News & Events

Saturday, September 9, 2023, marked our second opportunity to celebrate with the people Boston and thank them for their support during these 150 years.

Read about a pre-med student and their volunteer work at a clinic, pizza and prayer, new additions to our team, lacemaking… and MORE!

Gracious hospitality is one of the core values of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston. Hospitality is also one of the values here at Bethany Health Care Center, where it is on full display in the recently unveiled Sister Roberta Marie Brown, CSJ Welcome Center.

April 24th, an evening filled with joy and reconnection, celebrated our myriad accomplishments, from the initial ministries developed in the mid-19th century, to the current ministries that unite us with our community.

During our St. Joseph Day liturgy, immediately following a powerful video reflecting on their 150 years in Boston, Jean McKinney, CSJ, pronounced her perpetual profession of vows as a Sister of St. Joseph of Boston.

Did you know that workers who receive tips must be paid $6.75 per hour and, if tips don’t add up to the minimum $15 per hour, the employer is required to make up the difference?

Over one hundred attendees, including twenty-five legislators, gathered together on Thursday, January 26th, at the State House to support the Lift Our Kids Coalition Launch. Sisters Carlotta Gilarde, CSJ, Pat Andrews, CSJ, Nancy Braceland, CSJ, and Maryann Enright, CSJ, were in attendance with others who have been involved with this coalition for a number of years.

The Boston Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition’s 13th annual vigil to commemorate National Anti-Human Trafficking Awareness Day happened on Sunday, the 8th of January…

For the first time, Project Linus reached out to Casserly House to donate handmade blankets for our Roslindale neighbors. Over 25 were donated!

Bridges and walls! Our week-long experience in El Paso was about building bridges and breaking down walls. The days were filled with hearing from and walking with scholars, missionaries, and immigrants.

What a Journey It Has Been! Jubilarians Celebrate During the October 2nd Jubilee…

Check out the newly updated associate section of our CSJ Boston website!

Sister Ann Kaufmann delighted both newcomers and pros alike in her multi-day course on bobbin lacemaking this past late July. The classes were sold out with a waiting list for beginners. One can only hope Sr. Ann will share her time and
talents again.

Sunday, June 12th, was a perfect June day. The weather reflected the warmth and fellowship of Donor Appreciation Day.

At SJSM’s open house, one board member noted, pointing out the scroll-work that adorns the hinges of the main door, “It’s like a microcosm of the whole house—functional, but beautifully appointed!”

Just before the Pandemic hit, we learned of a new trend “going viral” on YouTube. Assisted Living Communities and Nursing homes around America were doing this new exercise program – Cardio Drumming!

The anti-trafficking coalition, made up of sisters from various Boston congregations, hosted their 12th annual vigil to commemorate National Human Trafficking Awareness Month.

At Casserly House, Director Donna Stiglmeier engaged in many conversations with recurring and new donors toward the end of 2021. With an amazing amount of generosity (and gratitude!), the calls came in: “I want to give…” Sometimes the callers filled in the blank (toys, hats, gloves), because this is what they always have given…

When Maryann Enright, CSJ, asked for volunteers, many sisters and associates responded. Our charism of “Unifying Love” impels us to reach out in love to every dear neighbor without distinction. In this case, our dear neighbors are refugees from Afghanistan. The volunteers took inventory and organized donated furniture, linens and clothing contributions…

In welcoming all who gathered for prayer in celebration of the 35th Anniversary of our Boston CSJ Associate Relationship, Cathy Clifford and more…

Cry Jubilee! Called to a Radical Following of Christ and more…

Safely reopening “so the house can come alive again”…

Cultivating Respect for the Gifts of the Earth and Creation and more. . .

Helping the “dear neighbor” and more . . .

Celebrating Earth Day and more . . .

Mission Meets Moment

The Year of Joseph

2020 Anti-Trafficking Prayer Vigil

Christmas Prayer 2020 – Turning toward the Light

Thanksgiving Blessings

Founder’s Day 2020: Rooted in the Future

Artifacts Celebrating the Foundation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Boston

Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston Grieve and Cry Out Against Racism

Continuing to Serve the Dear Neighbor during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Celebrating Joseph, Our Patron Saint

Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston celebrate Mardi Gras!

Saint Joseph Spiritual Ministries has a new home at 71 Walnut Park, Newton, MA.

“. . . The work of raising awareness must begin at home, with ourselves, because only this way will we be able to then make our communities aware, motivating them to commit themselves so that no human being may ever again be a victim of trafficking.” Pope Francis, 2018

The Namaste Room at Bethany Health Care Center is a very special place. According to Catherine Sabatini, Special Care Activities Director, it is here that residents of our special care unit find “sensory stimulation and one- on-one love.”

In late November, Sisters Betsy Conway, Jeanmarie Gribaudo, Barbara McHugh and Pat Quinn had the privilege of attending the seventh annual Atlantic Region gathering of CSSJ sisters under 65 in Hampton Bays, New York. Sisters Joanie Cassidy and Charlene Diorka from the Philadelphia congregation led us in a contemplative dialogue. The theme of the weekend was “Weaving the Past and Present into the Future”.

As part of a program entitled “Tending the Garden to Create a Sustainable Earth” at the Pax Christi State Assembly on November 9, 2019, Betty Cawley, CSJ, participated in a panel of “practitioners.” The springboard for her presentation was our 1992 Corporate Stance on Behalf of the Earth, a prophetic statement that we are still “living into.”

One Iron Man, one pirate, two clowns, two Batgirls and a skeleton all walk into the Regis College student center. Scratch that! All ran into the student center. The excitement the Casserly House kids felt as they saw the decorated student center, filled with sounds of welcome and fun, was obvious in their wide eyes and smiling faces.

Teach-In 2019: Jornada por la Justicia was a three-day gathering of a powerful network of Catholic Latinx organizers, labor leaders, scholars and activists who desire to make real change through concrete action.

Eight of us, associates and sisters, travelled to New Mexico to welcome two new CSJ Associates, Charlene Chavez and Angelica Flores, both from Santa Rosa.

Each year, the Regis College Center for Ministry and Service hosts the Sisters of St. Joseph during Regis’ heritage week. This year the featured speakers were students in last spring’s Honors Seminar: Contributing to the Common Good, taught by Mary L. Murphy, CSJ. A course requirement was to offer 30 hours of service at a CSJ Boston Ministry.

Tutors and students discover The Literacy Connection in a variety of ways and I’m always amazed by how perfectly people come together! Take Mei Qing Wang and Lois Leventhal, for example.

On July 16, there was a hearing at the State House on the “Lift Our Kids Out of Deep Poverty” bills (S.36 and H.102). The bills would increase Transitional Assistance to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC) over the next several years until grants reached 50% of the federal poverty level.

From May 30 to June 2, Pat Quinn, CSJ, and JeanmarieGribaudo, CSJ, attended a conference of the Collaborative Leadership Development Program (CLDP), a gathering of sisters under 65 who have participated in leadership development programs.

On May 13, sisters, associates and agrégée candidates from Maine, Springfield, Boston, Concordia, and Egypt gathered in Winslow, Maine, for lacemaking workshop hosted by Judy Donovan, CSJ, and the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Lyon, Maine. Guided by Janet Lander, CSJ, Concordia, our week was full as we discovered the basics of lacemaking.