Providence Associates AGEM
The major event in October was the AGM and the AGEM with Sister Frances O’Brien leading us through a process off Evolving Governance. The sisters are very supportive and encouraging as we begin to look at how we will manage an autonomous life bringing the Charism, Mission and Spirituality into our church and world. This is a topic we will continue to address with Sister Frances over the next year. She will present in April and again at our 2018...
Clementina Torres Rodriguez, Providence Associate
On Wednesday, September 27th, the feast of St. Vincent de Paul, our dearest Associate Clementina Torres Rodriguez left to go to Our Father in heaven. The Sisters that got to know Clementina, have fond memories of her and the many ways she lived the Associate Mission statement as one of the first Associates in Peru. She helped welcome many of the Sisters that visited or missioned in El Progreso, Peru. “Clemi” as Sister Josephine Doiron called...
Teaching in Batawa
Farewell for Sisters in Batawa in June 1975.BY VERONICA STIENBURG, ARCHIVIST Batawa was established as a factory town by the Bata Shoe Company in 1939. Initially the children of Batawa attended public school in nearby Frankford. Father Dostol, s.j., the parish priest, wanted to set up a Catholic school in Batawa and in 1946 he asked for two Sisters of Providence to staff the school. Sister Mary Dorothea, Superior and Sister Mary Constance were...
Betty Haymans, Providence Associate
Elizabeth Ann “Betty” Haymans became an Associate in May 2002 and was a member of the Catalpa Group for many years. Betty was very shy when she joined but over time her voice became stronger as members encouraged and loved her. In 2016, she was transferred to the Covenant group, along with her close friend Cathy Bryan. Having come out of herself, Betty offered much to the Covenant Group. Before Betty’s health began to erode, Betty and Cathy...
Sister Monica Whalen’s career in helping vulnerable and at-risk students
Sister Monica helping one of her studentsBY KRISTA JOHNSTON Building student confidence and preserving Catholic education are top priorities for Sister Monica Whalen Sister Monica Whalen has spent her career as an educator helping vulnerable and at-risk youth to reach their highest academic potential. Since joining the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario 22 years ago, she has spent the majority of her time working directly with...
Marillac Mission helping those in need with support from Associates in Peru
Classes in Fray MartinBY SISTER GAYLE DESARMIA I feel privileged and blessed each time I have an opportunity to visit Peru. November 23, 2016 Sister Diane Brennen and I left Kingston for a two-week visit with the Sisters and Associates in Peru. Besides spending time with both the Sisters and Associates, we had the opportunity to see the Marillac Mission Fund at work. The Sisters live in one of the barrios or young towns called El Progreso which...
Worship spaces at Providence Care Hospital
BY NEIL ELFORD The wide-open glass doors of the Worship Centre in the new Providence Care Hospital beckon all to come in. As people enter the space for the first time and take in the view of Lake Ontario, the outdoor labyrinth and the gardens, many are heard saying, “Oh wow, this is so peaceful!” At the heart of the hospital is a sanctuary where any person can feel welcomed to pray, meditate or just simply “be”. Water, reminding us of the...
Legacy gift honours Sisters in education
From left to right: Manal Guirguis-Younger (Dean Faculties of Human Sciences and Philosophy), Sister Fatima r.s.m., Sister Miriam K. Martin r.s.m. (Associate Professor, Director of the School of Transformative Leadership), Sister Sandra Shannon, SP (General Superior, Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul), Chantal Beauvais (Rector), The Honourable Catherine McKenna MP and Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Soeur Rachelle...
Positive interfaith dialogue important
BY KRISTA JOHNSTON Annual conference emphasizes importance of positive interfaith dialogue in spiritual practice One common trait among spiritual directors is their ability to listen deeply – one might say, beyond words. This special gift allows them to have truly authentic conversations with those they are supporting because they know inherently that we are all connected and that spirit is moving in all of our lives. Whether we are rooted in...
Congratulations Jubilarians for over 370 years of combined religious life!
Congratulations Jubilarians for over 370 years of combined religious life!Left to right: Sister Kay Morrell (60 years), Sister Karen Bennett (50 years), Sister Elaine Jacob (70 years), Sister Catherine Cannon (60 years), Sister Anne Hudec (70 years), and Sister Lucy Kearney (60 years).Religious life is a pilgrimage not just a journey Celebration of this year’s Jubilarians started by acknowledging a contribution in their honour to a northern...
