Welcome to Women's Ministry 2015-2016!
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| Women's Ministry Core Team for the 2015-2016 year |
There are twelve of us on team, and we're so excited to be serving you women of campus this year! We've already been hard at work planning events for the year, and we recently re-wrote our Women's Ministry Mission Statement! Rather than explain what women's ministry is here, we're going to let the mission statement do the explaining for us, so here it is!
Women's Ministry Mission Statement
Franciscan
University of Steubenville Women’s Ministry is a group of student leaders who
seek to accompany women on the journey towards embodied holiness. Our goal is
to help the women of campus discover their feminine identity, which is
incarnated most perfectly in the Virgin Mary and nourished by the True Presence
of Christ in the Eucharist.
This
feminine identity has been unveiled throughout the life of the Church,
especially in the Wisdom of many great Saints who truly understand the identity
and unique presence of women in society and culture. This feminine identity
stems from the reality that a woman, by her very nature, is receptive,
maternal, sensitive, and generous -- first in her relationship with Christ and
then in her relationships with others. We see these four qualities modeled in
the Virgin Mary who perfectly fulfills her feminine vocation by being receptive
to the will of God, by maternally loving with the sacrificial love of Christ,
by being sensitive to the needs of her spiritual children, and by generously
making a total gift of herself to Trinitarian Love. Mary knew in her heart who
she was before God because of her intimate union with Him.
We,
as women, are called to that same intimacy. This intimacy is offered to us in
the Eucharist where we can be present to our Lord by making a gift of ourselves
through total surrender to Him. In the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi, we too are called to cry out in prayer: “Who are you O
Lord, and who am I?” It is only through true knowledge of our Eucharistic
Bridegroom revealed in our relationship with Him that we can know who we are:
beloved daughters who are created to love because He first loved us.
Under
the guidance of the Office of Evangelization, Women’s Ministry hopes to provide
opportunities for women to encounter Christ so they can become “impregnated
with the spirit of the Gospel”[1]
and bear the light of Christ to the world. This is done through the means of
intercession, monthly events, semester retreats, presence in social media, and
fostering discipleship among the women of campus. Most of all, we desire to
accompany women as they discover their identity rooted in the love of Christ
found most intimately in the Eucharist.
[1] Pope Paul VI, “Address of Pope
Paul VI to Women” Presented at the Closing of the Second Vatican Ecumenical
Council, Rome, December 8, 1965.
Meet the Team:
My name is Sr. Anna Rose, and I am beginning my second year of working with the lovely ladies of the FUS Women's Ministry team. I am a temporarily professed sister with the TOR Sisters (www.franciscansisterstor.org), and am also a graduate of Franciscan University. While I was here as a student I studied History and Theology. I'm originally from Cleveland, Ohio, and am the oldest of three girls. I am excited to be working and serving you, the women of campus, through the Women's Ministry team, as it give me a chance to see the beauty of femininity lived out so uniquely - through each of you! Currently my favorite saint is Bl. Chiara Luce Badano, a young girl from Italy who died at age 19 from cancer - the heroic way in which she loved and suffered is incredibly beautiful! She died in just 1990 and was a memeber of the Focolare movement. She was known to say, throughout her illness, "If you want this, Jesus, then I want it too!" She asked to be buried in a white dress, which she called her wedding gown, because she was preparing to see Jesus, who she knew was her true Bridegroom.
Hello:) My name is Haley Ketschke and I am a senior Early Childhood and Special Education major. I am from a small rural town in Massachusettes called Westport about 45 minutes south of Boston....there are more cows in my town then people! My favorite saint is Pope Saint John Paul II because through his teachings on womanhood and Theology of the Body, I have grown ever more in love with Jesus Christ. JPII's deep and profound understanding of the feminine heart has helped me grow in an authentic understanding of what it means to be a woman, and of what it means to be a woman who is a leader. As the Student LEAD of Women's Ministry for the 2015-2016 school year I really feel called to serve the women of campus through prayer and to be able to help facilitate some great events that help us ALL to grow in a deeper understanding of who we were created to be: the Crown of Creation.
Hi, my name is Sarah Creel. I am from Williamstown, New Jersey. I am a sophomore nursing major. My favorite saint, this is the hardest question ever but if I had to choose it would probably be Saint Therese of Lisieux because she found me and when I was looking for a friend in the saints. She is such a good example of simplicity and loving The Lord above all. I feel called this year to serve on Women’s Ministry because I have always loved to serve and minister to women back at home. I feel it is very important to show women how special we all are to the world but most importantly to Our Lord. Many times I have failed to believe this truth, that we are His princesses, His beautiful, radiant pearls, this is why I want to serve the women of this campus to share this truth with you all and help you know your worth and how special each and every single one of you are.
My name is Toni Brown and I am a Senior studying International Business from Bennington, New Hampshire. My favorite Saint is Blessed Mother Teresa because of her beautiful desire to love and serve God through her every encounter with others. I feel called to serve on Women's Ministry particularly to encourage the women of campus to dream big and aim high in their pursuits. I feel strongly that God wants to use women of the 21st century in ways we cannot even imagine.
