Stories from our Works

From VIDES I learned to be more flexible and broaden my experiences.

I first heard about Volunteers in Development, Education, and Solidarity (VIDES) through my roommate at the start of my senior year of college. At the time, my friend knew I was already looking into other service and mission programs, so she suggested I connect with the Salesians and explore the idea of doing VIDES. After learning about the program from Sister Elfie Del Rosario when she came to my college’s Newman Center and then discovering even more about the program from Sister Theresa Lee, I soon found myself applying to VIDES. Everything with the application process went smoothly and in June I found myself on a train from Massachusetts to New Jersey to begin my year with VIDES.

VIDES has helped me to grow more flexible and broaden my experiences. Going into the year, I never would have anticipated being a summer camp nurse, spending a month substitute teaching in Louisiana, or teaching my own Algebra I classes in a New Jersey high school. All of these experiences have pushed me past my comfort zone and helped me learn to be better able to ask for help when I am doing something new for the first time.

Through VIDES, I have also grown in my Salesian identity and spirituality. I’ve learned so much through witnessing how the Sisters interact with young people and from the Preventive System as a whole. As the year has progressed, I have not only learned more about Salesian spirituality and the history of the Salesians, but also how to better turn work done with love into an active prayer.

My contemplative prayer life has also grown through this year. Slowly from the beginning of this year, I have grown from attending daily Mass with the Sisters to also joining them for evening prayer and now being present for morning prayer and meditation. It’s been beautiful to witness and learn from this balance between prayer in action and prayer in the Chapel. Even from the start of my VIDES experience and in times of stress or feeling so out of my depths, I have felt an overwhelming sense of peace and happiness living and praying with each community of Sisters I have had the privilege to stay with. During the beginning of my experience, I kept rationalizing that anyone would be happy and at peace in the situations in which I found myself. It took time for me to realize this was not the case and that from a logical point of view, some of the situations I found myself in (waking up at 4:35 am to teach History in Louisiana on a 100-degree day) should not have made me happy and at peace.

Eventually, I began actually examining the peace and happiness I had been experiencing and started to seriously consider if the Lord was calling me to religious life. I like to think God used VIDES to “trick” me into discerning, since I doubt I would have come on an official “Come and See” visit if left to my own devices. As a result of my VIDES experience and further prayer and fruitful conversations, I eventually asked for an application, and God-willing I will be entering as an Aspirant in the Fall of 2024. — Erin O’Neill

How do I feel after making my first vows? Free!

On August 5, 2023 I professed my first vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience with my two companions, Sr. Juliana Alfonso, and Sr. Jessica Castillo. Surrounded by friends and family from thirteen different states and Canada, the Chapel was filled with hearts open and ready to witness the faithfulness of God and our response to His love.

Minutes before processing into St. Joseph's Chapel in North Haledon, NJ, Sr. Juliana, Sr. Jessica, and I had a private moment with our parents. This special gesture embodied the Salesian Family spirit which embraces our families and honors the words of Don Bosco, “Our parents are our first benefactors.” Arm and arm we savored these precious moments with our parents as we prepared to walk down the aisle with them. Their “yes” to God in their vocation made our “yes” in to God in our vocation possible.

As the words of the hymn, “The God of all grace has blessed us this day…” floated through the chapel, we processed in. Only joy and gratitude permeated that holy place as voices sang their praises to God in preparation for our public proclamation of fidelity. Don Pascual Chavez, SDB was the main celebrant and his homily honed in on Matthew’s Gospel of the Beatitudes. He expressed the radicality that is demanded in following the Beatitudes. Don Chavez implored us to strive to be living examples of the heavenly reality that awaits us by our faithfulness to the commitments we assume in making our profession as Salesian Sisters.

After the homily the three of us, Sr. Juliana, Sr. Jessica, and I, stood in front of the sanctuary to publicly declare our resolve to follow the spirit of St. John Bosco and St. Mary Dominica Mazzarello. One by one we approached the sanctuary and professed our first vows to freely and entirely give ourselves to Jesus Christ as Salesian Sisters, for the salvation of young people. Next the three of us knelt in front of the altar as Don Pascual presented to us our Constitutions and the Crucifix, which is a sign and symbol of our union with Christ. This moment will forever be ingrained in my heart knowing that 151 years ago to the day, Mother Mazzarello also received her constitutions from St. John Bosco.

Minutes after the Mass a dear friend and companion asked me, “Sr. Pamela Rose, how do you feel?!” Without blinking an eye I proclaimed, “FREE!” Perhaps most people would find something ironic about associating freedom with the profession of vows, but it is a special kind of freedom.

It is freedom to love the Lord with all my heart, with all my soul, and with all my strength. Freedom from the things of this world that may lead me away from all that is True, Good, and Beautiful. Freedom to serve young people in the spirit of St. John Bosco and St. Mary Mazzarello and form them to be good Christians and honest citizens. Freedom to love my sisters with fraternal charity, knowing that with their support and prayers we can live our vows in fidelity. I have followed the Spirit of the Lord, and it has given me this freedom!

