Threshold - Spring 2004

From the Development Office

Sister Diana Seago & Sister Anne Shepard

From the Desk of Sister Anne
Director of Development

As I was walking down the hall this morning, one of our octogenarians greeted me. She asked me how I was feeling. I told her I had laryngitis. She smiled and said “God is good.” You see, as I write this, it is Ash Wednesday, a day of silence here in the monastery. Evidently, God knows who has to be given extra help to be quiet.
Today is a retreat day, the first of forty days to concentrate our thinking and actions on ways to live out the suggestions given by the prophet Isaiah:

This is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke:
setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke:
sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless:
clothing the naked when you see them,
not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed . .
. . . He will renew your strength,
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring whose water never fails.
(Isaiah 58: 6-11)

This issue of Threshold is about stewardship, a monastic practice, a virtue, a way of life that clearly contradicts the contemporary practices of wasting, overconsuming, neglecting the poor. Isaiah, like Jesus, invites us to serve others.

In the articles and in the litany of names of donors and patrons, we read about men and women who are good stewards, who care enough to give generously and thoughtfully to others. Your gifts allow us to contribute to others in ways we know how and in ways that we judge fit our mission and vision statements. We are grateful. Be assured that we take our responsibility of being good stewards very seriously.

May the light of Christ brighten you for the remainder of Lent and throughout the Easter season.

Anne Shepard, OSB

Photo is of Mary Kay McAllister and Sister Anne taken at the dedication of St. Scholastica Plaza this past October.


From the Desk of Sister Diana
Director of Planned Giving

A couple of days ago I received an email from one of our former students informing me of a gift he was making to our community through the United Way automatic payroll deduction plan. He asked me to tell his former teachers that this was “in atonement for all the times I did not pay attention to their instructions. <grin>” He went on to say that he has never forgotten his days at St. Benedict’s Grade School in Kansas City, Kansas, and he owes the success he has had in his life to the sisters from The Mount, the sisters who taught him to read and write and think on his feet.

His note is not unusual. His gratitude was evident. I hope he is as certain of our gratitude each month as we receive his gift. His gift, like your gifts and the gifts of so many of our friends and families, is what enables us to continue our ministry to the young, the poor and those most in need.

If you would like more information on how you can help us in our ministry and the different ways you can give a gift please do not hesitate to give me a call at 913-360-6214, email me at diana@mountosb.org, or go to our website http://www.mountosb.org and click on How You Can Help. There you can take advantage of the special free ebrochures we offer. Go to the article titled “Discover Valuable Assets With Our Free ebrochures” to find out more.

Finally, while you remember those sisters who provided you with so many challenges and opportunities for growth in your education, why not give some thought to coming to Atchison to see them and thank them in person? We would love to see you and your families.

Diana Seago, OSB