Hi, I’m Eleni and I’m a junior nursing major. I’m from Pasadena, Maryland, also known as the Dirty Dena (for reasons I am unaware, it’s a pretty mild suburban town). I am struggling so much to pick a favorite saint (I even consulted an online “saint generator” to no avail). So, I’m going with my Confirmation saint who is St. Elizabeth of Hungary. I can respect a royal woman who humbled herself enough to spend her days caring for the poor and suffering instead of living a life of luxury. I feel called to serve on Women’s Ministry because I have spent too much time misunderstanding my own femininity and God given dignity. As I learn about women in the light of Catholicism, the more it’s like finding out great news that I literally want to tell everyone about. Anyway, Women’s Ministry seems like a solid, organized way to go about that so, here I am :).
My name is Brigid Rhea and I hail from Kansas City, Missouri, land of barbeque, fountains, and a pretty decent baseball team. I'm a junior majoring in Nursing, although some days I feel like I should chase my childhood dream of being a Meteorologist with the side job of holding sleeping babies. I don't have a favorite saint because I feel like that's asking someone to pick their favorite ice breaker, which should never ever be a question because all ice breakers are awful. However, I'm really into Blessed Humilani Cerchi right now. Basically, she married a wealthy nobleman at a young age who was, for lack of a better word, a jerk. Her virtuous character never changed throughout their marriage and when her husband became chronically ill, she took care of him with true compassion. After he died, she inherited all his money- but, oh wait! She renounced it all and became a beggar who spent the remainder of her life dedicated to the Lord and helping those who had no one to help themselves. She is a true example of being a selfless servant despite being treated with ingratitude and cruelty, something I am really working on in my own life. I feel called to serve on Women's Ministry because I want to help break the stigma of brokenness there seems to be on campus. I think a lot of women feel like since they go to Franciscan they have to be perfect and pray 4 rosaries a day and never experience temptations and I absolutely hate it. I want the women of campus to embrace their brokenness and their crosses and be genuine and unashamed of all that the Lord created them to be. My goal this year is to share my own brokenness with the women I will encounter so we can all come together as stronger, more fearless, and more loving women of God striving daily for healing and virtue.
Okay, my name is Haley Heiberger, and I am a junior theology/catechetics major from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It is almost impossible for me to choose a favorite Saint, but aside from Our Lady, I usually say Saint John Vianney, because that man is awesome. He was told that he wasn't smart enough to be a priest, and he failed out of seminary. After eventually being ordained, he changed thousands of lives, mostly in the confessional! And after being told he wasn't qualified, he became the patron of priests. So he definitely inspires me; "The Lord doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the called". Lastly, I feel called to serve on women's ministry because I'm most definitely not qualified, but the Lord has really put in on my heart to serve the women of campus however I can and to learn more what it means to be a woman of faith with them! <3
Hi, my name is Mari Seaberg. I am a junior nursing major from Gilbert, Arizona. My favorite saint is St. Alphonsus Liguori, a Doctor of the Church. I love to read his writings because they are so beautiful, gentle, and straight forward. I feel called to give myself in service to the women of this campus because the Lord has repeatedly shown me what a precious gift femininity is, lived out so uniquely by each individual woman. I hope to give of myself and to become a better daughter of the Father in the process.
My name is Jessica Marie Campana, I am a Senior Nursing major and Spanish minor from McHenry, IL. My Favorite Saint is Saint Gianna Molla- She is the fist Married Lay Saint, and she was also a pediatrician. She's basically my role model for life! I want to be a pediatric nurse, and her writings about her love of her vocation as a healthcare provider are so beautiful. She is such a great example of living out her vocation as woman! I by no means have everything figured out, but I am doing my best to live as authentically as I can. I feel that God has called me to women's ministry to simply walk with the women of campus on their faith journeys.
My name is Abby Murphy and I am from Scranton, PA. I am a Sophomore Theology and Catechetics major. There are too many inspiring Saints to pick a favorite, but one of the Saints I am most devoted to is St. Maximilian Kolbe. Besides being born on his feast day, two of the main things that prompted my devotion to him are his Marian devotion and the way he laid down his life for a complete stranger in the concentration camp at Auschwitz. I think that most women today are starving for the real truth of the feminine genius, not the overly sexualized mentality that the culture is trying to constantly push. To be able to show women their true dignity and worth in the context of the Theology of the Body is the primary reason I felt called to serve on women's ministry.
Hello, everyone! My name is Catie Destatte. I hail from the great Toledo, Ohio. I'm a Senior Theology and Catechetics major. I have so so so many great saints that I adore, but my main lady is sweet Mama Mary. It's probably a cop-out to choose her as my favorite saint, but she will always be number one in my little heart. I have a huge devotion to her as the mother of my soul, and I strive daily to be a woman like her. I feel called to serve on Women's Ministry for a whole multitude of reasons. My heart desires so much that every woman will know her dignity and worth as a daughter of the Father, especially in a society that pushes so many lies on all of us about who we're supposed to be. It's my hope that through my presence in this ministry, I'll be able to bring Christ to the hearts of my sisters on campus.
Hi! My name is Shannon Murray and I am a Junior Early Childhood and Special Education major. My hometown is Bethel Park, Pennsylvania which is right outside of the city of Pittsburgh. One of my favorite Saints is St. Therese of Lisieux, "The Little Flower." St. Therese has inspired me to go to the Lord as a child and to serve Him and others through little ways as well as any way that I can! I am so blessed to be a part of Women's Ministry and desire to serve the beautiful women of campus and share how the Lord has worked in my own life!
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