Celebrating Joyce Minkler on Foundation Day

Joyce Minkler has many interests. She has worked tirelessly as a psychotherapist helping people cope with troubling issues in their lives. She lives at 1873 House but often drives around to be a part of local endeavors like New Pioneers for a Sustainable Future in nearby Springfield, Ky. Joyce first met Loretto through PJ Manion in 1966 when Joyce was a resident staff member at Grailville in Ohio. PJ helped the Grail community to develop an off-campus semester program for college women interested in the intersection of experiential learning, work for justice, feminist orientation and spirituality. Subsequent years brought Joyce to Knobs Haven for workshops and retreats and finally to a residential year at Cedars of Peace in 1995. She has continued her participation in the Grail Movement as she has deepened her involvement with Loretto, grateful for the continuing overlap in vision, mission, inspiration and support between these two communities.

Joyce chose our Foundation Day for her commitment ceremony as a co-member of Loretto. With nature in full bloom, we gathered in our Seven Dolor Church on that day as 25 sisters marked their long years of belonging from 78 years to 17 years. Jeanne Dueber’s Fiat statue, fresh from the casting mold, was perched near the altar steps to add even more delight to our hearts. Maria Visse set the tone at the beginning of our celebration by singing an aria from Handel’s Messiah accompanied on the piano by JoAnn Gates. As we were carried along by Maria’s full volume, our love for that sacred space was almost palpable. Eileen Custy captured the same spirit in her homily. “We, all of us, have been chosen by the Holy One to love and give life to those around us. This God of ours is not far off but in our very midst … desiring to be a part of our lives if only we allow it, if only we set aside time to let that presence seep into our very bones. We are no longer in a classroom full of young people, but we are here, in this place, at this time, with a pandemic raging around us. We can and do create an atmosphere where our covenant of love can thrive.”

At the end of the celebration, Joyce addressed the assembly: “I have lived and worked around the edges of Loretto life for 25 years or more. During that time, I have easily identified with Loretto values, spirituality, work for justice, commitment to the earth and care for each other in the Community and beyond. I would like to formalize and deepen that commitment to Loretto now as I live and work in the midst of the Motherhouse Community. I value the ways in which Loretto continues to be engaged in the issues of this time in history and to keep the whole of the Community involved in dialogue and planning through Community Groups and ongoing communication structures. I especially value the respectful ways that members try to deal with each other, allowing different voices and experiences to be heard and new growth to emerge.” We stood in a loud grateful applause then slowly continued the event at a delicious dinner.