By Michael Chapuran
Executive Director of Dominican Volunteers USA

From Dominican University to the University of Notre Dame to Creighton University, from service-learning to ecotheology to Hebrew Bible exegesis—the impact of former volunteers in the world of Catholic higher education is vast, and so was the impact of their service year in the Dominican Family on their formation. Just ask Dr. Claire Noonan.

“It is wonderful to share the news of those who have been impacted by these sisters,” Claire says. Claire is a former president of the board of trustees of Dominican Volunteers USA, and now directs the Siena Center at Dominican University in River Forest, Ilinois. The Siena Center sponsors a lecture series and other programming to “bring faith and scholarship to the critical issues of church and society.” Claire is also, of course, a former volunteer.

Ask her what influence the volunteer experience had, and she is left to respond, “Where to begin?” Claire served as an Apostolic Volunteer in 1992-93 in Atlanta before going on to earn her Doctorate in Ministry from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. While Dominican Volunteers USA is only 10 years old as a national collaboration of the Dominican Family, the theologians presented here (including Claire) come from its largest predecessor—the Apostolic Volunteers—sponsored by the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa and founded by Sister Marcella Connolly, OP. The program served the underserved by placing more than 350 volunteers from 1974 to 1999 around the country in social justice ministries and community with vowed religious sisters. Additionally, through consistent prayer, study, and example, it simultaneously helped facilitate the faith formation of the volunteers as leaders in the Catholic Church.

Claire always invites the local Dominican Volunteers (and staff) to the Siena Center-sponsored lectures. In fact, Fr. Bill Lies, CSC—another former Apostolic Volunteer (1984-86 at the Connections Adult Learning Center in Chicago)—was invited to DU from Notre Dame to give one of those lectures in 2010. He spoke about his formation, including being “Dominican by adoption” from his service and living experience with Dominican sisters. As a “green kid from central Minnesota coming to the west side of Chicago,” working with the poor was very important to Fr. Bill and continues to be. In 2002, he was appointed to be Director of the Center for Social Concerns at the University of Notre Dame. He had previously earned his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. Now at the annual Notre Dame Service Fair (which his Center sponsors), we often see him pointing graduating seniors to the Dominican Volunteers USA table.

Fr. Bill is not the only former volunteer at Notre Dame. Angela Appleby Purcell (Volunteer 1992-1993 at Blessed Sacrament Parish/Rosary College in Chicago) just accepted a position as the director of spirituality programs for the Notre Dame Alumni Association. For the previous four years she was the director of the Pastoral Leadership Practicum in their Department of Theology—not to mention she wrote the grant proposal that established the practicum. She has taught Catholic social teaching and served as an RCIA director, hospital chaplain, campus minister, and director of marriage preparation. Angie earned her M.Div. from Notre Dame in 1997 after following the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters to Maryland after her volunteer year where she then taught religion at a Catholic high school.

Fr. Bill and Angie both have a strong dedication to service-learning as former volunteers, and they are not alone. Consider Dr. Jennifer Reed-Bouley (Volunteer 1990-91 at the United Stand Family Counseling Center in Chicago). Jennifer earned her Ph.D. in Christian Ethics from Loyola University in Chicago. Until she became the director of the Theology Program at the College of St. Mary (Omaha, Nebraska) earlier this year, she directed the Service-Learning program for seven years (and taught theology, of course). Jennifer believes in how “transformative experiential learning can be,” recalling not only the service year with Dominicans but also a three-week service/immersion trip shortly thereafter with Sister Margaret McGuirk, OP (Sinsinawa) to Central America. She reflected on howliving in Pilsen—a low-income and largely Mexican-American neighborhood—during her service year taught her about the challenges surrounding immigration, and the subject is a current research interest of hers today. She pays the experience forward by leading an annual spring break trip with students to examine issues of immigration at the United States/Mexican border.

Jennifer’s husband, Ken Reed-Bouley, was also an Apostolic Volunteer (1990-1991 at Hales Franciscan High School in Chicago). He currently ministers as the associate director for the Creighton Center for Service and Justice, whose mission is to “engage students in community service, reflection and action on behalf of justice and sustainability.” Ken earned his M.A. in Pastoral Studies and M.Div. from Loyola (Chicago) in 1996 and 2001, and then his M.B.A. from Creighton University (Omaha, Nebraska) in 2006.

