History
Two hundred years and counting! Loretto has responded to the call of God to serve God’s people. From children to adults, from elementary to graduate-level education, from eldercare to advocacy for the homelessness and underserved, Loretto has left its mark on the world as it seeks to “work for justice and act for peace.” Learn more about the history of Loretto.
Building a preschool in Vietnam Paulette Peterson CoL had started preschools in the U.S., so when she arrived in Vietnam in 1974, she went to work establishing a preschool at…
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1973, Saigon, Vietnam, New Haven Nursery The newborn was dropped off at New Haven Nursery where Susan Carol McDonald SL was the director. She logged the baby into her register,…
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Aiding orphans in Vietnam wasn’t new to Ruth Routten CoL, an American Airlines flight attendant who, on her days off, had escorted children from Vietnam to adoptive families starting in…
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‘Get your passport, get your shots; I need help.’ Susan Carol McDonald SL to Mary Nelle Gage SL in June 1973 The Vietnam War gave rise to thousands of orphans.…
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During the 2021 Assembly, Loretto invited all to observe its “I Was Here” Project, a ritual of remembrance and sanctification at the Loretto Motherhouse, a community of wounding for more…
Read MoreA ritual of remembrance and sanctification at the Loretto Motherhouse, a community of wounding for more than fifty individuals enslaved between 1812-1865. The event program is here. Watch it live…
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After the powerhouse was built in 1921, the coal trucks have lumbered up the entrance hill, dumped the boiler’s sole diet, then rattled down the hill empty. Whether it was…
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Loretto’s school at Bernalillo opened in April 1875 as a day school for local children. It did not at first include Native American children but did have 15 orphan girls…
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Now that directorship of the Heritage Center is in the capable hands of Ayla Toussaint, I have time to write occasional pieces of Loretto history for the Community. As there…
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Although the Heritage Center has been closed to the public for over a year, the center’s staff still has been moving forward with several projects. Throughout this month, a traveling…
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At the Loretto Assembly in 1958, six years after the last Sister of Loretto returned from China, Loretto members called for the Community to continue its work in the missions.…
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Loretto celebrated its Foundation Day – April 25 – with memories, snapshots, reflections and sharing, including this video on “The Spirit of 1812.” Enjoy!:
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