The Ursuline Sisters living at Maple Mount took part in their first Synodal listening session on Feb. 17, 2022, in the Rainbow Room of Saint Joseph Villa. Sister Suzanne Sims, director of local community life for the Sisters at the Motherhouse, said the guide for the listening session comes from Bishop William Medley’s office in…
News & Blogs
Sisters take part in diocese’s initial Josephine Bakhita Mass
More than a dozen Ursuline Sisters were in attendance on Feb. 8, 2022, for the Diocese of Owensboro’s first Memorial Mass for Saint Josephine Bakhita, a day of prayer and awareness against human trafficking. Sisters and others gathered in St. Stephen Cathedral on the feast day of Saint Josephine Bakhita, the patron saint of human…
Sister Martha Keller continues cards and tornado relief for the long haul
During the first week of December 2021, Ursuline Sister Martha Keller was wrapping up her catechetical work until after Christmas at St. Jerome Parish in Fancy Farm, Ky. She knew when January arrived, she would be very busy. On Dec. 10, her plans and those of the parish changed drastically. Powerful tornadoes devastated nearby Mayfield.…
Reflective Moments with Angela February 2022
By Sister Marietta Wethington During the holidays – long past now – I was watching a special program. In this episode, one character tells another that the hands of God are often found at the end of our own arms. That touched me, and I mused about the hands of God in the person of…
Sisters celebrate 99th birthday for Sister Marie Montgomery and 91st for Sister Elaine Burke
The Ursuline Sisters gathered in Saint Joseph Villa on the afternoon of Jan. 27, 2022, to wish a happy 99th birthday to their most senior member, Sister Marie Montgomery, and happy 91st birthday to Sister Elaine Burke. Both Sisters can attribute their long lives to prayer and a refusal to ever stop moving. Perhaps the…
Sister Mimi Ballard adjusts the Casa Ursulina focus during Covid
In March 2020, more than 200 women who had signed up for fiber arts classes at the Ursuline ministry in Chillán, Chile, were abruptly told to stay home. The Covid-19 pandemic had begun. “It was so frustrating and stressful,” said Ursuline Sister Mimi Ballard, who leads the Casa Ursulina ministry. “I assumed it would be…
Three Kings Project aims to bring hope to tornado victims
As families continue to rebuild their lives following the devastating tornadoes of Dec. 10, 2021, the Ursuline Sisters and Associates are adapting a project begun by the Knights of Columbus to offer prayers and emotional support. During Christmastide (Dec. 25 to Jan. 6), the Knights of Columbus chapter in Louisville began the “Three Kings Project.”…
Longtime farm employee Mark Blandford calls it a career
The end of 2021 also marked another end of an era at Maple Mount with the retirement of farm manager Mark Blandford. When Mark began working on the Mount Saint Joseph farm, Richard Nixon was in trouble over the Watergate scandal, Paul VI was the pope and Joe B. Hall was in his second season…
Reflective Moments with Angela January 2022
By Sister Marietta Wethington A short time ago we celebrated the great feast of Christmas. Actually, in our Catholic tradition, it is still Christmas. The season officially ends with the celebration of Epiphany on Jan. 6, the 12th day of Christmas. I once read a striking reflection on Christmas being about giving and forgiving. I…
Sister Martha Keller helps tornado victims find God in the chaos
In November 2021, a disabled parishioner at St. Jerome Parish in the far western Kentucky town of Fancy Farm called the pastoral associate, Ursuline Sister Martha Keller, to volunteer his services. “He couldn’t find a job, but he wanted to do something. He said he has organizational skills,” Sister Martha said. When a Dec. 10,…