Dr. Jason King (Volunteer 1993-1994 at St. Pius V School in Chicago) is now an assistant professor of theology at St. Vincent College (Latrobe, Pennsylvania). Jason earned his Ph.D. from The Catholic University of America (Washington, D.C.). He has written extensively on the theology of marriage and Catholic teaching on dating, taking the program’s motto “At the heart of ministry is relationship” to a whole different interpretation. When asked about his service year, he reflected, “You come out of college and think of your vocation, your career, your needs… In the service site, you come to think of everyone else’s needs. It’s one of those moments of suffering… It’s very formative.” It was very fitting the word he used to later describe the sisters was “compassionate,” which literally means to “suffer with.”

All of these former volunteers have gone on to be leaders in Catholic higher education, and each one is a testament to the positive influence a post-graduate service program can have—especially one so dedicated to intergenerational living. Each one included living with vowed religious as a highlight of their service year about 20 years ago. In their interviews, they shared that it was in Dominican community—through mentorship and experience—they learned about living with and respecting difference, sharing the joys and sorrows of each person’s life journey, living out values of social justice and simple living, and discerning vocations. It was there they learned that “At the heart of ministry is relationship.”

Dominican Volunteers USA places men and women in Dominican community and ministry throughout the United States. To read the full version of this article with more volunteer profiles, or to learn more about volunteer service, visit www.dvusa.org.

By Sister Mary Soher, OP
Director, Dominican High School Preaching Conference

Where do Dominicans preach? Where don’t they preach!

Ninety-eight participants of the 13th Annual Dominican High Schools Preaching Conference decided to keep the excitement and ignite their schools with their experience June 25–30, 2011. Twenty-two Dominican high schools gathered at Siena Heights University in Adrian, Michigan. The conference began by building community and getting to know each other during the opening ritual. Our days began and ended with prayer, each created and led by the participants.

Sunday began with visits from St. Dominic and St. Catherine portrayed by Mr. Patrick Spedale and Sister Santina De Luca (Springfield) and a presentation about the four pillars of the Dominican charism, prayer, study, community and preaching by Mr. Michael Petro. Our American saints joined us in the afternoon, St. Rose of Lima, St. Martin de Porres, and Antonio Montesino, also known as Sister Rosa Monique Pena (Adrian), Brother Herman Johnson (Southern Province), and Father Jim Barnett (Central Province). By evening, the group was ready for interfaith dances presented by Brother Joe Kilikevice (Central Province).

Social justice topics were presented on Monday. Students and adults attended four of six presentations. Topics and presenters included immigration by Father Brendan Curran (Central Province), the United Nations and the Millennium Development Goals by Sister Margaret Mayce (Amityville), our family in Iraq by Sisters Ban Saaed (St. Catherine of Mosul) and Beth Murphy (Springfield), Catholic social teaching by Sister Marie Danaher (Amityville), human trafficking by Sister Judy Morris (Peace), and missions in Africa by Sister Mary Brenda (Houston). The afternoon finished with a wrap up by Sister Durstyne Farnan (Adrian), the outgoing co-promoter for Justice of North America.

Tuesday was a day to share our enthusiasm and gifts with the Adrian community. Again, students and adults immersed themselves among the vulnerable populations and earth community. Returning to campus, the group joined the motherhouse community for its Tuesday evensong prayer for peace before enjoying time with their wisdom sister prayer partners.

Wednesday was a day to explore preaching through the arts. Sister Barbara Schwarz (Amityville) began the day with a multi-method art keynote involving sound, movement and color. Participants then choose among the following workshops: monoprint by Brother Doug Greer (Central Province), liturgical movement by Sister Luchy Sori (Adrian), t’ai-chi chih by Sister Mary Brenda (Houston), liturgical preaching by Sister Sara Fairbanks (Adrian), colored pencil mandalas by Sister Barbara Schwarz (Amityville), rosary making with either Sister Ban Saaed (St. Catherine of Mosul) or Sister Jean Patrick Ehrhardt (Springfield), collage with Sister Xiomara Mendez-Hernandez (Adrian), dances of inclusion by Brother Joe Kilikevice (Central Province), or taize with Sisters Melissa Blankestyn (Springfield) and Teresia Scheuer (Adrian). The day ended with the awards banquet in which Brother Joe Kilikevice (Central Province) was presented with the Sister Patricia Brady Award.

