“We work hard to develop an environment where everyone can grow and develop with a strong moral compass to get us to the oneness that SSND and all of us espouse,” said Mount Mary University President Dr. Isabelle Cherney, shown here at commencement ceremonies.
Decades ago, it was common to walk the halls of any Catholic school in North America and find a sister in almost every office and classroom. At that time, School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND) served as principals and administrators in SSND, diocesan, and archdiocesan schools. They taught, staffed education offices, sat on boards, and led SSND outreach service organizations.
As declining vocations to religious life in North America led to fewer sisters in active ministry, laypeople increasingly came to hold positions formerly reserved for women religious. But although sisters may not always be the boots on the ground in SSND ministries these days, the congregation’s mission and charism remain ever at the heart of its sponsored, co-sponsored, and affiliated ministries.
At SSND-sponsored Mount Mary University in Milwaukee, for example, President Dr. Isabelle Cherney, a layperson, leads with the spirit of SSND always in the forefront of her mind. “I think about the statement, ‘We are educators in all we are and do,” every day,” said Dr. Cherney, quoting the SSND Constitution, You Are Sent. “And I take very seriously the SSND commitment to providing access to transformative education.”
Because lay leaders like Dr. Cherney—who have a deep understanding and strong call to the SSND charism—are essential to the continuance of the congregation’s mission, the School Sisters of Notre Dame are both devoted to and intentional about identifying, nurturing, and educating those leaders.
Sister Sharon Kanis speaks to Ministry Formation
Program participants at the most recent session held at Villa Assumpta in Baltimore.
That commitment has led to the development of dedicated mission and ministry offices within the Atlantic-Midwest (AM) and Central Pacific (CP) Provinces. These departments help ministries sustain the charism of SSND into the future by providing ministry leaders with an understanding and appreciation of what grounds and animates the lives and mission of the sisters. The offices also create an avenue for lay leaders—often referred to by sisters as “partners in ministry”—to discuss the concerns that arise in their ministries and to network among SSND sisters, associates, and lay leaders.
The ministry office in the AM Province began nearly 20 years ago with the objective of ensuring that all its sponsored and co-sponsored ministries reflect the spirit, values, and commitments of SSND, maintain their Catholic identity, operate with the high standards that have historically characterized SSND ministries, and establish a path for sustainability. The office runs a ministry formation program that introduces lay leaders to SSND history, mission, and charism, as well as the tenets of Catholic Social Teaching. The program also offers participants an opportunity to meet and network with others who work in SSND ministries and a chance to nurture their own spiritual lives.
At a recent ministry formation gathering in the A-M Province, Sister Kathleen Cornell and Sister Sharon Kanis led participants through an examination of SSND directional statements through the years with a particular focus on the most recent one—The Call of the 25th General Chapter. Participants reflected on how they could respond to that call in their own ministries.
“The sisters ‘hire for mission’ and with that trust that our working within SSND will call forth the SSND charism within us,” said Yvonne DeBruin, director of mission formation in the Atlantic-Midwest Province. “They trust that the Holy Spirit is at work within us and that we are following the Spirit’s prompting.”
The Central Pacific Province’s Ministry Commission meets at Sancta Maria in St. Louis. The commission consists of a total of 12 sisters and laypeople. Members sit on boards of sponsored and cosponsored ministries and sometimes on the boards of affiliated ministries.
In the CP Province, Sister Joan Andert and Sister Carol Jean Dust began a ministry office in 2019 with input from focus groups and committees as well as what Sister Joan describes as “boxes and boxes of literature”. “I think every sister related to ministry brought in every piece of paper they had relating to those ministries,” said Sister Joan. “That gave us a wonderful platform on which to build. From there, we asked ourselves, ‘What are the ideals we want to see in every ministry?’ We fleshed out that vision and worked out how to articulate and share those key components. Doing that is what allows us to hand things off with confidence. It is important for the sisters who put their blood, sweat, and tears into their ministries to know that those ministries are being carried on.”
At the Living Earth Center (LEC), an SSND sponsored ministry founded in 1996 by Sister Kathleen Storms and the late Sister Mary Tacheny, the SSND charism is embraced, embodied, and sustained by Laura Peterson, a layperson who has served as its executive director for the past seven years. Laura is unwavering in her dedication to making sure the SSND charism is infused into everything they do at the Minnesota-based ministry.
Living Earth Center brings people together to seek justice through education, encounter, and community agriculture.
“Our staff considers it an honor to hold the SSND legacy,” said Laura. “The Living Earth Center connects people to the land and to healthy, organic produce. Even though we do a lot of different things, at the heart of all of it is the invitation for people to be in unity with each other. Those values are carried out in ways that can be meaningful for everyone. That is where the longevity is.”
Longevity is precisely what is at stake in the effort to pass along portions of the responsibility for leading SSND ministries into the future. “Being able to share our ministries with lay partners is a blessing,” said Sister Delia Dowling, who serves as chair of the A-M Province’s Sponsor Council. This newly formed body includes a mix of sisters and laypeople who help shepherd ministries connected with the congregation. The CP Province has a similar group, known as the Ministry Commission.
Once a week, staff members at Caroline House meet for reflection. The two sisters on staff often incorporate messages about the SSND charism and everyone shares their experiences. “The gathering is voluntary, but everyone comes,” said Executive Director Helen Ramos Paiz.
The blessings that arise through collaboration between sisters and lay leaders go both ways. For Helen Ramos Paiz, executive Director of Caroline House, a sponsored ministry that provides English language and life skills to women and children in Connecticut, the chance to minister with SSND is a gift she didn’t even realize she had been waiting for. “I didn’t have a name for it, but I had a passion to help others,” said Helen. “It has been a blessing for me to find this mission in my life, and it is a privilege that the sisters allow me to carry this on. It’s so good to know that I have the sisters’ support and that they entrust us as laypeople to continue with the same passion, care, and love that they have.”
That kind of trust is woven into the fabric of the SSND story from its very beginnings. “Our foundresses knew how to ‘share and entrust’ the mission and charism,” said Sister Delia. “I recall the story of Mother Theresa who came to America with a small band of five young sisters. After establishing some schools, she returned to Germany and left the mission and charism in the hands of Mother Caroline and the others. Knowing our history helps us to move forward in faith and hope.”