In the quiet moments when we pause and breathe, there is a whisper of light, unearned, yet offered. A hand extended, not for deeds, but simply for being, a reminder of our shared humanity. Frail moments, stripped of pretense, reveal the heart’s true hunger— to be seen, to be held, without the weight of expectation. Here lies grace, a gentle embrace, lifting the burden of thorns, inviting us to rest in the warmth of belonging. ~ Chela Gonzalez, OP
On the Cover: Sister Catherine Williams, OP: “Act Justly. Love Tenderly. Walk Humbly.”
Above: Witnesses Sister Joan Thomas, OP, Associate Mary Hellenbrand, and Marty Peabody of Sunday Assembly.
A Letter from the Prioress
Dear Friends,
The musical folk duo MaMuse has a song entitled “We Shall Be Known,” which you can listen to on YouTube. The song has two stanzas:
We shall be known by the company we keep / By the ones who circle round to tend these fires / We shall be known by the ones who sow and reap / The seeds of change, alive from deep within the earth.
It is time now, it is time now that we thrive / It is time we lead ourselves into the well / It is time now, and what a time to be alive / In this Great Turning we shall learn to lead in love.
As Dominicans, we are born of a great company of preachers, standing on the shoulders of St. Dominic and all those who share(d) his vision.
As Dominicans, we are formed by the company of the Word, who “in the beginning was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).
As Dominicans, we are known by the company we keep in those, like you, who companion us on the journey as we, together, seek Truth and Justice rooted in the gospel of Jesus the Christ and in our prayer and contemplation.
In this company, we hear the call that it is time now to lead in love, for where there is love, life thrives. Ours is a time that thirsts for peace, kindness, hope, and justice. Baptized into the very life of Jesus, we are called to quench this thirst through our prayer and by the way we live, taking the next best and right loving step that leads to the healing of our hurting world.
Thank you for keeping company with us in the spirit of Jesus and Dominic.
OP
Sister Megan McElroy OP Prioress
Megan McElroy,
Artwork by Maureen E. Carey, OP
Welcomed in the Spirit of Dominic
Companion God, as we journey through the Lands of Dominic in France, we pray for the blessing of pilgrimage. Slow us down, that we might move in your time, walking unhurriedly and thoughtfully.
Blessings of Pilgrimage
Megan McElroy, OP, Prioress
Christians believe that God is always with us, that Jesus’ words are true, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them” (Mt 18:20). It is this belief that welcomes pilgrims to the “Deepening Dominican Spirit Pilgrimage” in Prouilhe, France.
One of the most treasured characteristics of Dominican Spirituality is the recognition that all of creation is one, a gift from God, and we are invited to encounter God in the gifts of the earth and all creation as we make the pilgrimage of life.
Our Congregation has been blessed to be able to share this gift of pilgrimage with our colleagues-in-mission, to immerse themselves in the places where the Dominican Order was founded in southern France.
In extending this opportunity to those who walk with us in mission and ministry, it is our desire to introduce them to the beginnings of the Dominican Order, to create a communal environment where they might deepen their
sense of Dominican Spirituality by walking the path of our father Dominic.
The prayer Companion God captures the essence of what it is to travel the pilgrimage path. Please enjoy these reflections and photo highlights from a few of our colleague pilgrimage participants.
Companion God, Sensitize us to walk with care and reverence upon the earth. Bless all who have walked this sacred path before us and all who will come after us.
Entering the Monastery of Our Lady of Prouilhe
Mindy Hills in 2024 at Sorèze, where Catholic priest and Dominican Henri Lacordaire revived the Order of Preachers after it had been abolished, along with other Orders, by the French Revolution.
Praying with your Feet
Dr. Mindy Hills, Director, Dominican Center Marywood at Aquinas College
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, wrote “… pilgrimage is praying with your body and it’s praying with your feet. It’s an exterior prayer, and the exterior prayer keeps calling you into the interior prayer.
Rohr describes pilgrimage not as religious tourism, but as a deliberate act of displacement — a journey that moves us out of our accustomed ways of seeing so that transformation becomes possible.
