CSJ Associate 40th Anniversary:
Looking Back, Looking Forward

Above: New Mexico Associates singing Sancte Joseph

I was welcomed on Sunday, May 3rd, with warm smiles and congratulations at the 40th Anniversary Celebration of the CSJ Boston Associate Relationship. My first thoughts were: why are people congratulating me? I’m not receiving an award. Then, as I thought about it and heard “Congratulations” repeated to other Associates, I realized Sunday was more than a celebration of 40 years of the Associate Relationship; it was a celebration of my ninth anniversary as an Associate. Anniversary years varied according to the dates of our initial commitments, and it was the 36th Anniversary for those fifteen Associates who became the very first CSJ Boston Associates on March 19, 1990.

On this sunny morning, soft pink cherry trees and bright yellow forsythia were in full bloom around the grounds of 631 Cambridge Street, and all the Associates and Sisters were in their Sunday best outfits as we greeted each other. I saw Sandra Selvarajah preparing to hang the beautiful quilt she sewed together five years ago with over 100 unique squares decorated and signed each by each Associate. Seeing this quilt with so many creative and different designs reminded me of the Associates’ diverse personalities and backgrounds that have come together as One in our desire to live out the CSJ Charism of Unifying Love of God and the Dear Neighbor without distinction.

A special gift to all of us on this day was the presence of eight New Mexico Associates, who, along with Sister Annie Kaufmann, were visiting Boston and staying with our Associate Leaders. We had a laugh when one of the New Mexico Associates said she was glad it rained during their visit because it never rains in New Mexico, and she got to use an umbrella for the very first time!

After brief hellos with Sisters I hadn’t seen for quite a while like Carol Fitzsimmons, Kathy Hagerty, and Ginny O’Connell, we all entered the Holy Family Chapel to watch a video of the history of the Associates told by Sisters and Associates who participated in those historic discussions and days. Seated around the chapel, were rows of Sisters and Associates. The room was full of wisdom, mixed with memories of spiritual inspiration and encouragement, and relationships that had developed during my nine years with the wonderful Associates and Sisters I got to know from times sharing coffee and goodies before monthly gatherings, time spent together on special projects, times sharing our thoughts in small discussion and prayer groups, and times traveling together for meetings and service events. Gratitude and joy filled my heart and the chapel!

Preparing the altar for our Mass, Associates processed into the chapel carrying symbols representing our past and present: the CSJ Constitution, a picture of the hearth in Le Puy where the first Sisters may have worked on the lace they made and sold to support themselves. A piece of handmade lace by Margaret LeLakes embellished this photo as a reminder of how, like the stitches of lace, we are all strengthened and held together in a beautiful design when connected to one another in love. As a remembrance of each Associate who has passed to new life, but remains in our hearts, we adorned the altar with a bouquet of a dozen long-stemmed yellow roses.

Our May 3rd Liturgy was the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker. On our program cover was a soft pen and ink sketch of St. Joseph swaddling the infant Jesus in his arms as they both seemed to be asleep, a perfect image of our patron saint – an ordinary laborer, strong and hard-working, yet humble and a faithful husband and father. Joseph exemplifies love and service to our brothers and sisters throughout our daily lives. Father Terry’s homily gave us a beautiful reflection of Joseph.

Next, Mary Murphy, CSJ, President of our Boston Sisters, invited each Associate to stand as her name was read and together, renew their commitment, with the   Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston, to live out the mission of Unity and to whole-heartedly embrace the charism of Unifying Love!

Together, repeating the words of recommitment, I knew that joy was the gift that I received when striving to spread that unifying love throughout our fractured world!

After Mass, robust conversations and smiling faces filled the lines for the buffet and filled our tables decorated with Elise Cheverie’s beautiful floral arrangements in the coffee mugs inscribed with our 40th Anniversary Flame. At my table and there was a mix of Sisters, Associates, and guests who are in the “Come and See” years of learning and discerning about becoming a CSJ Associate. We were the present and the future embodiment of the burning flame of God’s Love. On May 3, 2026, the Associates and Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston looked back at their past, and all left the 40th Anniversary Celebration enflamed with love and hope for the future- living the charism, “Loving God and Neighbor without Distinction.”