1 Franciscan Way

“It was a dark and stormy evening…”   Stories that begin with this line are notoriously scary and perfect for sharing around the end of October.     At St. Elizabeth Convent in Somerset, NJ, the night of Monday, October 29 was our own ‘dark and stormy evening’ as we battened down the hatches and waited for the arrival of “Frankenstorm Sandy.”   The winds were picking up even the day before, and by Sunday evening, we already knew school was cancelled Monday and Tuesday.   Our original plan had been early dismissal on Monday and the chance to give our students assignments for the week ‘just in case’ the storm turned out to be as devastating as meteorologists were predicting.   Instead, we posted our lesson plans, handouts and assignments on-line and sent an all-call for students to access them as soon as possible since large scale power loss was expected. As the day went on, we kept a close eye on the storm’s progress and heeded warnings to keep flash...

Aloha! My name is Theresa Wilks, and one of my hobbies is trying out new ways of greeting people.   Some of my other favorites include, “Greetings!” “Good day!” and “Hello.”   I am quite excited to try out some of these with all those I meet during my time with the Sisters.   I arrived here in Alton after working at Camp Gray , a Catholic summer camp and school year retreat center operated by the diocese of Madison , WI .   I worked there for eight summers and for five years as a full time staff member.   In my time there my duties ranged from kitchen staff, to camp counselor, retreat director, summer camp assistant counselor, and many other jobs.   The past three years I also spent studying for my Masters in Theology through Ave Maria University .   Before that I grew up in New York with my parents, four brothers, and assorted pets.  When I was nine years old, John Cardinal O'Connor announced that I was a future Sister in front of...