AMASC President's Address to the European National Presidents

 and Young Alumnae/i

 

March 1, 2003

 

Trinita dei Monti Rome, Italy

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Good morning and thank you for inviting me to participate in your National Presidents and Young Alumnae and Alumni Meetings. It is always a privilege to join the members of our Sacred Heart family when they gather to share their ideas, visions, and concerns.

 

May I preface my remarks by congratulating Kathleen, Claudia, Fedy, Mimma, and all who participated in planning and organizing these wonderful meetings?

 

It is my pleasure to introduce the members of the AMASC Board who are present today: Jacquelyn Klomp - Verhoeven, Archivist, Ana Drisaldi, Kathleen Dor, Carmen de Villalobos, and Claudia Taylor-East.

 

Being in Italy, brings back many happy memories of a wonderful AMASC Congress in Genoa. Maria Franca and, her team conducted a most productive and memorable meeting. It is a very special experience to be in Rome an to join Sr.Clare Pratt and all of you here at the Trinita Dei Monti.

 

Since many of you may not be familiar with the World Association of Alumnae and Alumni of the Sacred Heart, I would like to tell you something about our Organization.

 

Association Mondiale des Anciennes et Anciens du Sacre Coeur, AMASC, is comprised of tens of thousands of women and men belonging to Sacred Heart alumnae and alumni associations in thirty-seven countries throughout the world.

 

AMASC was founded in 1965 in Brussels at the request of Reverend Mother General de Valon, who saw an important and vital role the alumnae could play in fostering the work and spirit of the Society of the Sacred Heart.The Order was founded by St. Madeleine Sophie Barat in 1800.

 

In brief, the aims of our Association are:

 

1. To serve humanity by promoting justice and peace,

 

2. To create and maintain friendship and solidarity among the

 national associations in order to bring about international

 collaboration,

 

3. To cooperate actively and effectively with the Society of the

 Sacred Heart, and

 

4. To be present and participate in the international organizations

 to which AMASC belongs.

 

 

 These values are articulated in the goals of Sacred Heart Schools:

 

1. Faith which is relevant in today's world,

 

2. A deep respect for intellectual values,

 

3. Building of community as a Christian value,

 

4. A social awareness which impels to action, and

 

5. Personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom.

 

 

In the words of Maria Van Mierlo, the Dutch alumna who took the initiative to found AMASC, "We,alumnae of the Sacred Heart, can be and have to be a force for love, hope, and peace. For fulfilling this task, we must give all the talents of head and heart which we received from God. We, alumnae and religious together, share the responsibility for a better world and for a society in which the face of our Lord may be ever recognized"!

 Your AMASC Board of Directors has been very busy since the election in Sydney, 2002. Claudia Taylor- East (Malta) and Beatrice Raffoul (Canada) have been conscientiously trying to implement the project identified by Sr. Clare Pratt as "Top Priority". As you know, the national presidents voted unanimously to pursue the continuation of the Uganda Project; the construction of the Primary School and other phases which were to ensue. The school officially opened earlier this month on February 10th. Having received this notice from Sr. Cullen in Uganda, we

sent a message on behalf of the Board of Directors, National Presidents and our entire AMASC family congratulating the RSCJ on their wonderful accomplishment. The letter was forwarded to all of you with Sr. Cullen's letter, pictures of the school and some of the precious children. We have a copy with us, in case any of you did not receive it. Sr. Cullen emailed us a note of appreciation on behalf of the religious, the administration andfaculty of the school.

 

 

Sr. Cullen came to New Orleans as did Beatrice Raffoul and we had a very productive meeting concerning AMASC's ongoing involvement with the project. To this end, Sr. Cullen sent us a formulated plan. Claudia and I will go into this in more detail with you a little later.

 

Kathleen and Claudia asked me to give you an update on the activities of AMASC since we met in Sydney. Our

main areas of concentration have been and still are:

 

1. Keeping the lines of communication open.

 

Anne deBroglio is doing a magnificent job maintaining and updating our Website. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Anne and I are in constant contact concerning new ideas for the web.

 

Ana Drisaldi, our young alumna representative on the board, established a web page for the young

alumnae and alumni, and we encourage everyone to key into it to get a sense of what the young people are thinking and doing.

