For our January episode, we welcome back Margaret Eigsti, Senior Program Officer for Catholic Sisters and fellow Generative Spirits podcast host. This episode will be an opportunity for review - of the year, of the episodes we released in 2022, and of taking stock of what brought us energy and what propelled the work forward. We will take time to remember our favorite moments, listen to quotes we loved, and talk about what is next for Generative Spirits. We are grateful to have been in conver...
For our November episode, we are joined by Angela D’Orazio, Senior Program Officer for Housing at the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland. Through grants, technical assistance, convening, advocacy, and policy initiatives, Angela's work in striving to end chronic homelessness and youth homelessness has resulted in state and local collaboration to meet the needs of the unhoused community. Angela has worked closely on an initiative called A Place 4 Me, which brings together diverse...
For our October episode, we are joined by Brenna Davis, Sr. Anne Victory, and Sr. Cheryl Rose to talk about the Covenant Companion Relationship, a 2-year formation process for lay people through the Sisters of the Humility of Mary in which participants take a vow of humility. We talk about how the idea came to be and what it means to live the vow of humility in our daily lives. Brenna shares about her experience as a participant and Sr. Anne and Sr. Cheryl, both members of the Sisters of Humi...
For our September episode, we are joined by Sr. Réjane Cytacki, SCL, Executive Director of A Nuns Life, an online ministry that welcomes people from around the world to gather to explore God’s calling in their lives. A member of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth (SCL) in Leavenworth, Kansas, Sr. Réjane has previously served as the Executive Director of the Racine Dominican Eco-Justice Center and on the Core Team for Giving Voice. We discuss the unique nature of having an online mini...
For our July episode, we are joined by Emily Liptow, a member of the Generative Spirit community who has served as technology facilitator, community member, and co-dreamer of what Generative Spirit could be today and in the future. We are able to explore what it means to be young adults in a world of Catholic Sisters, what unique connections we are able to access and have within these relationships, and what is coming next for us. We discuss our admiration for the national Nuns and Nones move...
For our June episode, we are joined by Richaun Bunton, Managing Director of the Cleveland Central Promise Neighborhood. Richaun is a member of the foundation with a long commitment to the Central Neighborhood, allowing her to understand the needs of the community and highlight the champions she works with in the neighborhood. We discuss the many roles she has held during her time at the foundation, as well as centering her work with family partners, a group of community members and friends th...
For our May episode, we are joined by Sr. Norma Raupple, an Ursuline Sister in Youngstown whose commitment to ministry has led her to the US/Mexico Border working with immigrant families. After 10 years at the border teaching English to mothers and securing grants to open a learning center and health clinic, Sr. Norma returned to Youngstown with the same spirit of service for the immigrant community. She headed a tutoring program through the Immigrant Outreach Program, a ministry of Beatitude...
For our April episode, we are joined by Sr. Susan Zion, an Ursuline Sister of Cleveland and founder of Ursuline Piazza, a non-profit located at St. Augustine Manor on the Near West Side that addresses the needs of individuals living with HIV. We explore the history of Ursuline Piazza since its inception in 2007 and the many hats Sr. Susan wears as Executive Director. Known for helping HIV positive individuals who have gaps in care, Ursuline Piazza has offered a number of programs like Individ...
Our March episode will feature Sr. Claire McGowan, OP, a Dominican Sister of Peace and former Executive Director of New Pioneers, a community non-profit organization founded in Washington County, Kentucky to promote sustainable thinking and sustainable development in this rural community of 12,000. Living in Bardstown, Kentucky, Sr. Claire talks about her work in ministry with New Pioneers for a Sustainable Future and how clarifying our relationship with the Natural World is necessary as we ...
For our February episode, we are excited to welcome Joe Black to the podcast to talk about his role as program officer for health equity. As a member of the foundation, Joe has longstanding relationships with members of the central neighborhood and strives to focus on health outcomes, particularly safety. We talk about his role at the foundation, how his past work has informed his current role, and the value of community relationship and voice. We explore the importance of racial equity in gr...
In our November episode, we are joined by Sr. Carol Kandiko, a member of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine and co-director of Centering Space. Founded in 2003, Centering Space is a place where people are invited to “come and listen to their own heart and hear the voice of God.” Located in a house on the campus of Lakewood Catholic Academy and the grounds of Lakewood Park, Centering Space provides an open and welcoming environment with programs like weekly reflective prayer, a variety of...