Thursday marked the sending of the conference participants back to their school communities. At St. Catherine Chapel at the Adrian sister’s motherhouse, students presented the action plans of what they would bring back to their schools as well as fully participating as ministers in the closing liturgy. The enthusiasm and sincerity of these young adults not only carried with them through the summer as they shared their return and reflections on their Facebook page, but also manifested with accountability posts as the year began. Briana Acosta (St. Agnes Academy TX) said, “It will open your heart to others and God in a deeper way!” Christopher Vance (Dominican High School) shared, “The conference was the best religious experience so far in my life. I loved seeing kids my age that were just as excited as I am about my faith.” Taylor Brockman (Dominican High School) added, “Amazing experience that has allowed me to grow as a person, a friend, and a preacher.”

These young preachers have presented at faculty staff retreats (Marian Catholic High School and St. Mary’s Dominican High School), presented the 4 pillars (Sacred Heart Griffin High School, St. Agnes Academy TX, Our Lady of the Elms, Fenwick High School), created a Faces of Christ poster (St. Catherine High School), presented reflections (St. Mary’s Dominican High School), reached out in prayer to the east coast schools during Hurricane Irene (Rosary High School), and coordinated activities for the International Day of Peace (Regina Dominican High School and St. Mary’s Dominican High School). Additionally, students from Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, Marian Catholic High School, San Domenico, and St. Thomas Aquinas High School are fund raising with Sister Mary Brenda (Houston) to drill a borehole for water in Africa.

Next year’s conference will be June 26–July 1, 2012 at Siena Heights University in Adrian, Michigan. More information can be found at www.domlife.org/opteens or contact Sister Mary Soher (Adrian) at ophs@adriandominicans.org with any questions.

By Sister Wanda Jinks, OP

At the heart of all ministry, what is most important is RELATIONSHIP…

In this day and age, many congregations are paying special attention to creating relationships that allow others to share in our Dominican way of life. Many of us have created programs for the Dominican laity, Dominican Young Adults or College Preachers, and even High School preachers. And we do this WHY? In order to share and nurture the seeds of our charism—mainly through the four pillars. While the Dominican Sisters of Houston are actively involved in sowing seeds within the above mentioned groups, for the past nine years, they have been including one more age group: the pre-teen / middle school girls. And how do we do this? We invite them to a week of summer camp at Circle Lake.

Using the pillars of prayer, study, community and service, the sisters have organized an annual summer camp that provides an opportunity for young girls ages 10 through 14 years to share a week of summer fun. During this experience, deep in the piney woods of east Texas, the girls have a chance to get to know the sisters while engaging in fun activities as well as prayer, learning, community building, and growing in appreciation of caring for and helping others.

As we all know, ministry is never done in isolation—it takes many hands to do the work of our Dominican life. That is why the camp is staffed not only by sisters, but also by members of the Dominican Family, their Partners in Preaching, and friends. Young women from St. Pius X High School served as counselors. Together, everyone shares the work of caring for and teaching the campers.

For a week in mid-July, 28 girls enjoyed learning the core values of our Dominican life through a variety of activities such as Morning Prayer, Archery, challenging Initiative Games, Swimming, Baking, Arts and Crafts, Guitar Lessons, Singing, Wood Carving, Skit Night, Movie Night, Dancing, and much more.

Reading the campers’ closing comments, we learned several things. First of all, the campers “had a blast!” and many of them want to return next year. Secondly, many of the girls had never experienced being around sisters, and really didn’t know what to expect. It was refreshing to read how much they enjoyed sharing the week with the sisters and learning more about Dominicans. The “Nun Run” activity, where the girls learned about the sisters on staff, was a great hit! Thirdly, it warmed the heart to know that some of the campers were so inspired by their Dominican high school counselors that they, too, want to come back in a few years to be camp counselors themselves. It’s quite a tribute to the Dominican education these high school students have received, and to how they are already preaching with their lives!

Visit the official camp web site to enjoy more photos and videos from the Houston Dominican Sisters Summer Camp 2011, including photos and bios of the sisters and others who run the camp.

Sister Wanda is a certified instructor at the camp. During the school year, she is a special education teacher with the Houston Idependent School Disctrict.