‘To build a home’: The Sisters of Providence at the time of Canada’s confederation
Mother Mary Edward, Sister Mary Jane de Chantal, and Sister Mary of the Sacred HeartBY VERONICA STIENBURG The Archives is celebrating Canada’s 150th birthday by reflecting on what life was like for the Sisters of Providence in 1867. Mother Mary Edward, Catherine McKinley, was appointed General Superior, less than a year before, in September 1866 after the Sisters of Providence of Montreal returned home. While leading the fledgling community she...
Marble statue of Mary wasn’t always there
BY VERONICA STIENBURG, ARCHIVIST Have you ever noticed the beautiful white marble statue of Mary above the entrance to the Motherhouse? It wasn’t always there. A niche for a sculpture was built when the entrance was constructed in 1932; however, the niche sat empty for 20 years until, according to the congregational annals, “a beautiful new marble statue of our Blessed Lady was erected”…on June 25, 1953. The statue is still there 64 years...
Facilitation ventures that feed the spirit
CWL Parish RetreatBY SISTER JEANNETTE FILTHAUT Facilitation work may entail a great deal of preparation, but the experiences of working with diverse groups on a variety of topics is always a unique adventure that feeds the spirit of both facilitator and groups involved. 2017 began with the Chapter of the Presentation Sisters of Mary in Prince Albert Saskatchewan. February and March involved transitioning and futuring with Soeurs de la Charité...
Gerry Vieveen, Providence Associate
Gerarda "Gerry" Vieveen passed away peacefully on July 4th, 2017 at the age of 75 years. Gerry became a Providence Associate in 1993. She was a committed member of the Brantford Group and a devoted friend of Sister Anna Moran. She was the Associate Contact of the group for many years spending much of her time visiting people from her group and from her parish who were shut-in. Most recently she was living with her brother and sister-in-law in...
Return of heirloom seeds to indigenous communities that originally cultivated them
BY CATE HENDERSON I was recently asked to participate in a working group called the Community Seed Network, which is a collective of seed savers from across North America who are engaged in sharing seeds rather than selling them. All over North America people are getting together at seed libraries, seed swaps (like Seedy Saturday), seed banks and online through virtual initiatives to help each other save heirloom and landrace plant varieties...
Lunch to learn about what a living wage means
Greg deGroot-Maggetti speaks to Sr. Pauline LallySustainable Kingston’s Lunch and Learn hosted Living Wage Kingston on June 14, 2017.Speaking to a capacity crowd, Greg deGroot-Maggetti, Chair of the Ontario Living Wage Network, and Cam Jay, Co-Chair, Living Wage Kingston, explained what a living wage means and how the employer program works in Ontario. Kingston’s living wage rate is $16.58 an hour. With two parents working full-time, that...
Breakthrough for $15 and fairness
As you might have heard, the Ontario government has announced an increase in the minimum wage. JPIC staff have supported this campaign locally for many years. First, when the call was for a $12/hr. minimum wage, then $14/hr. and finally $15 an hour when advocates in the United States and around the world began campaigning for that amount. Read more about the new announcment and updates below: 15andfairness.org May 30, 2017 - Historic...
Exciting new treasure to the Archives
BY VERONICA STIENBURG, ARCHIVIST The Archives received an exciting new treasure in April: the first patient register of St. Vincent de Paul Hospital in Brockville. The Register documents the patients treated at the hospital from November 28th, 1887 to January 9th, 1893. Why is this document important? St. Vincent de Paul Hospital was the very first hospital that the Sisters of Providence opened and this register documents the first years of...
Baking Bread Together
Baking Bread Together I met him just the other day,As I walked through the wheat-filled fields.His cabin cloistered in the forestSurrounded by lush sycamores. The atmosphere was still, but for a cooing dove.I stopped and focused on his abodeMade of fine olive wood.Each corner held by twisted branches,The roof was expertly thatched. The door and windows firmly held,By long heavy spikes.Nearby an oven chimney with swirls of soft white smoke.From...
Spanish Influenza Epidemic
BY VERONICA STIENBURG, ARCHIVIST Editorial in the Morrisburg Leader from 1918 or 1919 regarding the Spanish Influenza Epidemic: During the past fortnight two Sisters of Charity have been nursing the sick in Morrisburg. Most of our citizens do not know who these Sisters are, or whence they came. We know nothing about them except that they are here, quietly and unassumingly performing a great work of mercy; a task which no one in this vicinity...