For part 2 of our conversation with Sr. Rita Mary Harwood, SND, we explore the many ministries she initiated for several historically marginalized groups, including the incarcerated, the LGBTQ community, migrant families and refugees. In August 2021, Sr. Rita Mary retired from the Diocese, where she had most recently led the Secretariat for Parish Life and Development. Sr. Rita Mary has supported multiple ministries, including chairing Church in the City in 1994 and leading the Welcoming the...
This month, Sr. Rita Mary Harwood, SND, joins Generative Spirits to reflect on more than 25 years working for the Diocese of Cleveland, where she initiated ministries to several historically marginalized groups, including the incarcerated, the LGBTQ community, migrant families and refugees. In August 2021, Sr. Rita Mary retired from the Diocese, where she had most recently led the Secretariat for Parish Life and Development. Sr. Rita Mary has supported multiple ministries, including chairing...
This episode is the first of a series called Short Features, shorter clips from our full length episodes that surround one topic. This Short Feature will focus on Sr. Rita Mary Harwood's words about Bishop Pilla and Church in the City. We honor Bishop Pilla and his work in this Short Feature, as we learned of his passing on September 21st, 2021. To listen to the full episode, please tune in for part 1 and 2 of Sr. Rita Mary’s conversation with us, out October 8th and 22nd everywhere yo...
For our September episode, we are joined by Sr. Sheila Marie Tobbe, an Ursuline Sister of Cleveland and COAR board member, and Mary Stevenson, the Executive Director of COAR and graduate of Beaumont High School, a ministry of the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland. We talk about the mission and history of COAR and how its connection to Cleveland has lasted for decades. COAR, known as the “Children’s Village”, stands for the Community of St. Oscar Arnulfo Romero and is located in Zaragoza, El Salva...
For our August episode, Rachel and Sr. Cheryl Rose, HM discuss the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, including the ways we are asked to slow down and do less to make way for grace. A spiritual director and contemplative, Sr. Cheryl values the solitude the pandemic has brought her, allowing for deeper awareness. Sr. Cheryl Rose is a member of the Sisters of the Humility of Mary in Cleveland, Ohio. She served for 26 years as a high school educator, teaching chemistry, physics, theolog...
Our June episode centers on Leadership in Sister Communities. Our guest will be Sr. Margaret Taylor, a sister of the Incarnate Word (SIW), and Sr. Pat Kozak, a sister of St. Joseph (CSJ). They serve on and support the Conference of Religious Leadership (CORL) of Northeast Ohio. We start with an overview of Sister congregations, the ways congregations have changed, and the impact of their role in leadership. Margaret Taylor, SIW is a Sister of the Incarnate Word from Parma Heights. ...
Our May episode highlights Spirits on Fire, a Year-Long formation program for lay leaders in the CSSJ Mission and Tradition. Our guest will be Sr. Judith Minear, a sister of St. Joseph of the Congregation of St. Joseph, or CSJ, who serves as the Coordinator of Mission Integration with CSJ ministries and one of the leaders of Spirits on Fire. Started in 2016, this program serves to form a group of experienced leaders from the Congregation of St. Joseph and the Sisters of St. Joseph to engage d...
Our April episode highlights the Ministry Leadership Program, or MLP, an opportunity for emerging leaders (ages 22-35) at mission-driven schools, colleges, and non-profit organizations. Intergenerational relationships is the element that makes MLP unique, and our guests are examples of that relationship in action. Sister Carol Brandt, a sister of Notre Dame, and Anita Hooley Yoder, Assistant Director of Campus Ministry at Notre Dame College in Cleveland, Ohio join us as two past participants ...
Welcome to the first episode of our second season! For our first episode of 2021, we are uplifting the stories of sisters working against Food Insecurity in honor of Catholic Sisters Week. We highlight the East Cleveland Community Garden which began in 2007 by East Cleveland resident Gladys Walcott. Gladys serves as the garden's leader today. In 2017, as part of her Golden Jubilee celebration, the 50th anniversary of taking her vows as a Catholic sister, Sr. Marie Manning, SND decided to beco...