Finally, as a Daughter of Mary Help of Christians, I am filled with gratitude to Our Lady who has faithfully journeyed my companions and me and who continues to walk in our homes and schools. It is she who has done it all. I am humbled to be her daughter and it is the greatest joy of my life to be able to share this devotion to Her who will always go before us and show us the way! - Sr. Pamela Rose Suresca

We really enjoy being able to pray with the Sisters via the monthly rosary.

We first heard about the Salesian monthly rosary for vocations from our daughter, Sister Anne Weis, FMA. She let us know that Sister Elfie Del Rosario, FMA had organized a monthly Zoom call to pray the rosary for religious vocations. We’ve really enjoyed being able to pray in community with the Sisters and see all the Sisters from the different locations around the country on the call. We are now on Sister Elfie’s email mailing list, so we receive a monthly reminder with the link for the Zoom call. We are happy to see the number of participants grow and grow with each month.

One of our favorite memories of praying the rosary with the Salesians was May of 2023. Sr. Anne was home for her annual visit, and we were returning from Kansas City where we’d gone to celebrate the ordination to the priesthood of a friend of hers. She had connected us to the Zoom call and as we travelled down highway I-70 we would go in and out of cell reception and the video would freeze. We would continue to pray and when the connection resumed, we had to try and determine whether we were a little ahead or a little behind the group! Later that year we had the opportunity to lead the monthly rosary with Sister Anne. We made sure we had a good internet connection for that one!

We’ve also had a wonderful opportunity to see the Salesian efforts to encourage and develop religious vocations firsthand. The past two years the SEEK Conference, which is a gathering of thousands of college students for a time of prayer, reflection, fellowship, engaging talks, and a chance to encounter Jesus Christ in a life-changing way, was held in St. Louis. It is also a chance for those that are potentially discerning a call to religious life to connect with dozens of different religious orders and learn more about their charisms. We were honored to host some of the Salesian Sisters while they were here for the conference.

We encourage everyone to continue to pray for religious vocations and especially to join with the Salesian family the last Sunday of the month to pray the rosary that our country, and the Salesians, may be blessed with more young people who have heard and answered God’s call in their lives. We look forward to seeing you on Zoom!

To be a part of the monthly Salesian Family rosary contact: [email protected] for Zoom information.

Make a joyful noise to the Lord!

Sr. Mary Ann Caspary begins a gentle musical introduction on the organ, her fingers dancing over the keys as the notes swell high into the rafters of St. Joseph Chapel. It is the beginning of the Mass for First Profession and the chapel is humming with excitement. As with any of the Province’s major celebrations, the Sisters and women of formation make up the choir and serve as musicians for the liturgy. By the patient effort of all and the grace of God, a harmony of voices and instruments coalesce to make beautiful music for the Lord and all those in attendance.

Within the province there are guitar players, flutists, violinists, drummers, those who play the chimes, ukulele players and even a bassist. Usually serving as conductor is Sr. Margaret Wilhelm, Province Treasurer, who keeps the choir and musicians on beat. The Sisters often don’t have much time to practice but make the most of the one or two rehearsals they have right before the solemn Masses for the Jubilee Anniversaries of our Sisters, Province Gratitude Day, the vows of our Sisters, the visit of Mother General or a funeral for one of the deceased Sisters. Music is part of our charismatic history as St. John Bosco used to say, "An oratory without music is like a body without a soul." God gives us gifts that we might use them to glorify God and participate in His mission!

In the Heartland, Faith is Flourishing!

Salesian-Sisters-Sr-Loretta-DeDominicis-Newman-Center

The Salesian Sisters of St. Francis de Sales convent in Columbus Ohio, are awake early on a Monday morning ready to begin their day in prayer. With the final “Amen” said to close out Lauds, the Sisters are on the move to their many and varied apostolates. The newest convent in the St. Joseph Province is located in “the heart of it all” in Old North Columbus, close to The Ohio State University.

Established in 2021, the six Sisters of St. Francis de Sales convent are missioned in three distinct apostolates, touching lives through education, campus ministry and diocesan service. Three of the Sisters dedicate themselves to St. Francis DeSales High School either teaching or assisting in campus ministry; two are among college students at The Ohio State University; and one serves the Diocese of Columbus as the Delegate for Religious.

Sr. Colleen Clair, the Provincial, underscores the significance of this location: “For many years, our Sisters have served on the periphery of North America: New York, New Jersey, Florida, Montreal, Louisiana, Texas, California… Being in Ohio has put us in the center of the map! The good being done here, especially with young people at The Ohio State University, is a singular opportunity for our community to grow and share our ministry and spirituality with the young.”

Sr. Loretta DeDominicis has embraced her role as Student Life Assistant at the Newman Center, which serves over 3,000 registered students at The Ohio State University. She is a presence at numerous events hosted by the Newman Center ranging from OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults) to student retreats and service activities.

Sr. Janna San Juan, in her first year as Coordinator for Diocesan Campus Ministry, has found new ways to engage young adults through a STEM group where members discuss the intersection of faith and science and Avow, a weekly program for women discerning religious life. Together with students, the Sisters attend daily Mass at 7:45 a.m. and weekend liturgies, helping to build a vibrant spiritual community.

