Sister Mary Jane Rolston celebrates 60 years as a Dominican Sister; Diocesan Awards are given to Religious Education Leaders; and S. Judy and S. Diane Capuano lead prayer at Shared Leadership Day. | |
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SHARINGS from LEADERSHIP
A Column by the Leadership Team
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Shared Leadership Day: Thank you to all who made Shared Leadership Day possible. We are very grateful that so many attended and listened so intently to the presentations by Peggy Mc Vetty and the various members of the Leadership Team. We invite and encourage you to prayerfully reflect upon what was said. Further follow-up information will be sent via email.
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Sisters Honored for Contributions in Religious Education
On October 26th, Bishop Barres presided at the annual Catechetical Service Awards at St. Agnes Cathedral honoring those serving in the ministry of Religious Education in the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Two of our sisters attended and were honored at this event. Sister Julie Thompson was given the St. Frances Cabrini Award for 60 years of evangelization of young people and Sister Joan Klimski was honored for 10 years as a Director of Religious Education. She currently serves at St. William the Abbott. Pictured above: Father Matt Browne, Joe Puvogel, Clarice Mulcahy, Bishop Barres, S. Joan, Janet Hoffman, Patty Suppa and Kaitlyn Toscano. Pictured at left: Sister Julie accepts her award for six decades of teaching and leading Religious Education.
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Mary Jane Rolston Celebrates 60 Years as a Dominican Sister
Sister Mary Jane Rolston has served as a Sister of St. Dominic of Amityville for 60 years!
She grew up in Richmond Hill as part of a big family, the oldest of seven children, who were “very much involved,” in her parish St. Benedict Joseph Labre. She attended Bishop McDonnell Memorial High School, and it was there, “I got a sense of Religious life,” she said. “The Dominican sisters were realistic, honest, straight forward, full of goodness, and full of God. That’s what attracted me to consider Religious life.”
But, she didn’t have to go far to see what good examples of Religious life looked like. An aunt on her mom’s side was a Sparkill Dominican sister; an aunt on her father’s side was a Franciscan in Peekskill and an uncle on her father’s side was a Christian Brother of De La Salle. “Get the picture?” Sister Mary Jane asked. “How could I excuse myself from the crowd?”
She also encountered the Dominican Sisters as a lay teacher at Sacred Heart Parish School in Glendale, while attending St. John's University to earn a degree in Education at night. "It was there, I saw the sisters interacting with each other in the cafeteria...I saw their joy."
“I vividly remember going to (the Motherhouse) Amityville with my brothers and sisters with a large trunk filled with stuff I was required to bring. My dad said, ‘Give it a try, Mary Jane. If it doesn’t work out, you can always come home.’ After all these years, I am still trying,” she said. “I love it. I love my vocation…it has worked in so many ways and on so many levels.”
As a Sister, her first assignment was as a parish school teacher in Incarnation School in Queens Village and then St. Joseph Patron School in Bushwick, Brooklyn. In 1973, she found a new passion: Religious Education. She served as the Director of Religious Education at St. Joseph School in Long Island City and then St. Dominic Parish in Brooklyn. She then served at St. Pascal Babylon Parish which merged with St. Catherine of Siena to become Our Lady of Light Church in St. Albans as Director of Religious Education and as a Pastoral Associate. She currently serves as the Director of Religious Education at Mary Queen of Heaven in Brooklyn.
She is grateful to the community for continuing her education with an MA in Religious Education from Manhattan College and an MS in Pastoral Counseling from Iona College. “I was able to use it in my ministry; I use it every day,” she said.
At Mary’s Queen of Heaven, she started right as Covid hit. “Everything went on Zoom,” she said. During virtual religion class, she saw “the kids were still in their pajamas, grandpa comes onto the screen to take a nap, the kids are still eating their breakfast." Needless to say, she was excited “to get back to normal.”
In Religious Education, she found a special ministry. “I love it,” she said. “It speaks to me and my values, not only joy and hope, but of God, and God in all the people. God is there …in our neighborhoods.... I love relating to and getting to know people.” She loves the kids, the teens, and the families who are so supportive. To her, relationships are sacred. She enjoys “discerning the needs of the church, serving in ministry and working with the people of God."
In this time of Jubilee, she says, “I feel grateful and I feel fulfilled." She is thankful for her community, ministry, and large family. As a lector, she has a love for Scripture, and quotes from the Gospel of John, “‘I came that you may have life, and have it to the full’ -- that keeps me going.”
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Traveling to the Lands of Dominic
If Sisters are interested in traveling to the Lands of Dominic this upcoming year, including Fanjeaux, please submit your name to cmasone@amityop.org.
From June 24 to July 2, 2024, you can immerse yourself in the Dominican spirit by visiting places where St. Dominic walked. Attached are the brochure and registration form.
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Election Committee News: Thank you, Volunteers!
