To acknowledge our complicity in systems that hurt, diminish, and disregard others and our earth is a sign of our capacity to respond to God’s call in a new way – that of strength in weakness. Such awareness of our personal, communal, congregational, institutional complicity in unjust systems humbles us. It invites us to be…
Ten schools within the Network of Sacred Heart Schools, a network of 25 Catholic independent Sacred Heart schools and the United States – Canada Province of the Society of the Sacred Heart, welcomed new Heads of Schools and Presidents to their respective school communities this fall. Provincial Suzanne Cooke, RSCJ, Head of the Conference of Sacred…
With sadness and with hearts full of gratitude for a life so fully and well lived in love, we share that Mary “Be” Mardel, RSCJ, died on October 4, 2022, at the age of 104. One can imagine the impact a person can have over the course of a 104-year-lifetime, and Be was no exception….
Friends share a moment with Deanna Rose Von Bargen, RSCJ On a rare rainy day in Atherton, California, in mid-September the staff, residents, and friends of Oakwood Retirement Community — one of and the largest of the Province’s retirement communities — gathered for an open house to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Oakwood. This celebration was…
From the Office of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) at The Stuart Center for Mission As Religious of the Sacred Heart (RSCJ) in the United States – Canada Province, we are called by our 2016 Chapter Calls to stand in solidarity with “those who have been wounded, displaced, and excluded,” and “to defend…
The Academy of the Sacred Heart in St. Charles, Missouri, held a memorial Mass in honor of Mary Loretta “Buschie” Busch, RSCJ, on the First Friday of September 2022. Sister Busch passed away on June 2, 2022. Family, friends, former students and many from the Academy community joined together in celebration of such a beloved…
This past July, Elizabeth Hicks, Chair of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools Board of Trustees, announced Sheila Haggas as Executive Director of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools in the United States and Canada. Sheila had been serving as Interim Executive Director since January of 2022. Hicks remarked that Sheila has done an outstanding job…
By Lyn Osiek, RSCJ, Provincial Archivist of the Society of the Sacred Heart, United States – Canada Province The recent terrible flooding in Florissant, Missouri, is the continuation of a pattern that goes back centuries. In the early years of Rose Philippine Duchesne’s residence in Florissant, in order to get to the convent for Mass,…
The Provincial Team and the Stuart Center for Mission are pleased to announce and welcome Megan Wilson-Reitz as JPIC Coordinator for the Society of the Sacred Heart, United States – Canada Province. Megan will serve in her role at the Stuart Center for Mission based in Washington, D.C. Megan comes to this position from John Carroll University in Ohio where she spent the last 4 and…
By Caroline Richard, Director of Le Petit Musée and Shrine of Saint John Berchmans in Grand Coteau, Louisiana For nearly 100 years, St. Peter Claver School provided quality Catholic education to African Americans in Grand Coteau, Louisiana. Its graduates became educators, clergy members, business owners, and the first Black female mayor of the town. The…
From the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR): The Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) is happy to welcome Bridget Bearss, RSCJ, to the conference staff, as Ann Scholz, SSND, leaves her position on June 30 after serving as the associate director for social mission since 2011. We are deeply grateful to Ann for her…
Dear Sisters and Family of the Sacred Heart, Happy Feast of the Sacred Heart! Since the time of Sophie, each year [Religious of the Sacred Heart] (RSCJ) have come together to renew our commitment in the Society, to discover and make known the love of Jesus. We stop, we remember and we recommit. Sophie and…
All are welcomed and invited to join the Religious of the Sacred Heart and the Sacred Heart family in the St. Louis area for the Feast of the Sacred Heart Friday, June 24, 2022. Mass will be celebrated in the Villa Duchesne and Oak Hill School chapel at 5:30 p.m. Central Time. Villa Duchesne and…
June Dolce and Jack Heffernan, dear friends and benefactors of the Society of the Sacred Heart and Sacred Heart schools, stood beside Joan Magnetti, RSCJ, as she lauded the couple for their generosity and commitment to Catholic education. “I’ve known them for over 50 years,” remarked Sister Magnetti as she spoke to a crowd of 250…
Judith “Judy” Roach, RSCJ, graduated from Santa Clara University June 11 with her master’s degree in pastoral ministry. Sister Roach is 87 years old. Sister Roach began her studies in 2017 and worked hard over the next five years, persevering through the setbacks and limitations of the COVID-19 pandemic, and while also having endured the…
As we approach the great Feast of Pentecost, when the courage to speak the truth and witness to the invincible power of God’s love became visible in the birth of the Church, we stop to reflect on the gun violence in the United States and the responsibility we have for transformative education and love. With…
Racial injustice, hate, white supremacy and violence have no place in our nation or world. The Society of the Sacred Heart stands in solidarity with the families and communities who grieve the lives lost on Saturday, May 14 in Buffalo, New York. We say the names of those whom we mourn: Roberta A. Drury (32), Margus…
In early April, fifth grade students at Sacred Heart Greenwich in Greenwich, Connecticut, organized a middle school bake sale to benefit victims of the war in Ukraine. Fifth graders Rose, Olivia and Grace along with eighth grader Brianna spearheaded the bake sale efforts in coordination with their classmates and the middle school community service and student…
In words, pictures, music, and standing ovations, guests at the Sacred Heart School of Halifax Bursary Benefit paid tribute to Anne Wachter, RSCJ. On Saturday, April 30, Sister Wachter was feted for her many contributions to Sacred Heart School of Halifax as she attended her final Bursary fundraising event as the Head of School, and also…
By Sheila Smith, RSCJ, UN-NGO Representative for the international Society of the Sacred Heart This year the Society of the Sacred Heart represented by Sacred Heart at the United Nations — an official non-governmental organization (NGO) — participated in the 66th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66). The 66th session of the Commission on the Status of…
Sunday, April 3, the Sacred Heart family had the opportunity to hear from and pray with Religious of the Sacred Heart from Poland and Hungary via Zoom. Many of them are working directly with different organizations to support the refugees from Ukraine, trying to bring them love and hope, listening to their stories and their…