 

 

There will be three formal letters sent to the Board of Directors and National Presidents, each year. You received one in September, one will be going out in the spring and another in the Summer or early fall. If there is something that you feel is of interest or importance and you would like it included in a letter, please send it to us. Included in the September letter were the dues notice and the Hospitality Form. Beatrice Raffoul is doing a tremendous job as the Hospitality chair. We reviewed the information we had as of January 2003,last month. Several Associations sent names of newly elected presidents and their Email addresses, but we must have the mailing addresses and other information. Beatrice asked me to please try to send her an updated list from this meeting.

 

2. Implementing the commitments made in Australia.

 

The "Directional Statements" of the XII World Congress are prefaced by the remark "We are ordinary people who can change the world, remembering that the longest journey begins with the first step". How do we proceed in taking that first step?

 

We must make a personal commitment to emphasize social justice issues by championing women and children's causes. In addition to the project in Uganda, we have established a web page, which will be used as an educational tool to explain various social justice issues and inform us as to what is being done about them. In some cases, we will list contacts and Email addresses of how you can make your voices heard on various issues. We will not concentrate on only one injustice, but on many.

 

We must make ourselves aware of the misery and suffering of our brothers and sisters even within our own alumnae/I situations. Several of these issues in different countries have been brought to our attention and we are addressing them.

 

As we stated in Sydney, we all have our ideals and values and we should never compromise them. However, we must listen to one another with open minds, never being critical or judgmental but being kind and compassionate. We must be aware that there are different opinions, different "ways of thinking" and pray that "our" ways are "God's " ways. Let us work through our problems and eradicate cruelty and insensitivity; let us celebrate our likenesses and respect our differences. As Mother Stuart said, "It is the little things of life that create differences, in the big things of life, we are one."

 

Many people have asked what AMASC "expects" of their Associations. We prefer to say, "envisions" for their Associations.

 

1.We hope that all of our members will become personally committed and actively involved in AMASC's projects and activities. Some of the most important of these will be in collaboration with the RSCJ.

 

2. We hope that all will become involved in addressing moral issues, especially those that affect the children. One of the most serious problems is immorality in the media.

 

3. That all Associations encourage their members to work toward greater participation for women in the church. (A proposal has been formulated for our consideration to be presented to the Holy See). We will be sending a copy to all National presidents, as soon as it is sent to us.)

 

4. That every Association participates in our new project, "Each one, Bring one." This is a movement to encourage each member of every Association to invite one other Sacred Heart Alumna or alumnus to join it's ranks. This would, of course, be done on a local level, thus increasing our membership on a national and international level. We all know that there is strength in numbers!

 

5. That every alumnae and alumni Association elect or appoint an AMASC representative to its Board. Thus, members will be better informed of the projects and activities of our World Association and hopefully, become more actively involved. We especially encourage the involvement of the young alumnae and alumni; they are our future! The young bring new ideas and enthusiasm; the others bring maturity and experience. IF AMASC IS TO CONTINUE TO GROW AND FLOURISH, WE MUST HAVE BOTH!!!!!

  

6. That each Association makes a serious commitment to participate in the STUDY PLAN for the 2006 AMASC Congress. Kathleen Simon, Study Plan Coordinator, and her Committee have worked very hard to formulate a project in which everyone can participate in whatever manner she or he chooses. The Study Plan is prefaced by a beautiful prayer written by Sr. Shirley Miller, AMASC Religious Councilor is as follows:

  

In closing, on behalf of the alumnae and alumni associations of the United States, it is my pleasure to invite you to attend the AMASC XIII World Congress, which will be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, Sunday, April 23 &endash; Friday, April 28, 2006. The meeting of the National Presidents with

the retiring boards will be held Saturday, April 22. (Easter Sunday in 2006 is April 16th). At this time, we will commemorate the Fortieth Anniversary of AMASC. The first World Congress was held in Rome in 1966.

 

Come enjoy beautiful Liturgies in various languages, a broad spectrum of music ranging from classical to jazz, delicious Cajun and Creole delicacies, festive celebrations and great camaraderie! We will spend a glorious day at the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, Louisiana, retracing the footsteps of our beloved Philippine Duchesne. We are going to do everything we can to make the Congress affordable. Wendy Hills, congress Chair and her committee are working diligently to ensure that we have a productive, spiritually enriching, fun filled andmemorable experience!

  

On behalf of Nancy Agnew, AASH, USA President, and Patsy Sheehan, National Conference Chair, I would like to invite you to join us April 23-28 in St. Louis, Missouri, for our National Meeting. Maryliz Lincoln, AMASC Vice-President mailed the Call to Conference to the National Presidents.