During the last weeks in The Preaching Continues, the Election Committee has requested volunteers for three of the Congregational Standing Committees, the Assembly Planning, the Housing Review Board, and the Ministry Support Fund Committee. Seven sisters submitted their names. This number is sufficient to fill the committees but does not represent a need for a formal election. Therefore, the decision has been made to appoint these sisters to each of the committees for a three-year term. They are as follows:
Assembly Planning Committee
Ann Horn
Kathy Somerville
Housing Review Board
Elaine Jahrsdoerfer
Karen Lademann
Pat Walsh
Ministry Support Fund Committee
Terry Gallagher
Peggy Warren
We thank these sisters for their generosity in offering their time and talents for these important congregational committees.
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Thanks-For-Giving Event: November 18th
On Saturday, November 18, 2023, the OPening Word Program will celebrate "Thanks-For-Giving" from 1 - 4 PM in Helen Butler Hall in Dominican Village. This is an annual fundraiser and a blessing to many!
Please join us!
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Upcoming Events:
A Celebration of Gratitude for the Land
and Christmas in the Cloister
Thank you for your kind and loving support of Homecoming Farm with your many emails, text messages, and calls. It was deeply meaningful to hear from so many of you, including members from years ago as well as current members and supporters of this great work we have embodied for all these years....We remain committed to the truth that love is eternal, the Universe evolves, and New Life always emerges.
On November 19th, at 1 PM, we are planning a gathering here at the farm to celebrate the gift this land has been to each one of us as we end our CSA. We invite as many of you who can join us for A Celebration of Gratitude for the Land and all the relationships we have formed here. Please join us out at the farm at 1PM, and then come inside to Mother Josepha Hall as we continue with refreshments, raffles and honey sales. Cash or check only, please for your purchases. Please RSVP to Elizabeth before November 17th at the following email: Homecomingearth@aol.com.
Christmas in the Cloister:
And SAVE THE DATE for Homecoming Farm's Annual Christmas in the Cloister on December 17th at 1 PM. This very special concert event will celebrate the 800th Anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi’s Nativity in Greccio, Italy. Our beautiful Christmas concert, The Babe of Bethlehem, A Contemplative Nativity, is not to be missed…with music and singing in the beautiful cloister chapel. Please RSVP to Elizabeth before December 14th.
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Thank you!
Thank you: Thank you to Sister Margaret Kavanagh for presenting the history of the congregation. The fourteen associates and candidates who participated were blessed.
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Black Catholic History Month: Sister Mary Antona Ebo, FSM
This week our focus is on Sister Mary Antona Ebo, FSM. You might recall her name in Doctor Shannen Dee Williams' book "Subversive Habits." Sister Lenore of the JPIC Committee has prepared some background information with which to enlighten us. On November 11, 2017, the Catholic Church lost this moral Titan in the long struggle for racial equality and justice in the US. Here is the article.
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Young Adult Retreat on Saturday, December 9th
On Saturday, December 9th from 11:30AM to 6PM, there will be a Young Adult Advent Retreat in Rosary Hall Chapel. Young adults in their 20s, will be coming from New Jersey, Queens, New York City and Molloy University.
Sisters and Associates are welcome to the afternoon session with Exposition, praise and worship music, followed by Mass at 5 PM. The sisters are also welcome to mingle, meet and greet with young adults in the dining room at lunch time. For more information, contact Sister Gina Fleming at promoterop@gmail.com.
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Bringing Christmas to Kermit, West Virginia
Once again, there will be a collection of funds to provide Walmart cards and food vouchers to Sister Kathy O’Hagan who is part of the staff at the Big Laurel Learning Center. f you wish to contribute to this worthy cause, please send cash or a check to: Sister Diane Capuano, Queen of the Rosary Motherhouse, 555 Albany Avenue, Amityville, NY 11701. PLEASE MAKE CHECKS PAYABLE TO ANDREW ABBERTON. If you have Venmo, you can Venmo the money to Andrew-Abberton.
I will be collecting until November 17th. This will give plenty of time for parents to receive gift cards and begin Christmas shopping for their families. Please consider donating to this cause and helping to spread the Christmas Spirit to those in most need.
Thanks in advance and God Bless, Andrew Abberton (DYA member)
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“Fake News”
Disputatio: Pursuing Truth Together
UPDATE: Please note that this presentation by S. Vicki Toale is completely full. The three sessions will be repeated January 11th, 18th and 25th with the same limit of 24 people.
Inspired by Ken Wilber’s 2017 book Trump and a Post-Truth World, you are welcome to a three-session Zoom Discussion on "truth" today. The final meeting for this month is:
Wed. Nov. 15 from 7-8:30 PM – A Momentous Leap Forward – Wake Up, Grow Up, Show Up. See our web posting and Facebook event.
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An Autumn Morning Stroll:
Take a Dominican Pause
This easy one-mile stroll around the grounds of the Dominican Motherhouse is a treat for mind, body, and soul. With a guide, you’ll be exposed to a bit of the story of the sisters, see sights that have been placed on the National Registry, hear some thoughtful nuggets for reflection, and simply be regaled by beauty. Children over seven years of age, with parental supervision, are welcome. The walk concludes with coffee and sweets in the sisters’ gathering room.
