News from Visitation Province
Happy 100th Birthday, Sister Catherine!
Sr. Catherine M. MacDonald celebrated her 100th birthday on Sunday, May 2nd, at the CND Health Center in Sydney. Sr. Catherine was celebrated with prayer, best wishes, song and cake.
Happy 102nd Birthday, Sister Mary Edna
Blessings are abundant at the CND Health Center in Sydney. On Wednesday, May 5th, we were blessed to celebrate Sister Mary Edna Levangie’s 102nd Birthday.
Arlene Rutledge, health care coordinator, CND Health Care Centre
My Experience of the Indigenous Canada Course:
Fr. Bert Foliot, S.J. animated a retreat recently which he entitled "Never The Same Again."
I did not follow the sessions but the title has lingered since I first heard it. These last weeks, however, I have come to realize how true this will be for me. I have been fortunate to be registered for the Indigenous Canada course initiated by Monica Lambton. We are now into Module 8 with 4 more to come. At this point I know I will never think/feel the same way again about my Canadian history. I ask myself, "How then shall I live?" Knowing what I do now about the ways we treated the caretakers of this Turtle Island, what can I do now to show greater respect and love for this land and her earliest inhabitants? I hope and pray that our Parliamentarians and Senators will vote in favour of Bill C-15 so that Canada will be inspired to give full agreement to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Have we all signed in support of Bill C-15?
Kay Duffin, CND
No Mow May: This time of year, worker bees are especially in need of nectar and pollen. One of their best sources is the brilliant dandelion. (Also grass and daisies). Some municipalities have already declared No Mow May and will not be mowing grass or dandelions this month to promote by example the preservation of the plants we call weeds. Bees do good things for us. We need them. Let’s help feed them! Encourage and support No Mow May.
Eleanor McCloskey, CND
Did you know North America’s first Gaelic immersion school will be in the former St. Joseph Convent, Mabou?
The school is an initiative of a group of parents and community members. Beinn Mhàbu will be home for the school. It will start with grade primary students in September, adding a grade each year, building to a P-4 educational facility within five years. Gaelic culture and local knowledge will be at the core of teaching, while abiding by the learning outcomes prescribed by the province.
Rebecca McKenna, CND
UNANIMA International Webinar on Human Trafficking: On Tuesday, May 11th at 10:00 am EST
there will be a launch event for UNANIMA International's latest publication: “The Intersections of Family Homelessness and Human Trafficking.” There will be speakers from around the world. All are welcome. You can register for the event here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_TSSsRz6bS_ywomenJkAoxQ
Monica Lambton, JPIC Coordinator
Webinar on Water with Green Churches
Join a free webinar on the Watershed Discipleship Movement, Wild Church and Contemplative Ecology with Rev. Laurel Dykstra. Thursday, May 13 at 1pm Eastern. Register here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAofuChqzMjGNwwFqURckKexA58MiuB-djX
My Mother’s Daughter by Perdita Felicien. (Doubleday Canada: 2021). This is a Canadian story written by a young woman inspired by her mother’s constant example of courage and persistence. Mother (Cathy) came to Canada from St. Lucia to work as a nanny in a young family. Daughter (Perdita) was born in Canada. Together they experienced poverty, homelessness, racism and domestic abuse. Yes, in Canada. This is a success story, in many ways, with a happy ending.
Eleanor McCloskey, CND