Pilgrimage, in Rohr’s framing, is less about arriving at holy places and more about allowing holy places to arrive in us.
the shell.
During the summer of 2024 pilgrimage, I experienced a kind of inner reorientation. The geography itself — Carcassonne, Prouilhe, Sorèze, Seignadou, Montségur, and ultimately Lourdes — became a living text, preaching long before any words were spoken.
Early in the journey, I became attentive to a simple and significant sign: a shell. During our opening ceremony, we were each encouraged to let a shell choose us. Long associated with pilgrimage, the shell marks the way for those willing to travel lightly, trust the road, and receive what is given rather than control what is found. Rohr often notes that pilgrimage leaves us with a symbol — something that continues to teach us long after the walking ends. The shell became that symbol for me, a quiet reminder that the path itself is the teacher.
Once back home, the pilgrimage continued. The shell remains in my daily view – no longer pointing the way on a map but orienting my heart. Each time I see it, I am reminded that pilgrimage is not finished when the journey ends; it is completed only when it reshapes how we live.
Holy Holiday
Lisa Mitchell, Director, Associate Life, DSGR
In some ways, pilgrimage is a holy holiday that gives new dimension and deeper depth and understanding of our faith, our history, and our charism.
Discovering the beginnings of the Dominican Order was an awesome experience. The most significant learning for me was Dominic’s belief that everyone has a piece of the truth. To find that truth, one needs to engage in deep listening and dialogue. Dominic modeled that for us, and I believe we need it in the times we are living in now.
Grounded in the sacred land where Dominic lived and walked in the 13th century, I grew in clarity about the Order of Preachers. Our last day in Fanjeaux, we walked up to Seignadou for the last time as a group and saw a rainbow over the fields near Prouilhe. This is the same view where it’s said Dominic saw a ball of fire descend from the sky three nights in a row above the church of Sainte Marie de Prouilhe. He called it Seignadou, meaning sign from God. This was a sign to me to recognize God’s light in everyone and continue, like Dominic, to have a passion for the truth, study well, take care of the beauty around me, and go forth and be Dominican in whatever way God is calling me!
Attentive to the sign of
Lisa Mitchell at base of Montségur, 2023
Companion God, what do you want to show me?
Stacy Spitler, Director of Communications, DSGR
For the pilgrims arriving in France from Dominican Congregations in the United States, anticipation is great, the welcome, warm.
During the Summer of 2025, I felt a sense of freedom and indulgence rambling the tranquil monastery grounds in rural Prouilhe. Pilgrimage time and space invite us into slowing and newness, such luxuries at a time I found myself weary.
One has to wonder if in 1206 the first followers, all women, responding to Dominic’s invitation felt something similar. They, too, were arriving to something new. The nine Cathar women gravitated to the more gentle, compassionate and loving relationship with Jesus and other people that Dominic expressed in his faith.
Today, this monastery is home to 11 Dominican nuns who open their home to pilgrims year round. Some stay a few days, others a week, some for months in ministries of service. The guest house and cottages on the grounds serve the lodgers.
For this pilgrimage, leaders Sisters Jean Goyette, OP, Mary Ellen O’Grady, OP, Fr. Richard Peddicord, OP, and Suzanne Wong revealed both the spirituality and early history of the Order of Preachers.
We were exposed to stories of Dominic’s enlightened faith and vision for a communion of people brought together in faith. In contrast, stories and visits to places like Montségur exposed the cruelty and atrocities wrought by unchecked political and religious might.
We were reminded that as people of the incarnation, Truth is available through the sense of human flesh and human nature — of bodies that remember, and want to remember, the deepest expression of Love — knowing that we all can walk in Love.
Companion God, Engage the whole being — heart, mind, body, and spirit. Open our ears that we might hear our Dominican Family stories with the awe of children and the wisdom of those who have gone before us. When we become weary, remind us that our destiny is beyond today’s immediate worries and anxieties and bless us with gratitude.
Today
Immersed in the vision and lands of Dominic, graced with space and time, and good company, the question arrived: Might every day, every meeting, every moment be pilgrimage?
God, I pray, during this treasured time with these gifted companions… will I give myself time to rest my body, mind, and spirit?
