Sisters Mark 150 Years
Excerpt from an article in The Catholic Sentinel, October 9, 2009.
History class is in session at the parish school in St. Paul, Ore., and two guest speakers hold the pupils’ attention. Holy Names Sisters Kathleen Hepner and Rosalie Anderson are visiting the class to explain how in 1859, 12 Holy Names Sisters sailed from Montreal to Portland to set up St. Mary’s Academy, their first ministry beyond Canada.
Today, the Sisters’ mission — the full development of the human person through education, social justice, contemplation and the arts — continues to inform the Sisters’ work, including ministering in parishes, universities, hospitals, and prisons; providing spiritual direction and religious formation; transforming lives through systemic change, justice actions and the arts; empowering immigrants; mentoring; and caring for the Earth.
The Sisters’ legacy lives on at Marylhurst University, the roots of which go back to St. Mary’s Academy, and at ChristieCare, which evolved from one of the Sisters’ earliest ministries – caring for orphans.
On Sunday, Oct. 18, the Holy Names Sisters, their lay Associates and St. Mary’s Academy will be the ones saying thank-you. A public 150th anniversary liturgy of Thanks and Praise, followed by a reception, begins at 10:30 a.m. at the Chiles Center at the University of Portland.
