What's Happening

January 29, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – Adrian Dominican Co-workers Jennifer Hunter and Sara Stoddard – Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, respectively – represent a trend among lay workers in religious congregations who take on executive roles. 

Jennifer and Sara – and their counterparts in other congregations of women religious – are filling leadership positions that once belonged to the vowed Sisters themselves.

“It’s a real gift to have these incredible, dedicated women in these pivotal leadership roles in our congregation,” Prioress Elise D. García, OP, told Dan Stockman in an interview for Global Sisters Report. “We couldn’t do it without them.” She noted in the article that lay people are “filling positions we no longer have an abundance of candidates among sisters to fill.”

Like other lay leaders interviewed in the article, Sara said that the culture of the Sisters is different from that of corporations. While the Sisters are good stewards of their money, she noted, their focus is on doing what is right. 

Many of the lay leaders in the article spoke of the satisfaction they have found in working with women religious. “We’ve grown to love this work and the congregation we serve,” Jennifer told Global Sisters Report. “The sisters are part of our family.”

Read the entire article by Dan Stockman and a related article about Adrian Dominican Co-workers experiencing the Dominican heritage.

Caption for above feature photo: Jennifer Hunter, Chief Operating Officer; Sara Stoddard, Chief Financial Officer

January 20, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – While it has not been easy in recent years for immigrants in the United States to obtain legal status or U.S. citizenship, immigrants in the United States today face greater difficulties in this area, said immigration attorney Sister Attracta Kelly, OP, during a recent public forum at Weber Retreat and Conference Center.

Sister Attracta spoke from her experience as the founding director of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Office of Immigration Assistance. Now retired but still working in the office, she is the Director Emerita. 

Sister Attracta discussed the additional challenges that many face today under the current administration, including the elimination of a humanitarian program for people fleeing from nations such as Cuba, Venezuela, and Haiti; the practice by ICE agents of arresting people in previously protected areas, such as churches, schools, and shelters; and the Supreme Court ruling that people – including U.S. citizens – can be detained simply for the color of their skin, their accents, or where they work.

Read the entire article, which includes a link to a recording of the program, written by Erik Gable and published in the January issue of The Lenawee Voice.