Shall I ask the holy listeners around me, and You, the Holy Listener, for grace?
And will I give freely of the grace and gratitude bubbling up in my heart?
God bless this day.
Stacy Spitler, Perspectives at Montségur
Works in Progress
Michael Ingram, Director of Campus Ministry, Aquinas College
One of my favorite days included the celebration of Mass in the basilica at the monastery where Dominic preached. It was in the moments before Mass, sitting in this beautiful space, that I was struck by the thought that it’s still: “under construction,” a common theme at many places we’d visited: scaffolding and undergoing renovations and repairs.
Even in our morning presentation about St. Thomas Aquinas, OP, Fr. Rick Peddicord had shared with us that when it came to the idea of study, there is always more to learn, more that Thomas wanted to study and explore and try to understand.
With this in mind, I jotted down in my notebook: Magnificent centuries-old works in progress. During this pilgrimage, conversations arose about Europe having so much to offer and teach us with its rich history dating back hundreds and thousands of years. It made me think not only about how I am a work in progress, perhaps not magnificent or centuries old, but nevertheless a work in progress. Like these beautiful churches, like these cobblestone streets, like all things, it is, we are, works in progress.
Companion God, May this prayerful pilgrimage revive in us our commitment to you and our Dominican mission. With your grace we set out, like Dominic and Catherine, To praise, to bless, to preach your Word. Amen.
Imprints
Jade Meyer, Photographer and Creative Assistant, DSGR
The world around us is constantly changing — it’s different from the world I would have imagined for the saints who walked before us. Yet, as we made our way to Chemin Saint Dominique, walking through gravel and grass, my eyes drew upward.
As the sun began to set, I looked towards the sky — the same sky Dominic must have gazed upon countless times in his travels between Fanjeaux and Prouilhe. It held the same sun that marked his days and the same moon and stars that guided his nights. Beneath my feet, the same earth Dominic’s feet walked upon, though the footprints he left behind have long since faded, replaced, now, by our own. Yes, the world has changed, but the journeys we’ve made are forever imprinted into Mother Earth.
Though Saint Dominic is no longer physically present, his spirit lingers — not only in those he walked beside but in the very ground that continues to carry others forward. Walking there, it felt as though his journey had not ended, but was quietly continuing through us, guiding us, as we looked up into the sky.
Michael Ingram, Basilica of Saint-Sernin, Toulouse
Jade Meyer
The basilica at Prouilhe, under construction
The Gospel teaches us that every person is made in the image of God.
Can immigration policies and practices reflect this fundamental dignity?
By Jessica Eimer Bowen, Promoter of Justice, DSGR
One of the most pressing justice issues of our time is the treatment of immigrants. Catholic teaching on immigration holds together three interrelated principles: the right of persons to migrate in order to sustain their lives and those of their families; the right of a country to regulate its borders and control immigration; and a nation’s duty to regulate its borders with justice and mercy.
It’s been just over a year since the Administration began intensified actions against immigrants, and the Dominican Sisters remain deeply troubled by the immense suffering being inflicted on our immigrant sisters and brothers. Scripture calls us not only to lament injustice. We are also called to respond with courage and compassion, to speak truth, and to focus attention on the cry of the poor and vulnerable...”
Together with other Midwest congregations of women religious, we have joined our voices to call for the establishment of a comprehensive immigration system that recognizes the richness and value that immigrants have historically brought and continue to bring to our country, and that offers an accessible pathway to legal status. In part, our join statement reads:
“As people of faith, the love of God unites us as we stand together in our desire for a more humane, just and compassionate response to the immigration crisis we are witnessing in our country. Therefore, we call for an end to:
J Violence being used by masked federal immigration agents against migrants and peaceful protestors;
J The dehumanization and racial profiling of people of color and different ethnic backgrounds and the disregard for their human rights;
J The cruel separation of families with children being ripped away from their parents who are detained and/or deported;
J Mass incarcerations of migrants in overcrowded, unsanitary prisons and detention centers and to the denial of access to pastoral presence;
J Mass deportations without due process, especially to third party countries;
J Wholesale bans on accepting migrants, refugees and asylum seekers based on their country of origin or homeland.”
