Topic archive

Interchange

Thoughtful and engaging news stories of interest to the Loretto Community and friends.

Six women standing and smiling together for a group picture outdoors on a sunny day in front o a green grass field and a dark green lamp post. They are all wearing nice dress clothing, and two women are wearing matching green lanyards with a white card on the end.

Loretto Heights College reunion a grand affair

The Loretto Heights College all-class reunion was held July 14-15 in Denver, organized by the Spirit of Loretto Committee comprised of LHC alumni from numerous years. The first day on our former campus was spent hearing presentations describing the now-and-future…

A woman with short grey hair and glasses, wearing a blue blouse, a white unbuttoned collared button up shirt, and a colorful lanyard smiling brightly with her eyes closed, holding a bowl, in an event space with chairs and blue curtains indoors.

Committed to interfaith work

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my nearly seven years serving as Loretto’s United Nations representative, it’s that no one gets anything done by themselves. We collaborate on programs and on shaping policy proposals, share information about meetings and…

A flooded street and garage where the van tires are submerged in murky brown flowing water.

A summer of flooding in Lahore

The monsoons have been unusually fierce this summer in Lahore, Pakistan, and the area where our sisters live has experienced frequent flooding.

Two friends smile together for a picture in front of a purple building with green doors outside. Both friends are women with short, grey hair, one is laughing, and the other with glasses is posing silly with her hand on her hip.

A loan in time helps a dream come true

It was a Sunday in March when my friend Carmen Barsody invited me into her home in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco. Her home was also home to Faithful Fools. Other guests that afternoon were students from the University…

A woman with short, grey hair and glasses, wearing a grey blouse and sitting in a brown recliner chair, accompanied by a woman with short, brown hair, black rimmed glasses, wearing a red and white striped, collared shirt and a black name tag. Both women are smiling for a picture together indoors.

I surprised myself

I live alone. Circumstances got me. There I was, a broken left wrist (my dominant hand), a fractured right ankle and a new untrained dog. Friends had been driving me to appointments, bringing me meals, visiting when they could. Basically,…

A woman with short, grey hair and glasses, wearing a blue shirt standing up conversing with a table of men eating a meal in an indoor cafeteria.

Breaking bread with our brothers

At a recent Motherhouse Aesthetic Committee meeting, someone asked, what can we do for our roofers? The roofers were, of course, the crew of young men from Guatemala and Mexico employed by South Central Roofing company replacing 14 roofs at…

Two women standing together, the woman to the right is standing at a podium speaking into a microphone. She has short, grey hair, and glasses, and a bouquet of pink and yellow roses, and babies breath sits directly in front of the podium. The woman to the left has longer, brown hair, is wearing a blue and white striped blouse, with a pink boutonniere, holding a beige filing folder in her hands.

Celebrating Pam Morgan, Loretto’s newest co-member

“Good afternoon; this is Pam from the office.” With those words, Pam Morgan drew a chuckle from those gathered on Aug. 5 in the Motherhouse Church for her co-membership celebration. Pam is the receptionist at the Motherhouse, and those words…

What is Emerging?

Anyone living today who is not aware of the crisis our world is in has to be existing with their head in the sand. For years now individuals who have developed a higher consciousness have warned humanity of the breakdown…

Mary Ellen McElroy SL
July 1, 2023
"What is Emerging" Reflections, Interchange

Short haired woman wearing glasses, a red shirt and navy blue jacket smiles for a picture while using a microphone.

Spotlight on Loretto Wisdom Women – July 2023

Editor’s note: We are featuring interviews of Loretto Community elders. We are grateful to these wise women and to Joy Jensen for sharing wonderful snapshots of our beloved Community members. This month’s feature highlights Maureen Fiedler, Peg Jacobs and Joy…

A book cover, "A Sisterhood on Fire: A Novel" by Sara Hoeynck featuring a praying silhouette made out of fire on a black background on a bed of smoke.

Loretto’s Past Comes to Life with “A Sisterhood on Fire”

By Sarah Hoeynck Motherhouse in 2017, I listened to Eleanor Craig read the poem “Upon This Hill” by Cecily Jones. This powerful work and its obscure historical references inspired me to research the various fires at Little Loretto and the…

Loretto Community
July 1, 2023
Authors and Artists, Interchange, Midweek Mission Messages

Woman with mid length hair and glasses smiles for a selfie.

Congratulations Loretto’s Newest Co-Members

Welcome to our newest co-members, Theresa Miller and Pam Morgan! Theresa and Pam were accepted into co-membership on June 5, 2023. They are well known in the Community: Pam lives in Kentucky and works at the Motherhouse; Theresa lives in…

The outside of a Saint Paul Catholic Church featuring a pride rainbow banner that says, 'LGBTQ+ Catholics Family, Friends, and Allies All are welcome.'

A Pride Month proclamation in Cedar Falls, Iowa

In April 2023, the Cedar Falls (Iowa) Human Rights Commission drafted a proclamation calling for June to be declared Pride Month. The proclamation was sent to the city council for its approval at its May 1 meeting. Two days prior…

Byron Plumley CoL
July 1, 2023
Advocacy, Anti-discrimination, Interchange