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July 2, 2021, Henderson, Nevada – Sister Phyllis Sikora, OP, who served for almost 12 years at Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican Hospitals, was honored at a farewell open house celebration in the lobby of the St. Rose de Lima Campus. She and Sister Sharon Bossler, OP, are returning to the Motherhouse in Adrian, Michigan where Sister Phyllis is now ministering as a Chaplain in the Pastoral Care Department of the Dominican Life Center.

St. Rose Dominican Hospitals was founded by the Adrian Dominican Sisters in 1947 and includes three main campuses – the St. Rose de Lima Campus and the Siena Campus in Henderson, Nevada, and the San Martin Campus in Las Vegas – in addition to neighborhood hospitals. 

Reflecting on her time at Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican Hospitals – most recently as Nevada Service Area Vice President for Mission Integration and Spiritual Care – Sister Phyllis said her ministry at St. Rose “was continuing the ministry that our women started in 1947, being guided and directed by them and attempting to walk in their footsteps. I respected the work they did and I just wanted to pay honor to them.”

Dignity Health, the healthcare system that included St. Rose Dominican, entered into a formal ministerial alignment with Catholic Health Initiatives in early 2019 to form CommonSpirit Health. The Adrian Dominican Sisters are now one of 17 participating religious congregations in CommonSpirit Health.  

“Sister Phyllis joined the Dignity Health Nevada family in 2009, and her impact on her colleagues, our patients, and the community has been profound,” Julie J. Sprengel, President and CEO of the Southern California Division, wrote in a memorandum announcing Sister Phyllis’ departure. “During her time, she sought every opportunity to share her commitment and passion for our mission, vision, and values with others. In doing so, she carried forward the legacy of the Dominican Sisters who founded our first hospital in Nevada in 1947.”

Julie noted that Sister Phyllis’ greatest contribution was in employee orientations, “where she provided a foundation for our employees to understand our mission, how it is fundamental to our ministry, and how each member of the Dignity Health family is an essential part of it. This reflected Sister’s belief that our mission enriches not only those we serve, but each of us as well.”   

Sister Phyllis especially cherished feast days and other celebrations in which she could bless the hands of her colleagues. “For her, it was deeply profound to look into a colleague’s eyes and see their commitment to using the hands she had blessed to heal others, and in doing so carry on the tradition of the founding Dominican Sisters,” Julie wrote.

The celebration included a blessing of Sister Phyllis as she moved on to her new ministry at the Dominican Life Center in Adrian.

 

Feature photo at top: Sister Phyllis Sikora, OP, speaks during a farewell celebration in her honor, hosted by St. Rose Dominican Hospitals in Henderson, Nevada.