What's Happening

rss


January 14, 2021, Adrian, MichiganThe General Council of the Adrian Dominican Sisters issued the following statement regarding COVID-19 at the Motherhouse Campus:

After more than nine months of no cases of COVID-19 among resident Sisters, we are now experiencing an outbreak among both Sisters and Co-workers at the Dominican Life Center. The care and safety of our Sisters and Co-workers have been and remain our primary concern. We continue to practice stringent protocols, including quarantines, to mitigate further spread of the virus. 

Our prayers rise like incense for all impacted by this global health crisis: the sick and dying, their families, and all healthcare workers and people everywhere who generously and selflessly provide essential services to each and every one of us. Please join us in this prayer.

For more information on steps Sisters and Co-workers on the Adrian Dominican Motherhouse campus have taken to help mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, click here.


December 31, 2020, Adrian, Michigan – As has been said numerous times over the past nine months, 2020 has been an “unprecedented year” of chaos, challenges, and change as the world dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic and the United States faced systemic racism and a challenging presidential election. As we look forward to 2021 and a time of hope and restoration, here are the top 10 story themes for the Adrian Dominican Sisters in 2020, chosen by the Communications Department.

 

1. COVID-19 Pandemic 

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, the Adrian Dominican Sisters General Council set protocols to mitigate the spread of the virus: closing the Motherhouse to visitors and guests from March and eventually through the spring of 2021, enacting a shelter-in-place protocol for Sisters living in the Dominican Life Center and a moratorium on commercial Congregational travel, encouraging Co-workers who can to work from home, and beginning a regimen of testing resident Sisters and Co-workers. 

Throughout the year, Sisters, Associates, and Co-workers adapted to this new life, continuing to live out the Mission to serve the needs of the times. Congregational meetings are held via Zoom. Sisters, Associates, and Co-workers sew masks for Co-workers in the DLC. A group of Sisters and Associates begin art projects to memorialize life during the pandemic and meet monthly via Zoom to share their artwork and their reflections. St. Luke N.E.W. Life Center offers drive-through food distribution for families in Flint, and Congregation-sponsored schools and literacy centers juggle in-person learning and virtual class time, as well as graduations and other special events. Sisters and Associates in the United States, the Dominican Republic, and the Philippines work on the front lines (see pages 2-5 of the 2019-2020 Annual Report).

Finally, as the year comes to an end, hospitals founded by the Adrian Dominican Sisters – St. Rose Dominican Hospitals in Henderson and Las Vegas, Nevada and Dominican Hospital in Santa Cruz, California – begin the work of vaccinating their employees, beginning with those who work directly with COVID-19 patients.

 

2. Racism 

Even before public outcry resulting from the tragic death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis, Adrian Dominican Sisters sought to root out racism and white privilege and to stand with people of color. A group of Sisters celebrate Black History Month with other people of faith in Lenawee County, Michigan, at a special Black History unity rally. The General Council issues several statements in opposition to racism and racist deeds (see Statements section), and takes part in a local Black Lives Matter march in Adrian on behalf of numerous Sisters who were sheltering in place and unable to attend. Four sponsored institutions involved in education – Barry University, Siena Heights University, Regina Dominican High School, and Rosarian Academy – issue statements opposed to the racist system in the United States and take action to address racism in their schools and local communities. Sisters and Associates also work within their parishes and other ministry sites to educate people and to acknowledge and root out racism.

 

3. General Council Statements

The Adrian Dominican Sisters General Council issues a number of statements: 

 

4. Socially Responsible Investment

Sister Elise D. García, OP, General Councilor, on behalf of the Adrian Dominican Congregation, signs the Catholic Impact Investment Pledge, affirming the Congregation’s commitment to make investments “on behalf of the poor and vulnerable, and to promote human dignity, economic justice, and environmental stewardship.” The Adrian Dominican Congregation is one of 16 U.S.-based Congregations of Dominican Sisters to launch the Public Climate Solutions Fund initiative. The Sisters committed $46,650,000 to seed the Climate Solutions Fund, attracting $130 million in capital investments. Mercy Housing Northwest – a collaborative effort of communities of women religious in the Northwest, including the Edmonds Dominican Sisters, now merged with the Adrian Dominican Sisters – opens a new, 254-apartment affordable housing project. Adrian Dominican Sister Corinne Florek, OP, hearing that the Center for Women in Transition wanted to buy the former Collaborative Dominican Novitiate in St. Louis, puts the organization in touch with the Mercy Partnership Fund in St. Louis. The Fund granted the Center a low-interest loan to purchase the novitiate. Socially responsible investing such as the instances above has been the ministry for more than 40 years of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Portfolio Advisory Board.

