Sister Parish Committee Meeting Minutes
7 February 2007
Jenny Linane, Michael Branigan, Rick Nelson, Mindy Ahler-Olmstead, Don Hall, Louise Eidsmoe, Joel Papa, Judy Miller, Bernie Grisez, Ross Starkson, Michael Hayes
Mindy reported that our records and Sister Parish records agree on what we've sent to Tierra Nueva Dos over the last year or two. We are expecting a report from the scholarship committee soon.
We will begin the discussion of Thomas Melville's book, "Through a Glass Darkly", on March 14th and continue it on March 28th, April 11th and additional dates TBD. Ross will let Tim know, put an announcement in the bulletin and reserve a room for March 14th, March 28th and April 11th.
Jenny and Claire will discuss experiences of delegations along with Jan Wirsma at Incarnation Lutheren Church in Shoreview on March 11th.
We have also been asked to talk about our delegation experiences at Mercy Seat Church in N.E. Minneapolis on Sunday, March 25th. This will probably be in the evening. Mindy, Louise, Don and Ross expressed an interest. If anyone else is interested let Ross or Mindy know. We will try to arrange this one by email.
We are waiting to hear if the dates we proposed to Alejandro will work for Tierra Nueva Dos. Fargo is hosting a South-to-North delegation this summer as well. Mindy will send Ross a copy of the materials we use to orient host families so it can be forwarded to Fargo. Some committee members voluteered to provide a place for the delegates to stay in Minneapolis on the night after they arrive and on the night before they fly home if that would be helpful. We also had some volunteers that would like to go to Fargo to share in some of the delegation activities.
Mindy, Ross and Katharine will be on vacation during the usual meeting time on the first Wednesday of March.
The committee decided to meet the third Wednesday of March instead of the usual time.
Ross will send a visible reminder of this to the minutes distribution list and will forward the list to Bernie so he can send out another reminder one week before the cancelled meeting.
Louise will be in Tierra Nueva Dos on February 17th and 18th and will meet with some of the committee there.
There is a Lenten retreat/workshop at St. Frances Cabrini parish planned for Saturday, March 24th. The retreat will seek to deepen our spirituality of solidarity by reflecting on the life of Archbishop Oscar Romero. March 24th is the 27th anniversary of his death. Contact Mike Haasl if you would like to attend (651-291-4504 or haaslm@archspm.org).
We have had some interest in a Spanish class to prepare people for the delegation this summer. Ross will discuss possible dates with Katharine to see if she can do it.
Louise, Leslie, Claire, Pat, Ross and Katharine attended the St. Paul's Day Mass at the Cathedral on January 25th. It was a great expression of the global diversity in the archdiocese. Louise passed around material from Amnesty Internation relating to the extradition of General Efrain Rios Montt to face trial in Spain. Don discussed his experience writing to a Canadian mining company about their practices in Central America.
Ross presented some of the ideas that came out of the January Sister Parish Committee Retreat. We talked about the questions posed at the Northern Advisory Board meeting last summer: What do we want to do? Why do we want to do it? and How are we going to do it? The bottom line seems to be giving as many people as possible the life-changing experience of going on a North-to-South delegation or participating in a South-to-North delegation. We do that in order to deepen and broaden the solidarity between St. Joan in Minneapolis and San Marcos in Tierra Nueva Dos and because solidarity is the way to peace.
There were several concrete suggestions that came out of the retreat that also have the goal of deepening the hermanamiento:
Respectfully submitted by Ross Starkson.