Across town at St. Francis DeSales High School, Sr. Nicole Daly, Sr. Joo Yun Park, and Sr. Denise Sickinger serve the school’s 800+ students, embodying the Salesian charism as they teach and help coordinate campus ministry. Sr. Nicole brings theology to life for juniors in her classroom, while Sr. Denise introduces freshmen to the beauty of the Italian language. Sr. Joo Yun can be found fostering moments of prayer and reflection throughout the day. For example, her office becomes a gathering place each Wednesday, during lunch when students gather to watch The Chosen and discuss which characters resonate with their lives.

Natalie Everitt, a junior, shares: “The Ohio Salesian Sisters are all very amazing. They bring so much joy to our school, and the Salesian spirit really shines brightly here because of them.”

The Salesian Sisters serving in the heartland of America are sowing seeds of faith and joy in the lives of students, young adults, and the wider Catholic community. Their work is a testament to the Salesian spirit — alive, vibrant, and ready to meet the challenges of today’s world.

SEEKing God with and among College Students from East to West Coast

SEEK is a national yearly conference for Catholic university students hosted by FOCUS, the Fellowship of Catholic University Students. From one small yearly conference over 20 years ago, it has grown to two locations with thousands of attendees. During this past winter break, college students gathered to hear inspirational Catholic speakers, enjoy faith-based concerts, gather for uplifting Masses and Eucharistic Adoration as well as enjoy opportunities to meet different religious congregations and Catholic vendors. The Salesian Sisters were present, in force, at both the Salt Lake City, Utah location and Washington, DC. Sr. Boram Lee gives her reflections on what it was like to share with the young people and youth ministers the beauty of the Salesian charism.

My experience of attending the SEEK Conference this year in Salt Lake City, Utah, among ten of my fellow Salesian Sisters, was one of profound hope, fraternity, and a coming back to my first love. As Salesians, who labor in the fields of education and formation of the young and the poor, we come alive in the fullest sense when we are with them. Being among 17,000 college students, clergy, consecrated religious, and families, all SEEKing God, hungering for His love and grace, and worshiping Him together in the beautiful liturgies that transcended time and space was a powerful experience of what it means to belong to Jesus Christ in the Catholic Church.

Every keynote speaker made it evident that happiness cannot be found apart from God as we navigate our secular culture that drives us to destruction and despair. Arthur Brooks, in his keynote session, The Science of Happiness, noted that our culture trains us to “use people, love things, and worship yourself,” while our faith informs us to “use things, love people, and worship God.” Sr. Josephine Garrett reiterated the countercultural values of our Catholic faith in her keynote Re-Creation in Christ when she said, “Let discipleship wreck your life” and “when it costs, when it burns, do not be afraid. Because the way has been paved for you…[by] Christ’s cross, and that cross above all was a proposal to you to be joined to you in a union so deep that you will become like Him.”

In addition to the enriching talks, and solemn liturgies, the Holy Spirit was alive and kicking in our one-on-one encounters. Several college students we had met and befriended last year at SEEK24 in St. Louis, Missouri, visited us at our Salesian Family booth to reconnect. Some of us ran into our former spiritual directors and pastors, and had the joy of receiving confession and spiritual direction from them on the night of Eucharistic Adoration.

A few of us even ran into our past pupils who we knew as children, now young adults, evangelizing their communities and family members as missionary disciples. One of these was a former camper from our virtual summer camp in the long-gone days of COVID-19, Maria Santamaria. She was a middle schooler from Florida at the time we hosted an online virtual oratory from Haledon, New Jersey, and was in my small group.

I gasped when she started singing our theme song from that year, “Find the oratory, find the oratory, find the oratory,” with accompanying dance moves. She even recalled the E.B.A. (Easter Bunny Agent), a ridiculous fictional character we made up to entertain our campers during Holiday Week, and every little detail that I had long forgotten from that camp season. I couldn’t believe it. How marvelous that God can always find a way to reach the young under any condition!

On the third day of the conference, I heard someone call my name. “Sr. Boram!” When I turned around, it was Brother Adam Neri, a Brother of Hope, who was the campus minister at the Catholic Center at Rutgers University in New Jersey when I was a college student there, 17 years ago. “I had been praying for you since I heard you entered religious life and would occasionally look you up on the Salesian Sisters’ website, hoping that your picture would still be there,” he said. I cried.

In yet another encounter, a local Salt Lake City resident and mom of two teenage daughters shared with me with tear-filled eyes what a great witness the conference was to her, a devout Catholic, and her family who is Mormon. “I’ve never seen so many young religious and priests gathered in our city!” she said. “This is an answer to my prayers!” We talked for a long time, and I assured her of my prayers.

Even though this was only my second SEEK Conference, it felt like a family reunion and a weeklong wedding party where we all ate and were satisfied. And as I prepare my heart to give myself totally to Jesus in perpetual religious vows this August, I realize He has filled me with great consolation and courage in Utah. “Be generous. Do not be afraid. Pick up your cross and say, yes, over and over again.”