 

5. Social Justice

Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA), under the leadership of Sister Donna Markham, OP, PhD, President and CEO, joins a coalition to make affordable housing a national priority. Celebrating 110 years of service and advocacy, CCUSA joins with the Felician Sisters of North America work together to establish the Francis Fund for Eviction Prevention to help people on the brink of homelessness. Sister Attracta Kelly, OP, Director of the Office of Immigration Assistance, offers to help young “Dreamers” apply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) protection. The Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Office of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation offers numerous ways to be involved in social justice advocacy in areas such as immigration, the death penalty, nuclear disarmament, and climate change.

 

6. Associates

A number of Adrian Dominican Associates are welcomed through Rituals of Acceptance: Margaret Reyez on February 8, 2020, in St. Catherine Chapel and Teressa Conley, Holly Lyman, Natasha Mulroney, Donna Barnes Riggins, and Aimee Moran Yannis, in Henderson, Nevada, on March 2020; and Suzanne Sink in July 2020, at West Palm Beach, Florida. Welcomed through virtual Rituals of Acceptance were Associates Alison Altmeyer and Annemarie Kallenbach, July 29, 2020, and Diane Burgermeister and Noraleen Renauer, August 10, 2020. Associates look to the future during two virtual gatherings: Futuring Dominican Associate Life in August and Partners: Past, Present, and Future in November. Learn more about becoming an Adrian Dominican Associate.

 

7. 2020 Election 

Four women associated with the Adrian Dominican Sisters participate in NETWORK’s 2020 Nuns on the Bus virtual election campaign, encouraging voters to consider all aspects of a candidate’s stand, not just one issue. Sister Durstyne Farnan, OP, Dominican Representative at the United Nations, was one of the “nuns on the bus” who spoke about the issues she considers. One of the site visits was to St. Luke’s N.E.W. Life Center, founded by Sister Carol Weber, OP, and Sister Judy Blake, CSJ. In a dialogue on city versus rural issues in Michigan, Associate Joan Ebbitt and Co-worker Laura Negron-Terrones, Administrative Assistant for the Office of Immigration Assistance, spoke on the panel representing Adrian, Michigan. In a gesture of unity, Associate Deb Carter reaches out to opposing protesters on election day with a gesture of peace.

 

8. Religious Life

Sister Elise D. García, OP, General Councilor, becomes President of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and takes the time to reflect on both religious life and leadership. Prioress Patricia Siemen, OP, reflects on the greater global perspective she gained during her three years as one of two delegates for the North America Constellation of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG). Adrian Dominican Sisters mark their Jubilee milestones of religious life in creative ways, and the Congregation honors 34 Jubilarians at a special Mass. To learn more about how Adrian Dominican Sisters experience religious life, read about the life stories of various Sisters and watch their videos. Learn more about becoming an Adrian Dominican Sister.

 

9. Spirituality

Weber Retreat and Conference Center, marking its 50th anniversary in 2020, offers virtual programs, workshops, and retreats. The Dominican Center: Spirituality for Mission, celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, offers an internship program for spiritual directors, as well as spiritual programs for people of faith. The Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Spirituality Committee holds a monthly series of virtual talks on different aspects of spirituality, including spiritual direction, St. Mary of Magdala as Patroness of the Dominican Order, and the spirit of Advent waiting during the pandemic. Sister Janet Schaeffler, OP, an author in the areas of religious education and adult faith formation, writes books on First Communion activities for families and the spirituality of aging, as well as her annual booklet of Advent reflections.

 

10. Creation

The Congregation continues its sustainability work through its permaculture site and a windmill installed on the Motherhouse grounds (see the Annual Report, page 27). Sister Corinne Sanders, Director of Sustainability, and Jared Aslakson, Permaculture Specialist, give an update on the sustainability efforts of the Congregation, based on its relationship to Earth. Adrian Dominican Sisters and Co-workers take the opportunity on the United Nations World Day of the Environment to reflect on creation and efforts to safeguard the environment. Father James Hug, SJ, Priest Chaplain, writes Catholic prayers, reflections, and other materials for the Season of Creation, an interfaith observance from September through October 4, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.


 

 

Search News Articles

Recent Posts

Read More »