Responding to our call to “see the human being before us,” Sisters also felt compelled to learn how immigrants in our communities are being affected today and to share their stories. Many voices remain quiet out of fear of reprisal, yet by listening and lifting up these experiences, we seek to speak truth and witness to the dignity of every person.
In recent months, our Congregation launched a witness campaign titled: Storming Heaven & Earth. Rooted in the Dominican commitment to Veritas (Truth), this effort invites us to listen more closely to the lived experiences of immigrants. At a time when immigrants are often reduced to stereotypes, Storming Heaven & Earth seeks to lift up the everyday realities of our neighbors — people seeking safety, dignity, and opportunity for their families. Each issue will highlight a brief story that reflects real experiences we have heard from immigrants in our community, along with a prayer.
Our Congregation asks for your prayerful support and sharing of Storming Heaven & Earth as we lift up the lived truth of our immigrant sisters and brothers.
Nael was 9 years old when he and his family arrived in America, seeking a better life. America is the only home he has ever known. He grew up here. He built his life here. He is a U.S. citizen, a husband to Christina, father of four, and grandfather of two. He is scheduled for deportation for a crime he committed in 1983 and for which he served his time in the U.S. justice system. Photo credit: change.org
Nael’s Story
We invite you to join us in prayer for Nael S. and his family.
This husband and devoted father from Genesee County has been separated from his family since August 7, 2025, after being taken into ICE custody. Nael immigrated lawfully to the United States as a small child and has lived nearly his entire life here, forming deep roots in family, community, and work.1 Nael’s detention is tied to a crime he committed in 1983, for which he served his sentence in the U.S. justice system more than four decades ago.2
Nael was born in Jerusalem, Palestine, a homeland shaped by conflict and displacement. It is not a country he can realistically return to. He now faces the possibility of being sent to Israel, currently at war with Nael’s home country.3
“I was born in Palestine, and they’re trying to send me to Israel,” Nael shared. “I don’t know nobody in that country… I was born in Palestine, and there’s no more Palestine.”2
Guided by the Gospel, we reject endless punishment and do not believe it is just to deport Nael to Israel, a place that is not his homeland and where he has no family, community, or protection.
We invite you to hold Nael and his family in prayer — for justice rooted in truth, for peace amid uncertainty, and for the reunification of this family.
Update: Nael’s attorney filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his detention. In response, a federal judge ordered Nael’s release from detention.
We Pray for Nael
Loving God,
We praise you and we bless you; we thank you for your unending love and compassion. We come to you to pray for Nael.
Our brother, Nael, is grieving the loss of his freedom and the pain of being separated from his family and friends after being taken to the ICE detention center.
We pray that Nael and his wife, children, and grandchildren be comforted. May he and his family know the grace of your Loving presence during this difficult time.
May he and his family know your grace and mercy and justice through the community of helpers. May all their needs: financial, spiritual, therapeutic, and legal, be fulfilled in a way that is skillful, wise, and will be effective.
Tender God, as Nael is away from his family, keep him safe in the care of law enforcement personnel. May they recognize their shared humanity with Nael and act with empathy, restraint, and justice.
We pray, fervently and faithfully, believing all peoples, O God, are made in your image and likeness, that the power of Love can break through the chains of fear that separate us.
We pray that your Peace, O God, emboldened by our faith gives us the courage to continue to speak truth to those who have the power to give Nael his freedom.
We ask this through Jesus who lived, died and lives now through us. Amen.
Celebrating our 2026 Jubilarians
With heartfelt joy and deep gratitude the Leadership Team announces the Jubilarians of 2026.
Let us celebrate the faithful service of these Jubilarians.
Laurena Alflen, OP, 75 Years
What is in my heart is what God has made holy.
Mary Lee Pitre, OP, 80 Years
God gave the heart a voice to sound its joy and called it Music.
Teresa Houlihan, OP, 75 Years
“Those who work for justice will see the face of God.”
