkey Center to the right.
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Sister Kristin Hokanson, SNDdeN speaks with students at the 2024 Notre Dame High School Student Leadership Conference at Emmanuel College.
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Notre Dame Virtual School – Networking for 21st-Century Education | |
In the 21st century, our foundress' inspiration finds new expression in the Notre Dame Virtual School (NDVS), an initiative begun in 2001 by Sister Kristin Hokanson, SNDdeN, using the tool of technology to network Notre Dame schools and sponsored ministries worldwide.
Learn more in this article by Sister Kristin Hokanson, SNDdeN which originally appeared in The Boston Pilot on July 19, 2024.
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Sowing Goodness - Celebrating a Centennial of Shared Mission and Vision in Japan | |
In July 1924, six Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur embarked from San Francisco, California, to Okayama, Japan, to oversee a school for young women, persevering despite the Sisters’ limited knowledge of Japanese culture. Now, 100 years later, our Sisters in Japan are commemorating the enduring Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur legacy.
Learn more about Japan's centennial anniversary, our 175 years of an Enduring Legacy of Goodness in New England, updates from our schools and ministries and more in our newest issue of Sowing Goodness!
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From left to right: Sisters Aimee Julie (Louise Koppenhafer), Frances Helena (Agnes Comber), Marie Claire (Elizabeth Leahy), Marie Raymond (Margaret Mary Lane), Marie Lucilla (Ellen Mulvaney) and Agnes St. John (Agnes Donnelly), SNDdeN. | |
Looking at the 2024 Election through the Lens of Transformative Justice | |
In November 2023, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) launched the Transforming Grace: The Work of Transformative Justice initiative and invited its members to look at the 2024 U.S. national election campaign through the lens of transformative justice. Throughout the year leading up to the election in November 2024, LCWR is sharing periodic one-page reflection guides with inspiring and interesting videos, brief readings, prayers and questions intended to deepen conversation.
The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur East-West Province created the Transforming Grace Committee and have encouraged our community to use the reflections to engage meaningfully in the initiative. Sisters, Associates and staff use the reflections individually and to guide discussion in their home communities and larger prayer groups.
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Highlights from our Learning Communities | | |
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Top: Students, Sisters and staff on the stairs of Emmanuel College in Boston.
Bottom: Sister Rosemary Reynolds, SNDdeN is presented with a gift from Notre Dame San Jose (NDSJ) students.
(Photos courtesy of NDSJ)
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Annual Notre Dame High School Conference Uplifts and Inspires
From June 24 - 27, student leaders from 11 schools across our learning community came together for this year's Notre Dame High School Student Leadership Conference at Emmanuel College in Boston. More than 100 students and their teachers and chaperones joined our Sisters for several days of workshops, uplifting speeches, prayer and community service projects.
"It is a joy for me to join our Notre Dame High School students and faculty members each year," says Sister Rosemary Reynolds, SNDdeN, one of the primary organizers of the conference. "As Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, we are blessed to know that the charism and mission are alive and well in the hands of our students and faculty members."
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175th Anniversary Celebratory Liturgies in Massachusetts | | |
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In addition to our gala on October 16, we are holding three celebratory Liturgies in Massachusetts.
Join us at:
- Notre Dame du Lac Assisted Living Community in Worcester - August 24, 4 p.m.
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Space limited - RSVP by August 22 to Lauren Fitzgerald or call 617-387-2500 ext. 19.
- St. Gregory Parish in Dorchester - September 7, 4 p.m.
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St. Patrick Parish in Lowell - September 14, 4 p.m.
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