Never look down on anyone unless you're helping him up.
(late Jesse Jackson, American Civil rights activist and Baptist minister)
Something to Think About
Convent Offices Hours
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Calendar of Events
SEPTEMBER
7
Labor Day - Convent Offices closed
23
Serra Club High Tea - 2 p,.m. - The Toledo Club
30
Leaders' Meeting 9:00 a.m.
See What's New on the Website
- Go to About - Archives - Snapshot from the Past - Sister Esther Mary Boes
- Go to News - Leader's Corner; Poem - "Friends"
- Go to About - Archives to Winds of the Spirit - Following the Pioneer Trail
- Go to Ministry & Mission - Social Concerns; Pope's Intention; United Nations International Day
Catalog of Sisters' Art for Sale
Updated May 2024
Contact Michelle at 419-536-9587 if you are interested in the art available and at what price.
Click here for CATALOG
Counting Our Blessings on World Gratitude Day - September 21
World Gratitude Day, celebrated each year on September 21, offers a special opportunity to pause, reflect and give thanks for the people, experiences and blessings that enrich our lives. It invites us to look beyond what we may sometimes take for granted and recognize the goodness that surrounds us.
Most of us would likely say that, above all, we are grateful for our relationship with God. In recognition of World Gratitude Day, several Sisters and Associates have shared what they are also most grateful for.
Sister Margaret Anne Carstensen – “I’m thankful for my family and friends.”
Sister Rita Mae Johns – “I am grateful for God’s presence in my life, for His gifts, and for His care for me.”
Sister Donna Frey – “I am most grateful for God’s daily reminders of being loved.”
Sister Mary Jo Szpila, SND – “I am grateful for my family members and men and women who have become like family through the various charisms manifested: Ursuline, Notre Dame, Franciscan, Visitation and Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, Mercy, Jesuit.”
Jovita Harrah – “What I am most grateful for is God’s grace in making me a charge of Ursuline Sisters in my early years of schooling. If I had to do it all over again I would not change a thing. They have imprinted on my heart the importance of truth and justice and it is what keeps me going as the years go by.”
Sr. Ann Marie McManus - "I am grateful for my parents, my education by Ursuline Sisters, and my vocation as an Ursuline Sister for 70 years."
“For seventy years, LCWR has walked alongside women religious as they responded to the changing needs of the world with faith, courage, and hope. Now, this anniversary invites us into something more than a celebration. It is an historic encounter that brings together women and men religious from Canada, the United States, and Latin America for a first of its kind gathering across the Americas. Rooted in prayer, contemplation, and the conversation in the Spirit process we will listen deeply to one another’s stories, wisdom, hopes, and questions as we reflect on this vocation together. Through personal witness, profound dialogue, and communal reflection, we will discover how our many charisms continue to be united by one Spirit and one call. As we journey together, we will not simply reflect on seventy years of grace, we will help shape the vocation of religious life, carrying home renewed vision, deeper communion, and a shared commitment to God’s mission in our world.”
The above words appeared in the WELCOME booklet to the over 1250 participants in the 2026 LCWR National Conference in Orlando, FL August 11 - 14. In the opening remarks on Wednesday morning words of Pope Leo XIV -- we are called to “wake up the world to Christ’s love and mercy” and to accept the fact that the world needs religious and there is joy in following God’s call. Sister Simona Brambilla, of the Vatican dicastary on religious life, spoke of the theme as expressing diversity and unity in spirit which gives life and inspires. It calls for creativity, building energy and being fruitful and healing.
The pictures below reflect some of the activities of the days together. The WEAVING expresses the theme of varied charisms of the congregations gathered in one spirit and one call. The VIOLENCE ball was one of several justice related issues that were touched on in the Jericho Walk. The JERICHO WALK was a witness rooted in Scripture, dedicated to upholding human rights. This included prayer, silence, drums, a shofar, and readings as seven different groups walked around the pool in witness. The GATHERING ROOM speaks for itself. URSULINES always try to get a picture signifying the feeling of unity and being part of a bigger family.
A large part of the agenda was devoted to Synodality and Consecrated Religious Life and Conversations in the Spirit. This involved a process that allowed for listening, timed sharing per person, and silence. The time together closed out with a special Liturgy, Fiesta, Dinner, Mariachi Band and Dancing!
