Notes & News
Posted on May 31, 2019, by Loretto Community
Pancratia Hall on Loretto Heights College campus becomes apartment housing
By Mary Nelle Gage SL
Pancratia Hall, former dormitory and classroom building on the historic Loretto Heights College campus, built in 1929, will be transformed to create 65 affordable family apartments with adjacent courtyard. Some Loretto Heights alumnae, Sisters and Co-members toured Pan Hall in February, finding their old dorm rooms and telling tales of their college years. The team from Hartman Ely Investments described their plans to adapt the historic building into new uses for a stately affordable housing community. Barbara Fitzgerald (LHC ’68) wrote in response: “. . . know how I treasure my time there in the past. It is good to know the history of such an amazing place will live on with future residents. I hope they experience as much happiness there as I did.”
Tibetan monks visit Motherhouse
foreground, on left, with the monks’ host.
Exiled Tibetan monks from Labrang Tashi Kyil Monastery in Debra Dun, India, visited Kentucky in February, stopping by the Motherhouse for breakfast and a visit. They popped into the Infirmary, chanted blessings in the activity room and the church, joked with the postmaster, and were on their way to the Abbey of Gethsemani.
Thanks to Anndavid Naeger SL for details and photo.
Motherhouse Infirmary recognized
The Loretto Infirmary received the Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award from the American College of Health Care Administrators for excellence in these areas: overall quality; staffing; and RN Staffing (exceeding the minimum staff hours per resident). Congratulations to Michelle Essex, Loretto Infirmary Administrator, and the staff of the Infirmary.
Sisters in El Paso honored
By Helen Santamaria SL
The Father Rahm Award is an annual recognition of person(s) who have made incredible contributions to the Segundo Barrio, a downtown El Paso neighborhood immediately adjacent to the U.S./Mexican border. The SLs taught in all of the schools as they were being built in the 1900s. It is also where Villa Maria is located. The award is a strategic outreach program of Sacred Heart Parish which is also in the barrio.
Loretto Heritage Center remediation work completed
Last fall, mold was discovered beneath the hardwood floors in the Loretto Heritage Center at the Motherhouse. An urgent remediation project ensued. Archival documents were stored at the Dominican sisters’ St. Catharine Motherhouse and 1500 square feet of hardwood floor was removed and replaced. Joists were scrubbed, then painted with an anti-microbial agent. Insulation was added and fans and sensors installed to protect against a recurrence. Documents were retrieved and moved in by late February; Eleanor Craig SL and her archives team breathed a big
sigh of relief.
El Paso Nun Run 2019 a success
By Jane German CoL
On Saturday, February 2, 2019, the senior class at Loretto Academy sponsored the Nun Run. The run has become an annual event to raise money for the Loretto Pakistan Mission. Each senior is asked to recruit 10 or more participants. Some seniors dress as nuns and welcome the competitive runners, non-competitive runners, walkers, family groups and dogs. The competitive runners take off first, running against the clock. The other participants go more leisurely.
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