Dominican Associates Stories

Sharon Foley Bock has known the Adrian Dominican Sisters for more than 60 years, beginning with her education at Rosarian Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida. Her high school teachers impressed her with their joy, loving care for their students, prayer life, and dedication to their ministries.

By the time she was a junior, Sharon knew she wanted to become part of the Dominican family, so upon graduation, she entered the Congregation. She ministered as an Adrian Dominican Sister for 15 years. She withdrew from vowed life in 1976, but continued to maintain loyal friendships with many Adrian Dominican Sisters.

Sharon became an Associate in 2016. Asked “what took you so long?” she replied, “I think I always felt connected to the Congregation through my friendships with so many Sisters. I finally realized that I could be even more deeply involved in the life of the Congregation by ‘making it official’ and becoming an Associate.”

Now that she is an Associate, Sharon is indeed more deeply involved with the Congregation. She is an active participant in her Mission Group, Women of the Word, which meets in Phoenix, Arizona, three times a year. She also participates in the annual Dominican West Chapter Assemblies. 

“Participating with the vowed and associate members in these groups is a great source of spiritual support,” Sharon said. “I always feel renewed and re-energized after we have spent time together in prayer, worship, study, and sistership.” She also makes financial contributions to the Congregation.

Regular contact with Mission Group members, as well as personal meditation and prayer, sustain her to create her own ministry to the Sisters and Associates. She and her husband celebrate Sunday liturgy in the home of a Franciscan priest, so, aside from her support of his ministry to the homeless, she doesn’t have parish opportunities. 

Sharon lives with her husband and three cats and enjoys pursuing art, film, and reading – and otherwise satisfying her inquisitive nature. She is taking on more domestic responsibilities as her husband’s health starts to decline. 

Inspired by a request from Mary Lach to send Christmas cards for distribution to the Sisters in Maria Hall, she decided to create a birthday card ministry. She started out creating and sending cards to those Sisters and now includes the Sisters and Associates in the Dominican West Chapter.

When asked how she seeks truth, makes peace and reverences life, she responds, “I hope the way I treat each person demonstrates my commitment to these values. I find that the current political environment in our nation compels me to speak out for the values I cherish. Though I am not one to march in protest, I remain active online with several entities that support these values."

Sharon resonates most strongly with the Enactment to deepen spirituality. She sets aside time each day for prayer and reflection and looks for opportunities to learn more about and deepen her own spirituality.

By Sharon Bock,
Associate

Like many Associates, Theresa Fuller has a long history with the Adrian Dominican Sisters, going back to her earliest school days: kindergarten! And the memories don’t end there. Theresa went to All Saints, a grammar school, and Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland, California, in the San Francisco Bay area. 

The circle was unbroken when Theresa decided to enter the Adrian Dominican Sisters after graduation, choosing Sister Jane Catherine, OP, her kindergarten teacher, as her sponsor. Of her days as a vowed member, Theresa writes, “I loved what being in the convent taught me: adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. That was the greatest gift of all.”

Theresa withdrew from the Congregation, but not from her devotion to the Adrian Dominican Sisters. Although it wasn’t until the 1990s that she first heard about the Associate program, she immediately welcomed the opportunity to become affiliated with the Congregation again. “I joined right away as I missed my Sisters,” she said, adding that she looks forward to seeing them at Mission Group gatherings. She shares spiritual and emotional support, and, as occasions permit, makes financial contributions to the Congregation.

Theresa loved teaching. Her early experience teaching K-8 children dance steps for spring concerts and her talent for directing plays at the Kino Institute in Arizona paved the way for her subsequent profession as a dance and music therapist. Through this ministry, she touched so many lives: patients in mental health services and in a jail ward, elderly clients at convalescent hospitals, and those in recovery from substance abuse.

Now that they are retired, Theresa and her husband, Bill, volunteer at Birthright of San Lorenzo, a crisis pregnancy center. Bill is President of the Board and Theresa is Co-director of Daily Activities. Together they work diligently in many aspects of the organization: fundraising, marketing, public speaking, volunteer training and one-to-one contacts with the women who seek assistance at the center. Theresa also provides resource information to homeless individuals, guiding them to places where they can get food and other forms of assistance.

Theresa’s dedication to Birthright is a concrete example of her commitment to reverencing life. She empowers women who face difficult life choices, encouraging them to give birth even in discouraging circumstances. Through this work, as well as her interactions with others, Theresa makes peace and seeks – and speaks – truth.

Theresa is also a lector and Eucharistic minister at her parish. She spends time in weekly Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and attends Bible studies and lectures on Christian life and spirituality.

Theresa and Bill love to travel. They travel by car to visit friends and go sight-seeing throughout the country. They have enjoyed several cruises, including visits to the Holy Land, Egypt, Europe, Iceland, and the Scandinavian countries, and they hope to travel to Australia.

At this writing, Bill is undergoing medical treatment and is listed on the Adrian Dominican prayer request site. We send best wishes and loving prayers to both Theresa and Bill.