~ Psalm 11
Maria Goretti Beckman, OP, 75 Years
“Looking behind, I am filled with gratitude. Looking forward, I am filled with vision. Looking upwards, I am filled with strength. Looking within, I discover Peace. ” ~ Querio Apache Prayer
David Therese Korson, OP, 75 Years
“Be still and know I am God.” ~ Psalm 46:10
Peter Mary Korson, OP, 75 Years
“Be holy for I, the Lord your God, am holy:”
~ Leviticus
Doris Faber, OP, 70 Years
“Take, O take me as I am. Summon out what I shall be. Set Your seal upon my heart and live in me.”
~ Hymn Lyrics by John Bell
Join us in celebrating the faithful service of these Jubilarians.
Geneva Marie Schaub, OP, 75 Years
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.”
~ Psalm 34:8
Joan Alflen, OP, 70 Years
“God grant that I may always be a lover and proclaimer of truth…”
St. Catherine of Siena
Bernice Garcia, OP, 70 Years
“Let the peace of Christ rule your hearts…”
~ Colossians 3:15
Dolorita Martinez, OP, 70 Years
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “Plans to prosper and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
~ Jeremiah 29:11
Rosemary O’Donnell, OP, 70 Years
“You made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”
Dorothy Ederer, OP, 60 Years
“I have called you by name, and you are mine.”
~ Isaiah 43:1
Joanne Toohey, OP, 70 Years
After 70 years as a Grand Rapids Dominican, my heart is filled with gratitude for the many wonderful opportunities, and for the Sisters with whom I have shared my life.
Carol Gilbert, OP, 60 Years
For all that has been thanks, for all that will be, yes!
~ Dag Hammarskjold
ASSOCIATE JUBILARIANS
Associate Jo Carr, 25 years
The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom should I fear?
The Lord is my life’s refuge, of whom should I be afraid?
~ Psalm 27
Nancy Brousseau, OP, 60 Years
“When I give up choosing for myself, God can choose for me.”
~ Meister Eckhart
Phyllis Supancheck, OP, 60 Years
“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Alleluia!”
~ Psalm 150
Associate Mary Ann Howe, 25 years
The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem, gathers Israel’s exiles, heals the brokenhearted, binds up every wound– appoints every star and calls each one by name.
~ Psalm 147:2-3
Linda Thiel, OP, 50 Years
These words have shaped my life: Give praise and thanks — our God is kind and merciful
~ Psalm 103
Remembering our Deceased Jubilarians
80 Years
Marie Bernarde Salazar
Thomas Estelle Bryan
Michael Anne Nic
John Anne Paquette
Viola Marie Henige
Marie Eugene Charbonneau
Mary Anne Keating
Jean Milhaupt
Olga Mizzi
Dorothy Giglio
Phyllis Brown
JoAn Brown
75 Years
Janet Mish
Lorraine Rajewski
Mary Martens
Marlene Edwards
Teresita Garcia
Rose Elizabeth Powers
Donna Brown
70 Years
Roberta Hefferan
Ellen Mary Lopez
Wanda Ezop
Ann Porter
Madelyn Hronek
Mary Ann Cudzanowski
60 Years
Susan Keller
Associate Jubilarians –25 Years
Constance Alighire
G. Peter Posthumus
Leo Rathbun
Sally Tardani
Associate David Lincoln, 25 years
I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have called you and you are mine.
~ Jeremiah 31:3
Associate Joan Rathbun, 25 years
My heart has always been with the Dominicans!
Associate Joan Start, 25 years
Being an Associate has enriched my faith life and taught me so much about myself and my relationship with God.
A Legacy of Love and Support
Growing up, Sue Guevara learned important life lessons from the Dominican Sisters.
They encouraged her to express her opinions and showed her it was okay to be vulnerable and to be herself. They taught Sue what it means to live life with joy.
Above all, it is the mutual love and support between Sue and her Aunt Maddie (Sr. Marie Rachael Guevara) that has helped her become the person she is today. In Sue’s eyes, her planned gift is simply an extension of that love and support.
“The Sisters are the backbone of the Church: the ministers, teachers, caretakers, protesters, nurses, the GIVERS.
This is my way of giving to them, of giving back.”
