By Sister Kathleen Anne Tait, OP
Susan Hickman didn’t realize that a working relationship with one Springfield Dominican would open her life to a long and meaningful relationship with the Springfield Dominican community. However, as Susan and her friend, Catherine Leyser, enjoyed the spiritual exchange and friendship in a prayer group with Sister Barbara Blesse, Susan began to realize her interactions with Sister Barbara felt like home to her.
Susan and Catherine were first hooked into our Dominican community when they helped move Sister Barbara to Springfield and came regularly for visits. The two of them became associates in 2012, and though Catherine died in 2017, Susan still considers the sisters “family” and a wonderful source of spiritual and emotional support. In turn, Susan serves on the Justice & Peace & Integrity of Creation Committee and is an active member of SDART, our antiracism team.
It was our approach to social justice through the lens of the Dominican charism that first drew Susan to the associate program. She also has spent time collecting our sisters’ oral histories for the archives and loves visiting with the sisters. They certainly enjoy being with her. These meaningful relationships and shared interests made it a natural for Susan to support our efforts “to compassionately preach the Gospel.” She became a monthly donor when the program first started.
Susan says the capacity to integrate the donation with her monthly financial planning and the convenience of automatically supporting an important cause are key reasons she chose to become a monthly donor. “It’s a way to keep my focus on the values I hold and the good I want to bring forth,” she said.
For us, the program accomplishes some of the same goals. We can integrate the monthly amounts into the budgeting program for the congregation and count on the regular payments. If you want to join the Bearers of the Flame monthly donor program, simply indicate that when you make an online donation or check the box on the envelope included in this JUST Words.
Sister Kathleen Anne is the director of development for the Dominican Sisters of Springfield.