Date and Time: Saturday, November 11, 2023, at 9:30 AM
Location: Queen of the Rosary Motherhouse, 555 Albany Avenue, Amityville, NY
Register via email: wmft.reservations@gmail.com
See our web posting and Facebook Event.
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Thomas Berry Retreat on December 1st to 2nd
On December 1st and 2nd, there will be an overnight retreat to continue the work and mission of Thomas Berry. Animators that weekend are Kevin Cawley, CFC, and Kathleen Deignan, CND. I hope you consider attending, and please feel free to share it with others! To register, please call 929-357-6700 ext. 205. See the attached flyer and go to the website for more information.
- Program Director Tom Leavens
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Mount Saint Mary's Offers Interfaith Presentation
Join us for a discussion with panelists representing the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist Traditions with Facilitator Father Anthony Randazzo, a happy parish priest and pastor of Holy Trinity in Westfield on Wednesday, November 8, 2023, from 7-9 PM at the House of Prayer and on Zoom. There will be time for audience questions. The fee is $20 to $30 if you can. Register here.
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"Drop the Rock" at Retreat Center in Garrison
Our own S. Peggy Murphy will be leading a one-day retreat on Saturday, November 11 from 10 AM to 2 PM at the Retreat Center of the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement in Garrison, NY. It is entitled, "Drop the Rock." If we examine every disturbance we have, great or small, we will find at the root of it some unhealthy dependency and its consequent unhealthy demand. Let us with God’s help continually surrender these hobbling liabilities. Then we can be set free to live and love. Sister Peggy is a New York State Certified Addictions Counselor who has worked in inpatient treatment in Orange and Sullivan Counties in New York. The cost is $50 (including lunch).
For more information, please contact Laura Graeber at lgraeber@atonementfriars.org.
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Thursday Evenings Advent Reflection Series at St. Fidelis with Sister Ruth Lautt
Deacon Dan Donnelly and S. Ruth Lautt will offer the opportunity to prayerfully reflect on the deep Biblical meaning of the Advent themes of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love on the following dates:
Thursdays at 7 PM on December 7th, December 14th, and December 21st at St. Fidelis Church at 123-14 14th Avenue, Queens, NY 11356.
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Thought You'd Like to Know | |
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Attention Spiritual Directors
If you are a trained spiritual director currently accepting new directees please send your name and contact information, plus a brief bio of no more than 150 words to Margaret Galiardi at Galiaridi.margaret@gmail.com. Please include this Subject in your email: Spiritual Director. Thank You!
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Long Beach Condo
There is availability for retreat and vacation for any sister at the Condo during the months of November, December, January and February. Please contact Sister Judy Olsen at 917-991-2054 if you would like to make a reservation.
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Holidays Cards and Calendars
There is still time to order calendars of the Motherhouse grounds, Thanksgiving, and Christmas cards. To order contact Barbara Schwarz at artafire@hotmail.com or 516-695-3238.
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Thanksgiving Cards from Sister Eileen Stattel
Please click on this link for Thanksgiving Cards for Sister Eileen Stattel for this holiday season.
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Prepare for Christmas with S. Ave Clark
S. Ave Clark has written a new book Advent~Christmas: A Pilgrimage of Light. In it she explains, "The Advent~Christmas season is a pilgrimage of light. Each one of us during this holy season is called to celebrate the birth of Jesus reborn again and again in our lives. Oh, how will you be a Christ-bearer of the holy lights of this Advent~Christmas time?"
Books are available on Amazon or can be ordered directly from Sister Ave Clark. Go to the Heart to Heart Ministry website.
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Part-time Pastoral Care Worker Needed for SSND
There is a part-time pastoral care worker needed to minister to 30 SSND community members at Ozanam Hall. Contact Liz Klein for more: lklein@amssnd.org
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Prayer Requests and Gratitude | |
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Dear Sisters, Associates and Friends,
Wow! Talk about the power of prayer. What was to be a very complicated surgery, became a very simple one. Those were your prayers and I thank you with all heart. I hope you all experience that power every day. Yes, miracles happen every day – small and very large. I am so honored to be the recipient of one of those as a result of your prayers. God bless you!
Peace and Love, S. Kathy Riordan, OP
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Dear Sisters, Associates, and Young Adults,
Your prayers and many notes of care and concern have been a real source of consolation to me and the family of my niece Genevieve Hasemann.
With love and gratitude for all of you, my Dominican Family,
Joan Bernard, OP
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Dear Sisters, Associates, and Young Adults,
Thank you for all your prayers for my cousin Frank Martin and my family.
Thank you,
Sister Valerie Da Silva, OP
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To Our Dominican Family,
I want to thank everyone for their prayers. I had surgery on Wednesday and I am home recuperating. A little pain, but I will get through this knowing you have prayed for me.
I will return as soon as I can.
Thank you again,
Denise Thorn
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