Our Sisters

School Sisters of Notre Dame continue to live the vision of Foundress Blessed Theresa Gerhardinger in a variety of ways. Below our Sisters share stories of their work and ministry.

A Relaxing St. Pat's at Waterdown

St. Patrick’s Day is a day when everyone wants to be Irish, including the Sisters here at SSND Waterdown! We gathered together wearing our green for a good old Irish Kitchen Party. We enjoyed Irish Soda Bread, green beer, a wee shot of Bailey’s and refreshing green punch.

St Patrick's at Ozanam

We celebrated St. Patrick's in style this year! We began the day with an introductory prayer. Sister Cathy read a brief history of St. Patrick. Sisters were then invited to share what they knew about him. We had lots of fun and laughter!

Baltimore Celebrates World Day for Consecrated Life

Ten SSND Jubilarians attended the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s annual Mass celebrating the World Day for Consecrated Life this year. Together, our Sisters represented an astounding 665 years of dedicated service to God and God’s people!

Meet the SSND Patronesses of Shalom

When World War II broke out across Europe, SSNDs responded with courage and faith to protect the people in their care. We know of 32 Sisters who went missing or died as a result. They are now our Patronesses of Shalom.

Waterdown Sisters Visit India

The Sisters enjoyed an armchair visit to India in February. The trip was Part I of two parts, hosted by LEAD aide Shilpa George. First, Shilpa guided the Sisters through Onam, a yearly special celebration in India. Seeing the food, dance and fun enjoyed was a joy for our Sisters! Thank you, Shilpa!

Stella Maris Sisters Celebrate Mardi Gras

On Tuesday, March 4th, Associates Mary Anne O’Donnell, Cathy Schoonover, Lisa Benson, and Madelyn Ball came to Stella Maris to celebrate Mardis Gras with us. It was a perfect Mardi Gras celebration. Many thanks to our new friends who provided us with a wonderful morning!

Mardi Gras Fun at Waterdown

Celebrating Mardi Gras with a French flair brought some scenes of New Orleans to our Waterdown lounge last Tuesday. Sisters were treated to a special King cake our Kim had baked. King cake is a New Orleans tradition!

A Leap Year Birthday

The end of the month of February ushered us into celebrating our own "Leap Year Baby" at Ozanam! Sister Dorothy Mary Leising was born February 29, 1924. What a joy to celebrate 101!

Sister Carole Shinnick, SSND - New Sponsor Council Member

I am a product of 12 years of education by the School Sisters of Notre Dame, as was my mother before me. Some of my teachers had been my mother’s teachers, which had its own challenges. My music teacher never tested me for voice and said I was an alto because my mother had been. Years later I found out I was a soprano after trying to sing low for much of my non-illustrious music career.

A Waterdown Party for Sisters Delia & Maureen

At last, we were over Covid. We could gather again and we had plans. We were going to celebrate Sisters Maureen McGoey and Delia Calis as they ended their term of leadership at SSND Waterdown!

New Sponsor Council Chair Reflects

Last summer, AM-SSND created a Sponsor Council to better nurture, support, and sustain the mission of our sponsored and cosponsored ministries. Sponsor Council Chair, Sister Delia Dowling, SSND, shares some thoughts about her new position.