Let’s build a legacy that matters.
When you include the Sisters in your will, trust, or other estate plans, you join us in creating a future of possibility and promise— a legacy that matters.
Members of the Veritas Society receive:
• Important updates from the Sisters
• Invitations to special events
• A small gift of gratitude
Talk with your advisors about aligning your plans with what you value most.
Together we can build a more just, equitable, and loving society for all God’s people.
For questions about a legacy gift to Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids or GR Dominican Sisters Foundation, contact: Alyssa Morillo Scheidt, Director of Mission Advancement 616.514.3110 | amorilloscheidt@grdominicans.org
Sue’s sister Julie Guevara. (L–R)
Sue with “Aunt Maddie” and
Share your food with
Grantmaking for Mission
Late last fall, in the midst of the government shut down and looming uncertainty over the future of SNAP benefits, we reached out to learn how our West Michigan neighbors were being impacted. We heard from local leaders how the chaos and confusion led to dramatic increases in the number of people seeking food assistance services.
Though the Foundation’s 2026 grant cycle had only just begun and awards wouldn’t be decided for another six months, the board of directors quickly stepped up to expedite a grant to The Other Way Ministries in support of their food programs.
JUSTICE AT THE HEART
Our friends and supporters helped make it possible for us to meet the needs of our neighbors in a time of crisis. Together, we ensure grantmaking reflects our Dominican mission — a mission with justice at its heart!
Watch for an announcement later this year to learn about all our 2026 grantees and the tremendous work they do in our communities.
FAITH IN ACTION
Foundation grantmaking bolsters efforts that mirror Sisters’ ministries past and present: care of Earth, education, alleviating poverty, peace and justice efforts, health care, spiritual formation — and more!
Together with friends like you, we put our faith in action by facilitating the work of those on the forefront today, serving God’s people just as Sisters have always done.
YOU MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
We are grateful to have you with us in mission and for helping us to love and care for all those in our midst. You helped get critical support to those who needed it most — when they most needed it. Thank you!
For more details about bequests to either Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids or GR Dominican Sisters Foundation, contact Alyssa at 616.514.3110 or amorilloscheidt@grdominicans.org.
To learn more about the wonderful work of The Other Way Ministries in our community, visit theotherway.org
everyone who is hungry
Isaiah 58:7
Members of The Other Way Ministries food service team.
111 Lakeside Drive NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
616.514.3106
grdominicans.org
dominicancenter.com
About Us
The Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids are a community of vowed women religious and Associates who follow the Catholic traditions of St. Dominic and St. Catherine of Siena. Since 1877 we have been praising, blessing, and preaching God’s love through all we do.
Campus Contacts
• Administration & Leadership –616.514.3106
• Aquinata Hall – 616.259.1703
• Archives – 616.514.3313
• Associate Life – 616.514.3115
• Communications – 616.514.3455
• Dominican Center Marywood at Aquinas College – 616.514.3325
• Facilities – 616.514.3343
• Finance – 616.514.3318
• Human Resources – 616.514.3322
• Justice – 616.514.3111
• Liturgy – 616.514.3365
• Mission Advancement – 616.514.3110
Mission & Ministry Editorial Team
• Megan McElroy, OP – Prioress
• Danny Lynn – Art Director
• Stacy Spitler – Editor/Contributor
• Alyssa Morillo Scheidt, Contributor
All photos are from the Archives of the Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids (DSGR) unless otherwise noted.
Sisters
Center
Rapids
Particularly freedom of speech, the right to assemble and protest peacefully, the right to protection from unlawful search and seizures and due process under the law. We will continue to work with all those who believe that every human being is endowed with God-given dignity. Rooted in Jesus’ proclamation of the two great commandments: love of God and love of neighbor without distinction, we are dedicated to the promotion of a society based on truth, love, and compassion rather than fear, hatred, and division.
The Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids call for the establishment of a comprehensive immigration system that recognizes the richness and value that immigrants have historically brought and continue to bring to our country, and that offers an accessible pathway to legal status.
Call for Humane, Just, Compassionate Response to U.S. Immigration Crisis, February 19, 2026 grdominicans.org
