St. Bonaventure Mission in Thoreau , New Mexico is located in the midst of this beauty and desert poverty. This Mission is an oasis, a special place where Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, with other caring and devoted people from all areas of the United States, minister to God’s people living in poverty. On this Navajo Land, specific ministries include providing housing for low-income families, repairing roofs, delivering water, building outhouses for those with no water, food and other much needed supplies such as blankets and clothing. Many hundreds of donors who assist us by their financial gifts provide these goods and services. Our “Outreach” department provides employment for Navajo people. The major ministry at the Mission is St. Bonaventure School, a preschool and elementary school through the 8th grade.
BeautyandDesertPovertyinNavajoLand
Category Archives: Good Works
SNDs Open Clinic in Kimwenza, Congo
The people of Kimwenza, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and its surrounding villages marveled at the opening of the René de Haes Health and Maternity Center (Centre de Santé/Maternité René De Haes), a new health care ministry of the Congo-Kinshasa Province. In a poor and confined milieu, adjoining the property of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Monseigneur Fidèle Nsielele, Bishop of the Kisantu Diocese, officiated at the opening of this center (“the Clinic”) on October 31, 2009. Many religious, civil and political leaders joined the SNDs and the people for a joyous ceremony of blessing, marking direct access to a clinic in this area, so deprived of medical care for those living in poverty. Continue Reading: SNDsOpenClinicinKimwenza, Congo
Jubilee Joy: 50 Years in Brazil
“Every day, we help adults, adolescents and children to become conscious of their dignity, particularly through Bible study and popular education.”
Sisters Respond to Needs
On Marajó Island, Pará, Sr. Rita Raboin works with the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission, the Land Pastoral and in community organizing. Due to a precarious system of water delivery and waste control, Marajó’s unhealthy water supply has become a critical issue. Sr. Maria Socorro de Oliveira, returning from English study in Ohio, USA, will soon begin a new ministry among the people in Breves.
Read more: JubileeJoy50YearsinBrazil
Lenten Theme Week One
Planters of Peace Nurture Hope in Brazil
We and the youth with whom we work are providing an island of hope in Jardim Tropical. A group of 30 to 40 young people that I (Sister Maria) facilitate are active in a weekly youth group. These youth help prepare the liturgy and also participate in novenas, processions, preparation for baptism, a nutrition program for babies, and protest marches – all activities that energize our community. The youth named their group “Planters of Peace,” a significant choice in light of their neighborhood situation.
“There is so much goodness in our young “Planters of Peace.” They are among the reasons why our neighborhood, poor as it is in some ways, deserves to be called “Tropical Garden.” -Sr. Maria
Learn More… PlantersofPeaceNurtureHopeinBrazil
Women and Water: Island of Beauty & Challenge
Our Notre Dame community lives on the island of Marajó, on the largest navigable archipelago in the world, located at the mouth of the amazon river, in the State of Pará, Brazil. This is an island of beauty and challenge! The people find their means of support in extraction of açai for juice, palm hearts, wood from family-owned sawmills, and fishing. Some plant and sell cassava, rice, or beans. In our county, there is 80% unemployment, gang violence, drug trafficking, and other criminal activity. Unable to find jobs, the people are migrating from the river communities and searching for schools for their children. Our neighborhood with 4000 persons and 853 families, on the periphery of Breves, does not have any school, health clinic nor potable water. Our streets are muddy in the rainy season and dusty in the dry season. Most women work in homes of wealthy families; the men find odd jobs daily. On days when adults do not work, the families do not eat….
Read the full story in GoodWorksJune2011 on pages 8-9.
New blog features stories from Good Works!
This new blog is an attempt to share our printed magazine, GOOD WORKS, with our on-line followers and “future” followers.
GOOD WORKS in published three times a year by the Sisters of Notre Dame. The magazine features our Sisters serving on five continents: Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America.
Our Notre Dame Educational Networks use the stories to teach religion, geography, ecology, sustainability, science, etc.
We will post short summaries from our GOOD WORKS magazine accessible on monitors, tablets, and smartphones! We also plan to add “subscription” features as well as video and audio components.
Please use the comment section to join the conversation, ask a question or make a suggestion.
We welcome your feedback.
Good Works 