As we celebrate and raise awareness about women religious during Catholic Sisters Week 2024, we look to those sisters whose connections with Notre Dame Preparatory School set the example for servant leadership, life-long faith, and a commitment to transformation. Here are some of their stories.
Sister Ildephonsa Wegman, Notre Dame Prep’s first directress, was visionary in her establishment of Notre Dame of Maryland (NDM) in 1873. Described as gracious, intelligent, and artistic, she broke barriers at the time as she met with architects and builders as she oversaw the construction of the new school property. A progressive educator, she divided faculty into departments and made sure each sister was trained to teach various courses within the same subject area. She also investigated the possibility of offering advanced courses, paving the way for the establishment of the college. During her tenure, NDM gained widespread praise as a “magnificent” school. While directress for only four years, from 1873-1877, Sister Ildephonsa’s impact is felt to this day in the level of excellence she established in those beginning years on Charles Street.
In 1997, Sister Cathy Arata, SSND, believed that God was calling for a bold response from her: to go to El Salvador amid the ongoing civil war to be with the victimized Salvadoran people. For 11 years, she shared in their life and faith including hunger, the daily bombing of villages, and the narrow escapes from gunfire. The long-time NDP immersion trip to El Salvador and the ongoing relationship with our sister community, Ignacio Ellacuria, in El Salvador, is a direct result of Sister Cathy’s witness.
Sister Cathy would later go to southern Sudan as it struggled for independence from Sudan, after a 22-year civil war. She was a founder of Solidarity with South Sudan, training teachers, healthcare professionals, and farmers. In 2010, she initiated the “101 Days of Prayer for a Peaceful Referendum in Sudan.” The referendum vote led to the creation of South Sudan as a new nation in 2011.
Sister Kathleen Feeley SSND, NDP Class of 1946, is a writer, a teacher, a former college president and a world traveler.
An English teacher by profession, Sister Kathleen was President of Notre Dame College (now University) for 21 years. Afterward, she was a visiting professor in India, China, Japan, and Australia, then came back home to Baltimore to found the Caroline Center, an SSND-sponsored job training center for women. In her 70s, Sister Kathleen went on to serve with SSNDs in Africa, primarily Ghana, for several years. Now, at age 95, she continues to write, teach adults, and volunteer!
A 1928 NDP graduate, Sister Genevieve Kunkel, SSND, lived to be 101, spurred on by her motto: “If we hope, we cope. If we don’t, we mope.”
In her retirement, Sister was a participant in the famous Nun Study, a study on aging and Alzheimer’s disease originated by Dr. David Snowdon from the University of Kentucky. Sister Genevieve was one of several hundred SSND who, upon their death, would donate their brain to this study. At 93, she spoke before Congress in support of funding for Alzheimer’s research. In addition, she was interviewed on NBC’s “Today Show” with Katie Couric about her role in the study. Sister Genevieve is featured in a chapter of Dr. Snowdon’s 2001 book, Aging With Grace: What the Nun Study Teaches Us About Leading Longer, Healthier, and More Meaningful Lives.
Sister Patricia Flynn’s extraordinary leadership skills were already evident during her high school years at NDP, when she served, among other positions, as a Gym Meet captain for her Class of 1956. As an SSND, Sister Patricia would later be elected twice as Provincial Leader of the former Baltimore province. Her leadership became known among SSND worldwide, resulting in her election as the international General Superior, 1987-1998. During those years, Sister Patricia helped lead the SSND European provinces through the challenges and joys that the Sisters faced after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of communism.
Sister Margaret Marie Giblin, NDP Class of 1945, joined the first missionary group of Baltimore SSND going to Bolivia in 1964, ministering there in small, rural villages for nearly three decades.
Once back in the United States, she landed her “dream job” at La Casita Community Center, an outreach center for Latino immigrants in Delaware. Sister Marg moved back to Baltimore in 2007 and began working at Esperanza Center, which provides many services and resources to a predominantly Latino immigrant community. After retiring, she continued there as a volunteer until she was 94! All told, Sister Marge served the Latino community for a half-century!
Sister Mary Virginia Connolly, an NDP principal/headmistress, was known throughout the Baltimore community as an astute businesswoman. It was she who oversaw the buying of the Hampton Lane property as well as the construction of the new school. After her long tenure at NDP, Sister Mary Virginia was asked to oversee the construction of Archbishop Keough High School and would ultimately become its first principal. It makes sense that one often finds pictures of Sister Mary Virginia wearing a hard hat!
In addition, Sister Mary Virginia was instrumental in the creation of the North American SSND Educational Conference (SSND-EC), which continued for 27 years.
