World Day for Consecrated Life
On February 2, 2014, the Church throughout the world will honor and recognize women and men who have taken vows as consecrated religious. This is also a special day of prayer for vocations to consecrated life.
On February 2, 2014, the Church throughout the world will honor and recognize women and men who have taken vows as consecrated religious. This is also a special day of prayer for vocations to consecrated life.
This week, the Church in the United States celebrates, promotes, and prays for vocations to the priesthood, diaconate, and consecrated life. Learn more on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops National Vocation Awareness Week page.
Lent begins
On October 23, 2012, the Sisters of Divine Providence presented the Bishop Ketteler Award for Social Justice to award-winning Christian singer and activist Natalie Grant for her passionate commitment to fighting the atrocities of human trafficking and the child sex trade, her dedication to living out her faith, and her commitment to making God’s providence more visible in our world.
In accepting the award, Ms. Grant spoke about her involvement in the fight against human trafficking and the work being accomplished by her foundation, Abolition International. She has committed her life and public platform to fighting for the freedom of all who are forced into the commercial sex trade. Ms. Grant promotes awareness of this problem of modern day slavery in the world; she encourages her audiences to support those who are already providing relief to victims; and she encourages those concerned about this issue to pray. Her work against trafficking has domestic and international impact and provides advocacy, education, and relief efforts to end the suffering of women and children sold into sexual slavery.
On August 3, 2013, the Sisters of Divine Providence presented the Ketteler Award for Social Justice to Fr. Gregory "Greg" Boyle, SJ, at an event attended by 150 Sisters and guests. The award recognized Fr. Boyle, founder and executive director of Homeboy Industries, and his commitment to helping high-risk, formerly gang-involved men and women, gain an education and job and life skills.
At the event, Fr. Greg spoke of the supportive community and sense of family that Homeboy Industries offers to those with whom they work. "Finding work is important, but 'connection' is critical to the healing process," said Fr. Greg. Homeboy Industries assists these young people on their journey to becoming contributing members of their families and communities. Fr. Greg’s work with the organization and those it serves parallels Bishop Ketteler’s unwavering support of the disenfranchised in Germany in the 1800s.
Fr. Greg is the author of the New York Times bestseller Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion. To learn more about his work, visit www.homeboyindustries.org.
To commemorate World Day for Consecrated Life, and in the name of the Gospel, the Social Concerns Office of the Sisters of Divine Providence and Providence Heights Alpha School invite you to participate in a food drive to benefit North Hills Community Outreach, an organization that serves people in our neighborhood. Despite these tough economic times, let us remember that we are called upon to lend a hand to those less fortunate.
Friends of the Sisters are asked to drop off their donations in the bins located under the archway in front of the Sisters’ Pittsburgh motherhouse, 9000 Babcock Boulevard, Allison Park, PA 15101, in the North Hills. Thank you for making a difference!
Suggested items for donation:
All non-perishable food products, especially...
Also paper products, such as...
Join the Sisters for a Prayer Service to End Human Trafficking
Providence Heights Auditorium
9000 Babcock Boulevard
Allison Park, PA 15101
For more information, call Sister Betty Sundry at 412-635-5426
Sponsored by PATH to Justice Committee of the Catholic Sisters Leadership Council
This year's Lenten Breakfast was a great success! Many thanks to speaker Anne Kertz Kernion, artist and owner of Cards by Anne, who guided us to an understanding of the Lenten season as a time of transition.
The prayer about everyday fasting that was used during the event is available below as a printable pdf.
We hope you enjoy these photos!
Stay up-to-date on all the National Catholic Sisters Week information we're posting on our website!
“Wherever good things are happening, there are likely to be Sisters involved,” states the proposal from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, calling for a national campaign to boost awareness of women religious. Rosemarie Nassif, SSND is director of The Catholic Sisters Initiative, which was launched in February 2013 by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. The campaign is being folded into Women’s History Month. Her three-year grant proposal illustrated a specific plan to raise the visibility of women religious. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation awarded the grant to St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota, which plans to bring national visibility to the contributions of women religious, whose work on the frontlines of social change, women’s leadership, healthcare, education and the Church remains relatively unknown.
A key initiative of the three‐year project will be the launch of National Catholic Sisters Week, March 8‐14, 2014, as part of Women’s History Month. The ultimate goal is to encourage more young women to consider a call to religious life. Molly Dever Hazelton and Mary Soher, OP, were named co‐executive directors. Hazelton is a professor of library and information science at St. Catherine’s University; Soher, of Henderson, NV, has been a member of the Adrian Dominicans since 1996. They state: “We ask you to hold this initiative in your prayers as we raise awareness of the contributions of women religious. It is our hope, and that of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, that the relationship-building aspect of the project synthesized into the social media/digital world will enable young women who may be unaware of their call to religious life to attune themselves to hearing God’s voice.”
