Heritage Center Temporary Closure: Beginning Sept. 1, 2026, Heritage Center staff is moving the Heritage Hall museum from its current location to the Drawing Room right down the hall so that some major building repairs can be addressed in the usual Heritage Hall room.
As staff work to pack and move Heritage Hall, the entire Heritage Center — including Heritage Hall, the Visitor Center, and the Archival Center — will be closed for the month of September. Archival Center staff will strive to respond to archives requests as soon as possible, but response times will likely be longer than usual. Tours of Heritage Hall will not be available at this time.
Please bear with us as we work to carefully move these precious artifacts. We’ll let you know when we officially reopen and we look forward to seeing you soon!
Mass for the Care of Creation: The Sisters of Charity of Nazareth will celebrate the new Mass for the Care of Creation at 10:50 a.m. Sept. 1, 2026, at St. Vincent de Paul Church, marking the first day of the Season of Creation. Recently added to the Roman Missal, the Mass reflects themes from Laudato Si’ and calls Catholics to bring to light the important theme of Catholic Social Teaching: we are called to intentionality and responsibility around issues of stewardship through the lens of an integral ecology, and called to care for creatures, care for the earth, care for water, and care for one another. The Mass will be livestreamed at nazareth.org/live so Sisters, Associates, and friends beyond Nazareth can participate.
2026-2027 SCN Directory: As we prepare to update the SCN Directory, all Sisters and Associates are asked to check their current listing in the Directory. If there is a change to any of your information, or if you have changed ministries in the past year, please contact Anita Smith by email at asmith@nazareth.org or call 502-348-1560 by Aug. 28, 2026. You can also access the most up-to-date version of the SCN Directory online. Go to https://nazareth.org, select internal at the top right of the page and choose Sisters and Associates. Type in the password. Cursor down to the box titled “SCN Book Directory.” The online version is updated monthly throughout the year. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Anita. Thank you.
SCN Directory Order Form: Every SCN house in the Western Province will receive one Directory free of charge. If you would like to purchase an additional copy of the 2026-2027 SCN Directory, please click here to access the order form to be returned by Aug. 28, 2026. Thank you.
Corporate Voice: The Sisters of Charity Federation at the United Nations has published their monthly newsletter, The UN & You. Highlights include the New Year at the UN and anticipating a new Secretary General, Climate Week, and NGO Committee updates. To read the newsletter, click here.
Sustainabyte: Around the world, aging and obsolete dams are being removed, giving some rivers a chance to flow freely again. Removing a dam can reconnect habitat, reopen migration routes for fish and improve water conditions. Research has found that streams become cooler and richer in oxygen after dam removal, creating healthier conditions for fish and other aquatic life to breathe, thrive and repopulate. Successful dam removals worldwide are showing how quickly rivers and wildlife can recover. But does that mean all dams should go? Hydropower is an important source of renewable electricity and can help support a reliable electric grid. Climate, water availability, energy needs, river ecology and dam efficiency all matter. The challenge is determining which dams provide valuable clean energy and which have outlived their purpose. Some rivers and existing dams are better suited for hydropower because they can generate significant electricity while their environmental impacts are reduced through careful management, including improved fish passage. Other obsolete dams may produce no electricity at all while continuing to fragment habitat and alter natural river conditions. Removing the right dam can remind us how resilient creation can be. Sometimes, helping a river heal simply means giving it the freedom to flow again.
Prayer Requests:
- Connie Bevins, sister of Judy Raley, SCN
- Leo Ott, infant grand-nephew of Valerie Miller, SCN
- Irma and Charlie Corner, aunt and uncle of Valerie Miller, SCN
- Herman Miles, brother of Rebecca Miles, SCN
Prayers for Deceased:
- Joseph Gilmetti, brother of Barbara Gilmetti, SCN
- Saji Joseph Muthukattil, nephew of Ann Muthukattil, SCN
- Jack Manning, brother of Jude Manning, former member
If you have any items you would like to include in the next issue of the Newsline, please email them to newsline@nazareth.org by 10 a.m. Thursday. Please include first and last names for prayer requests and the relation to the person requesting.