Dominican Sisters Conference
2012 May Gift Sharing

The annual Gift Sharing for the Dominican Sisters Conference is underway! A gift will be drawn each day in May. You have more than 30 chances to win great gifts donated by Dominicans all over the country, and your ticket purchase supports the mission of the Dominican Sisters Conference. Tickets are $10 each or three for $25. Deadline for purchasing tickets is April 30. Download Gift Sharing brochure

Photo of the Week

The Dominican Sisters of Blauvelt recently held their Hearts Afire Gala, which honors individuals whose lives have demonstrated a spirit of faith and deep caring for others. Funds raised at the gala support the sisters and their ministries. Lynn and Frank Mara, part owners of the New York Giants, were honored at the sisters’ first gala, and were in attendance at this year’s event. The leadership team of the Blauvelt Dominicans had the opportunity to have their photo taken with the Super Bowl 2012 trophy. From left: Sisters Joan Agro, Anne Daniel Young, Catherine Howard (president), and Michaela Connolly. View more photos from the event on the sisters’ blog.

UN Briefing
Happiness and wellbeing: Defining a new economic paradigm

Among the many interesting UN sessions I’ve experienced as a visitor to our Dominican NGO office this month, one I found particularly intriguing was the panel discussion on “Happiness and Wellbeing.” The Government of Bhutan’s presentation advocated a new way of determining a nation’s fullest development and sustainability. Read article by Sister Mary Virginia Leach, OP

Immigration
Sisters sign brief calling for suspension of Arizona law

Five congregations of Dominican sisters were among the 50 Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish faith groups that signed onto an amicus curiae brief calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to suspend Arizona’s immigration law, SB 1070. Signed into law on April 23, 2010, SB 1070 requires Arizona police officers to question anybody they think could possibly be an illegal alien. The Supreme Court will hear arguments about the constitutionality of the law on April 25. Read more

Retreats
Learn more about summer programs, retreats

Visit DomLife’s Coming Events page for the latest schedule of summer retreats, programs, and educational opportunities. If you know of an event and would like to see it published, please send the information to editor@domlife.org.

Human Trafficking
High school students create video to help raise awareness

Students from St. Mary’s Dominican High School in New Orleans, Louisiana, who attended the Dominican High School Preaching Conference last summer were astonished to learn about the prevalence of this form of human slavery, especially in their area. Their desire to share what they learned became a six-month project, culminating in a 5-minute video that was shared with St. Mary’s students and faculty. Read more

Friars in the News
‘Crime fighting priest’ helps to stabilize neighborhood

Fr. Gregory Maturi, OP, is pastor of St. Dominic’s Church in Youngstown, Ohio, which has experienced the death of two parishioners due to violent crime in recent years. The local NBC affiliate recently interviewed Fr. Greg about his efforts to improve the neighborhood and to build a new parish center. From Dominican Daily. Watch video

Dominican Alliance
Congregational leadership teams meet in Houston

Blessed by the warm hospitality of the Houston Dominicans, 25 members of the Dominican Alliance gathered in Texas for their spring meeting March 30–April 1. Now in its 15th year, the Dominican Alliance includes members from the following congregations: Grand Rapids, Houston, Peace, Racine, Sinsinawa, Springfield and Taos. Read article by Sister Barbara Blesse, OP (Springfield).

Faith and Film
The Hunger Games

“The Hunger Games” trilogy by Suzanne Collins has already become a phenomenon in the publishing world, having reached millions of young adult readers. Now the first movie has been released, and it, too, has become a big hit… I’d heard of “The Hunger Games,” but have not read the books, and knew little about them. But the movie’s success and positive buzz made we want to see it. Read review by Tom Condon, OP

Dominican Sisters Conference
Registration, Market Place tables

Register now for the first annual Dominican Sisters Conference (DSC) Convocation Oct. 4–7 at the Westin Hotel in Wheeling, Illinois! Speakers Timothy Radcliffe, OP and Judi Neal will address the theme “Edge Walkers: Unfolding the Fertile Unknown.” The convocation will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 4, and will close Sunday, Oct. 7 at noon. To download registration materials (PDF 1.6 MB), click on the graphic or click here.

The Market Place is an opportunity for promoters of preaching, justice, young adult groups, eco-farmers, artists, bakers, booksellers and other special groups or vendors to promote their programs, products or services. Download Market Place application form (MS Word document). Download Market Place flyer (PDF)

Previous updates:

The next Dominican Life | USA update will be published on Wednesday, May 2. Deadline for submission of articles/photos is Friday, April 27.