First-graders from St. Peter and Paul Catholic School in Hopkinsville, Ky., came to Maple Mount on May 4, 2012 to sing for the sisters, as part of their ongoing relationship with Sister Jane Miriam Hancock.
Three years ago, the principal at St. Peter and Paul, Sarah Krantz, a graduate of Mount Saint Joseph Academy, suggested the students “adopt” an Ursuline Sister, said Jane Irwin, first-grade teacher. She chose Sister Jane Miriam, and the students wrote her a letter as an opportunity to work on their creative writing, Irwin said.
“She writes back to each of them an individual letter,” Irwin said. “The kids really enjoy it.”
Sister Jane Miriam listed writing to the students throughout the year as her Centennial service project, writing more than 100 letters in honor of the Ursuline Sisters 100th year as an independent community.
“They all remember my name,” Sister Jane Miriam said. “I write them individual letters. One of the mothers said, ‘I have all your letters on my refrigerator.’”
The students came to the Mount in December 2011 and sang Christmas songs, and were asked to come back in the spring. “We pray for Sister Jane Miriam and all the sisters,” Irwin said. “They get exposure to sisters that we’re missing.”
The students, sporting shirts that said, “Proud to be a Saint,” sang nine songs for the sisters, including the Unicorn Song, which required the sisters to join in.