A Journey Of Self Discovery
Preparing oneself for service to God involves a long journey of self-discovery, according to a vibrant young woman exploring life as a Sister of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul. In the summer of 1999, after an intensive period of self-growth, Charlene Thacker made her first vows as a professed Sister in the Kingston, Ont., congregation. Sr. Patricia Amyot notes that the Sisters of Providence perceive membership as a lifelong process, one of...
40 Years Of Selfless Service
BY RYLAND COYNESmith Falls, Ont./The Record News The following article originally appeared in the Smith Falls Record News. It is posted here with permission. For 40 years — 17 in the picturesque Ontario community of Smiths Falls — Sister Marlene Schuster has been tending to the needs of the less fortunate, in relative anonymity. But while the greater population may not have heard her name spoken often, those fortunate enough to be touched by...
An Incredible Journey
Those who make the decision to become an Associate of the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul often find that the profound changes which occur in their lives are invisible to the outside world. While an incredible inner journey is taking place, there are few outward manifestations to the casual observer. “It’s not a change of lifestyle,” notes Dianne Dutcher, a Providence Associate since 1997. “It’s a deeper exploration of how you live...
Helping The Healing Begin
Sister Marilyn Kearns was intensely moved by the letter from the woman who had escaped a life of domestic violence. “Thank you,” the woman wrote to Sister Marilyn and her co-workers at a Montreal shelter for battered women. “Thank you for listening, for caring, for understanding, for helping me take control of my life. “I’ve realized I’m not running away, but that I have made a positive and wise decision — I have indeed found myself again.”...
We Speak To The Poor By Our Lives
BY JAMIE SWIFT The following remembrance of Sister Mary Hamilton appeared in the Toronto Globe and Mail on October 23, 1998. It is reprinted here with permission of the author. In the 1930s, whenever Sister Mary Hamilton managed a few days off from her nursing duties as night supervisor at St. Vincent de Paul hospital in Brockville, Ont., she would visit the family farm in nearby Elgin. She was one of nine children, so family gatherings were...
A return to Peru
Artisans like this weaver work at home. Photo: Sister Jeannette FilthautBY SISTER SHIRLEY MORRIS When Sister Shirley Morris SP returned to Peru after an absence of 25 years, she found many wonderful changes — and many things regrettably unchanged. One of the original Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul at the Carabayllo mission in 1967, she was delighted to see that some physical conditions had improved over the years. But her...
Sister Patricia Kelly: The ability to love
Sister Patricia Kelly arrives at Kingston Penitentiary early on a Friday morning. Photo by Sabrina DesranleauDuring her three-year ministry at Kingston Penitentiary, Sister Patricia Kelly has quietly made her presence felt among the administration as well as the men she counsels. “Sister Patricia Kelly S.P. has been an outstanding presence at the Regional Treatment Centre in the Kingston Penitentiary,” says Father David Hale, director of...