WoodsUp and the Civil War

Our children’s Web site, WoodsUp.com, provides information, lesson plans and games in the subject areas of the environment, art and music, justice, history, Saint Mother Theodore Guerin and faith and values. In the history section, which meets the Indiana Academic Standards for students in fourth and eighth grades, there is a plethora of information about the Civil War.

Some of this material includes information about the final days of the Confederate presidency of Jefferson Davis. On May 10, 1865, Davis was captured by the Union Army. Click here to learn more about his last days in Richmond, Va., and his ultimate capture.

You can learn more about Davis by clicking here.

Picture of the Week: May 7

This week’s Picture of the Week comes from the vault in the Sisters of Providence Archives. This holy water container and sprinkler belonged to Bishop Maurice de Saint-Palais, fourth bishop of Vincennes. He was bishop from 1849 until his death in 1877. To view other treasures in the vault, click here.

Gems from our Archives

The Sisters of Providence are truly blessed to have an Archives that is filled with artifacts, journals and papers documenting the history of this Congregation from its humble beginnings in Ruillé, France, to Saint Mother Theodore Guerin’s arrival at this sacred spot on Oct. 22, 1840.

One of the gems recently shared on our Web site is about the service of the Sisters of Providence during the Civil War, 1861-1865. The Congregation was asked by Governor Morton to run the Military (City) Hospital in Indianapolis. Mother Superior Mary Cecilia Bailly and the council gave their approval and appointed Sister Athanasius Fogarty as the directress of this facility. Sister Athanasius was well respected and well liked as a sister-nurse.

The necrology (obituary) of Sister Athanasius that resides in our Archives reveals more of the life and challenges of Sister Athanasius. It also demonstrates the gratitude of one man for Sister Athanasius’s devotion to the soldiers of the Civil War. Click here for her story.

Click here for more information on the service of the Sisters of Providence during the Civil War.

Lincoln’s funeral train arrives in Springfield

On May 3, 1865, the funeral train of President Abraham Lincoln arrived in Springfield, Ill. The journey began on April 21 and covered 1,666 miles. Two days prior to its departure, a funeral had been held in the East Room of the White House. Lincoln’s body lay in state at the state capitol, which is now known as the Old State Capitol Historic Site. If you visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum in Springfield you will see a re-creation of this scene.

WoodsUp.com, our children’s Web site, provides more information about this sad time in our nation’s history. Click here to learn more.

Picture of the Week: April 30

Sister Ann Kevin O'Connor got a surprise visit this week in the form of a crow that crashed into her room's window, leaving this perfectly formed imprint. The sisters and staff all agree that it looks just like the Holy Spirit!

A doll named Susie

Sister Rosemary Borntrager entered the Congregation July 22, 1950, but before she came to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods she found a doll and dressed her in a habit. With the assistance of two Sisters of Providence, a miniature habit was made following all the requirements found in the Rule of the sisters. As Sister Rosemary progressed through her formation, so did Susie, who “received” the religious name of Sister Mary Rose!

Sister Rosemary shares the unique story of this doll and how it not only impacted her life, but the life of her mother as well. Today the doll, her religious garments and her story are carefully preserved in the Sisters of Providence Archives.

To read Susie’s story, click here. To see other “gems from our Archives,” click here.

HOPE arrives soon!

The summer 2010 issue of HOPE will be arriving in mailboxes very soon! You’ll certainly recognize this issue with its colorful cover of several Woods Day Care/Pre-School children. This issue discusses how classrooms have evolved over the years from a room with desks, chairs and chalkboard to an organic garden or a digital classroom.

Also in this issue, you’ll meet several Sisters of Providence who have very unique classroom settings. You’ll also meet Heather Ennis, a home-schooled high school senior, who volunteers at White Violet Center for Eco-Justice. And you will discover that Educational/Family Services or the “House on 150” is a place where “students surpass their own expectations.”

Of course, you’ll find the usual photo album, newsnotes, calendar of events and obituaries as well as many other engaging articles!

To view the summer 2010 issue of HOPE online, click here.

Picture of the Week: April 23

In celebration of Earth Day on Thursday, Sister Terri Boland helps landscape the entrance to the grounds of the Sisters of Providence and Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.