We invite everyone to be a part of this exciting venture. We will be sharing our ideas for how to celebrate this week with you on our website and Facebook pages. In the meantime, visit the National Catholic Sisters Week website at https://www2.stkate.edu/ncsw/home to learn more!
Rev. Donald McIlvane was co-recipient of the 1999 Bishop Ketteler Award for Social Justice and former chaplain of the Sisters of Divine Providence. Mary Traupman, CDP, is quoted at the end of his obituary in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Donald McIlvane / Catholic priest and outspoken rights activist."
This memorial service, open to the public, is being organized by Pittsburgh Priests:
Pittsburgh Priests invite you to participate in a memorial service for Rev. Donald McIlvane on Wednesday, March 5 at 6:30 p.m. at the Providence Heights Motherhouse, 9000 Babcock Blvd., Allison Park, PA (between La Roche College and UPMC Passavant Hospital). All are welcome to remember and celebrate our friend Donald, former chaplain, and prophetic voice in western Pennsylvania and beyond.
The Breakfast with the INN Crowd, a breakfast and fundraising auction for Room at the Inn, one of our sponsored ministries, will be held in St. Louis. More information is available on the Room at the Inn "Breakfast with the INN Crowd" webpage.
Representatives from most of our sponsored ministries gathered with the Provincial Leadership Team at Providence Heights for dinner, conversation, reflection, and a presentation by Sister Myra Rodgers, who spoke on "The Challenge to Be Who We Claim to Be."
A Poetry Reading from Cameos of Kenya by Marjorie DeAngelis
Marjorie DeAngelis is a parishioner at Good Samaritan Roman Catholic Church in Ambridge, Pa., where Sister Marise Hrabosky is the parish social minister. Marjorie, a former missionary in Kenya (1974–1990), wishes to share her experiences in Kenya through publication and readings of her poetry and to raise funds for several projects she still supports in East Africa.
RSVP to Sister Marise Hrabosky by Wednesday, April 30 724-266-6565 Ext. 21
At Providence Heights, SAGE will make cookies and ice them to depict the first and fourth days of creation: light/sun/moon
Help us decorate this year’s Earth Day tree with images of God’s creation!
Day 1 - light
Day 2 – sky & water
Day 3 – fruit-producing trees & plants
Day 4 - sun, moon, stars
Day 5 – birds & creatures of the sea
Day 6 – animals & humans
Day 7 – rest & relaxation
Note: The tree hangs in the downstairs hallway in Providence Heights. It is the tree that usually has "green tips" written on the leaves.
To send in an Earth Day image even if you don't live near Providence Heights, please email Rose Radkowski at rradkowski@cdpsisters.org. Your submission may be used in our future online and print communications!
At Providence Heights, seed pots for planting will be handed out to Sisters, staff, and Alpha School for the third day of creation: plants/trees/grasses
At Providence Heights, small packets of Gold Fish Crackers and Gummy Bears will be handed out to Sisters, staff, and Providence Heights Alpha School for the fifth and sixth days of creation: fish of the sea/creatures of the land
Providence Heights Alpha School students will clean the grounds at Providence Heights (rain date Wednesday, April 30)
Rain date for http://cdpsisters.org/events/alpha-school-campus-cleanup
Earth Day prayer service will take place in St. Anne’s Park behind Providence Heights at 1:30 p.m., weather permitting; otherwise, the service will be moved indoors to Mother of Divine Providence Chapel
Resurrection Service at St. Mary Parish, Alton, IL
Wake at Staten-Fine (220 Court, Alton, IL 62202). Rosary/service at 5:30 p.m.
Please join us in celebrating the Eucharistic Liturgy (Sunday Mass)
Mother of Divine Providence Chapel
Allison Park, Pa.
Brunch will follow in the Providence Heights Dining Room
RSVP by Monday, May 19:
Pat Serafini, Development Office
412-635-5401 or pserafini@cdpsisters.org
This year, we welcome the families of three Sisters:
Elizabeth Apel (7-25-13)
Rosaria Bednar (3-10-14)
Geraldine Thiel (4-27-14)
Give What’s Left of Me Away
Now that I’m gone, remember me
with a smile and laughter.
And if you need to cry,
cry with your brother or sister
who walks in grief beside you.
And when you need me, put your arms
around anyone and give to them
what you need to give to me.
There are so many who need so much.
I want to leave you something …
something much better than words or
sounds. Look for me in the people
I’ve known and loved or helped
in some special way.
Let me live in your heart as well as
your mind. You can love me most
by letting your love reach out to our
loved ones, by embracing them
and living in their love.
Love does not die, people do.
So, when all that’s left of me is love,
give me away as best you can.
–Unknown
Held at Rivertowne Brewing Hall of Fame Club, PNC Park
For more information: 412.766.3860 x325; dwoodfill@providenceconnections.org