Notes & News
Posted on November 5, 2019, by Loretto Community
Loretto Magazine – Fall 2019
Volunteer House opens in Denver

For the second year in a row, Loretto has opened a new Volunteer House. One year after the founding of El Paso’s house, Denver’s new home opened in August. Three volunteers will spend a year in service:
- Reilly Love Rebhahn works at Escuela de Guadalupe, a Spanish-English school co-founded by Susan Swain SL.
- Emerson Watson works with the Empowerment Program which assists women who have experienced domestic violence.
- Rebecca Krasky works with Angelica Village, an intentional community for immigrants and refugees primarily focused on women and children. Jean East CoL was instrumental in helping to found the organization.
Erica Stewart, the new Assistant Volunteer Coordinator for the Denver Community, will be actively supporting the volunteers throughout the year. She previously worked for Stonehill College in the Campus Ministry office coordinating local community services.
My hopes for the volunteers are that they enter the year with an open mind and heart for the beautiful transformation that is to come both through their service at their organizations as well as through their intentional community. My own year of service with Dominican Volunteers USA in San Francisco was one of the most fruitful experiences of my life, and I hope that theirs too, has a lasting impact on them both personally and professionally.
Erica Stewart, Assistant Volunteer Coordinator for the Denver Community
Lydia Peña SL receives honorary doctorate from Regis University

On May 4, Lydia Peña SL was awarded an honorary doctorate from Regis University.
“In recognition of all of [her] work for so many people throughout decades of service, the Board of Trustees of Regis University, by virtue of the authority vested in it, does hereby confer on Sister Lydia Peña the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, with all the rights, privileges and honors there unto appertaining.” – Fr. John P. Fitzgibbons, SJ, President, Regis University
Lydia also was invited to deliver speeches to those graduating with master’s degrees and doctorates, ending with wisdom from Cardinal John Henry Newman:
“We have our mission. We have a part in a great work. We are a link in a chain, a bond of connection among persons. God has not created us for naught. We shall do good.”
St. Mary’s Gala a boon to school and students

Saint Mary’s Academy’s gala held in the spring was an unqualified success, raising $383,163 for programs, including tuition assistance, global learning and computer science.
Several Loretto Community members attended, including Theresa Kinealy CoL, Joan Spero SL and Mary Ellen McElroy SL.
Theresa Kinealy says, “I look forward to the gala each year. It’s wonderful to see the support that the parents and alumnae give to St. Mary’s, and they have such appreciation for what the school has done for the students.”