Intercultural Community Celebrates 10th Anniversary

Last Saturday, June 21, 2025, nearly half of the Daughters of Wisdom US Delegation came together to celebrate a milestone: the 10th Anniversary of the Intercultural Community in Huntington Station, NY. Sister Bernadette Sasson opened the event by presenting a timeline and a brief history of the founding of the Intercultural Community.

In her presentation, she shared, "At a Council of the Congregation Year, Sr. Ann Gray, Provincial, proposed a response to the Hispanic immigrants in great need in the United States. The dream was to form an intercultural community in the New York area and to invite Sisters from South America to join United States Sisters in ministry to Hispanic immigrants. The Council of the Congregation accepted Sr. Ann's proposal. Sr. Louise Madore, Superior General, asked the other entities to send sisters.

Stateside, Sisters Barbara O'Dea, Ann Nielsen, Diane Capozzi, and Marilyn Soeder were enlisted to flesh out the project. They visited several places in Brooklyn and Eastern Long Island. Over a Memorial Day weekend in 2014, they gathered several Sisters who might be interested, visited several ministries in Brooklyn and Riverhead, and then discerned at the Provincial House who would agree to be community members. Finally, Sister Marilyn Soeder, Sisters Teresa de Jesus Aguilar Avila from Colombia, Maria Jesus Pinedo from Peru, and I would become the designated community.

After another year of searching and discernment with Sr. Barbara and her committee, Huntington Station, NY, and the area of St. Hugh of Lincoln Parish were chosen. The approbation of the officials of the Rockville Center Diocese was given. We became part of the Hispanic ministry of the Diocese. Marilyn and I were introduced to the Spanish Consejo Members of St. Hugh on May 11, 2015, by Msgr. Joseph Granata, Pastor. We also met with the future Pastor, Fr. Bob Smith. We began a housing search.

On June 15, 2015, we received keys for our rental housing. So many of you helped us move, providing furniture and needed household items and hands-on assistance. Thank you.

That summer, Sr. Marilyn, her brother Tom Soeder, and I set up the house and, in September, began volunteering to teach English with the Amityville Dominican Sisters in the OPening Word program, which served hundreds of Central American women. The population then was mainly Salvadorans with minimal education. They were intelligent women who needed to learn. On April 24, 2016, Sr. Teresa arrived from Colombia and immediately began working with the people teaching Spanish literacy. She became very close to the people, while she also began to learn English. On June 8, 2016, Sr. Maria arrived from Peru, enrolled in English classes, and immediately began to offer Logo Therapy Counselling to individuals, work in the Spanish RCIA, and many other activities. Each of us expanded our activities for the people in different areas. Associate of Wisdom Audrey Schroeder and Sisters Ann Neilsen and Patricia Pelletier began volunteering in the Opening Word program.

We were accompanied by our leadership team,  Sr. Cathy Sheehan, Sr. Evelyn Eckhardt, Sr. Marie Chiodo, and Sr. Patricia Torre, who engaged Spanish-speaking Religious, Sr. Jane Reilly, CSJ and Sr. Marineid Tabre, OP, to meet with us as a community.

After serving for two terms on her R-1 Visa, Sr. Teresa completed her mission, returning to Colombia on February 19, 2021. Sister Marie Josee Seide joined us on May 31, 2021,  enriching our experience of interculturality with Haitian culture. Sr. Marie Josee's ministry as Outreach Director at St. Martin of Tours has given us as a community another avenue of learning about the needs of the immigrant community on the South Shore in Amityville, NY.

This intercultural community has benefited many by our presence and prayer and enriched us personally by learning to value other ways of thinking, praying, and serving. It has indeed been a grace. We thank everyone for your prayers for this endeavor and your assistance and encouragement. You are all a part of this!"

After Sr. Bernadette's briefing, a Mass presided over by Rev. Roy Tvrdik, SMM, included a reading given by Sr. Ann Gray, 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, "My Grace is sufficient for you," and Psalm 34, "Taste and See the Goodness of the Lord" by Sr. Catherine Sheehan. Fr. Roy shared the Gospel of Matthew 6:24-34. In his Homily, he connected the work of the Intercultural Community to the realities of our lives, highlighting the beauty of the idea that God's power is made perfect in weakness. He emphasized that when we are at our weakest, we are truly strong. "In weakness, we find strength; the world has its own eccentricities." Encouraging all, he added, "God wants us to take a breath and give into thanksgiving and praise - even in difficulty. Praising God can flip a feeling - God can transform. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord."

Fr. Roy offered an opportunity for discussion following the Homily. Delegation Leader Sr. Catherine Sheehan said, "The Intercultural Community is a wonderful example of the coming together of the Daughters of Wisdom community. There was unity in the endeavor."

The intercessions offered by Sr. Evelyn Eckhardt were responded to with, "Hear us as we pray in Hope." Members of the Intercultural Community brought up the gifts in the Offertory processional to the Haitian Creole Hymn, "Nape Ofri Ou Granmet, "WE Offer You Lord," Sung in Creole by Sr. Marie Josee who offered the bread. Sr. Maria Jesus offered the wine, Sr. Bernadette carried the plaque representing the ministries of Sr. Teresa Agular, and Sr. Marilyn carried the floral arrangement to the altar.

The communion meditation, Montfort Cantique 89, "Triumph of the Hail Mary," was sung in Creole and English. "Deo Gratias was intoned at Post Communion, and Chant de L'Unite was the recessional song.

After a beautifully uplifting Mass and delicious luncheon, the Sisters were ready for relaxation and fun together. Sisters Marilyn Soeder and Marie Josee split the group in two and ran a game of not-so-well-known facts in true or false fashion, which brought amazement and uproarious laughter with the answers given. It was a close match, but the winning and losing teams earned first place and consolation prizes.

A more serious activity came with Sr. Maria Jesus recounting some of her experiences as a member of the Intercultural Community and the sharing of songs and prayers from her Peruvian culture. With a raffle prize and handmade mementos commemorating the 10th Anniversary, she concluded by involving the Sisters in a take-home prayer activity she had prepared in twenty-five different petitions. Each Sister got a prayer card with petitions such as, "I will pray for Deacon Michael O'Brien" and "I will pray for Catechists in Huntington and Amityville."

All this testified to how our Sisters live a life of "Love without Borders."