Providence Associates: video from our spring retreat

Providence Associates and Candidate-Associates experienced a powerful retreat this past weekend at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. Hope and Healing for Earth was the topic of this retreat which coincided with the 12th Annual Earth Day. Sister Ann Sullivan, founding director of White Violet Center for Eco-Justice, provided much food for thought. The prayers, songs and conversations provided a deepening of each retreatant’s spirituality.

A video from this retreat is below. If you can't view the video, please click here.

If you are interested in becoming a Providence Associate, click here.

We welcome two new Providence Associate bloggers!

We are excited to announce that we have two new Providence Associate bloggers. They are Jessi Blessinger and Beth Kyle!

Jessi, who resides in Knoxville, Tenn., became an associate in 2007. Her companion was Sister Mary Mundy. Jessi attended Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and is currently a part-time grant writer for the Office of Congregational Advancement for the Sisters of Providence. She and her husband, Chris, are the parents of 2-year-old Leo with another baby on the way. Jessi and Chris are also the parents of Oz, a 10-year-old cat.

Being a Providence Associate is a family affair. Her sister, Jennifer Drake of Hamilton, Ohio, and her mother, Beverly McGuire, also of Hamilton, are Providence Candidate-Associates. Jessi is companioning her mother.

Beth, who resides in Camby, Ind., became an associate in 2008 and was companioned by Sister Ellen Cunningham. She is a 2000 graduate of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and a 2000-2001 Providence Volunteer Minister. Beth is a software engineering designer and manager at Cornerstone Information Systems in Bloomington, Ind. In the fall, Beth will start her master’s degree in human-computer interaction and design at Indiana University. She also is a music minister in her parish, St. Ann’s Catholic Church, Indianapolis.

Beth and her husband, Jason, have one daughter, Zoe Ellen Ruth, and are expecting their second child any day now!

We look forward to reading the blogs of these busy Providence Associates!

What a great weekend for a retreat!

Providence Spirituality: Hope and Healing for Earth Retreat for Providence Associates and Candidate-Associates is now over, but there are many ideas and views to ponder in the weeks and months ahead. Forty-one retreatants participated in this annual event which coincided with the 12th Annual Earth Day Celebration at the Woods. Featured speaker for the weekend was Sister Ann Sullivan, founding director of White Violet Center for Eco-Justice and currently an assistant professor of psychology and theology at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.

To view a few images from the weekend, click here. For more information about becoming a Providence Associate, click here.

Clerestory removed from Providence Hall

Renovation of Providence Hall continued this morning with the removal of the clerestory from the roof of the Activity Room. Construction workers informed Sister Rose Ann Eaton, associate director of Facilities Management, that the clerestory would be removed at 8:30 a.m., and right on schedule the crane lifted it off the roof.

According to some sisters gathered to view the spectacle, the clerestory at one time provided ventilation to those working in the hot, steamy kitchen. The service of the clerestory is no longer needed.

For more photos, click here.

A retreat celebrating all of creation

The spring retreat of the Providence Associates and Candidate-Associates has come to a close. The weekend was a beautiful one to center one’s self in God’s creation, to reconnect with other associates, candidates and Sisters of Providence, and to enjoy the annual Earth Day festivities at the Woods.

The weekend retreat ended with a Eucharistic Liturgy in the Church of the Immaculate Conception. During the liturgy, Bernie and Michael “Mike” Rydock renewed their commitments as Providence Associates. Bernie and Mike hail from Elizabethtown, Pa.

To learn more about Providence Associates, click here.

Providence Associates retreat

This weekend, Providence Associates and Candidate-Associates have gathered at the Woods for their spring retreat, “Providence Spirituality: Hope and Healing for Earth.” On Friday evening after a time of reconnecting with one another and light refreshments, Sisters Mary Alice Zander and Diane Mason, director and assistant director respectively, welcomed everyone and then led everyone in a night prayer. This prayer helped retreatants to focus and meditate on the basic elements of all of creation: soil, fire, water and air. Pictured, Providence Associate Gary Meister of Indianapolis lights a candle, symbolizing the Light of Christ.

On Saturday, after prayer and a thought-provoking presentation by Sister Ann Sullivan on Providence Spirituality: Coming Home to Our Place, there was time for all to enjoy the 12th Annual Earth Day at the Woods. It was a picture-perfect day to enjoy God’s creation.

The retreat continues Saturday evening and Sunday morning. For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

Picture of the Week: April 16

Spring made its colorful and glorious entrance at the Woods this week with the magnolia trees in full bloom. For more scenic pictures, visit our Spring 2010 set on our Flickr page.