This interview-based play was scripted by Jenn Bokoch Gillett from the vantage point of women who came of age during the 1960s to 1980s at St. Benedict Academy, Erie, Pennsylvania. Find your story in these women's stories of community, spirituality, justice, and meaning-making that challenged their thinking and validated their worth and power. It was produced by the Benedictine Sisters of Erie and originally performed in Erie on June 30, 2024, at the Hirt Auditorium, Blasco Memorial Library. Jenn, daughter of an SBA alumna, conducted more than 50 interviews for this project. The individual interviews will gradually be shared in an online archive. Download the Where Hope Is program booklet for a more complete description of the project and the people who brought it to life.

The Marcellus Shale Coalition, the most powerful fossil fuel lobby in the region, is holding its Shale Insight conference at Erie's Bayfront Convention Center, September 24-26. Their goal is to increase fracking and the use of fossil fuels, worsening the climate crisis. Benedictines for Peace is helping organize two main opportunities to join with others who are opposed to the aims of this conference.

The Benedictine Sisters of Erie announce the launch of the Benedictine Peacemakers Monastic Immersion program. The application process is now open and will continue through February 2025, with the program scheduled to begin in June. A reflection of the evolution and widening of monastic life, the Benedictine Peacemaker immersion experience is a model for approaching personal formation, spiritual community, and good work in the Benedictine spiritual and monastic tradition.

The Benedictine Sisters and the Inner-City Neighborhood Art House are two of 106 signers on a letter that states their opposition to a $182 million conditional loan guarantee to develop International Recycling Group's facility in Erie.

For the second year, Goat Fest at Glinodo brought together--parents, children, adults, friends and neighbors--for outdoor fun and education on a unique way to care for our environment. This was the third year the Benedictine Sisters contracted with Let's Goat Buffalo to bring goats to the Glinodo property so that they can help clear the woods of invasive species. In the interim, volunteers from local universities Mercyhurst and Gannon, as well as others, helped pull roots (much easier after the goats have cleared leaves and thorns) and reline and wood chip the trails. This year, Goat Fest visitors saw the progress as they enjoyed the trails.

Erie Benedictine Sister Joan Chittister and Liz Cheney will open the Jefferson Educational Society's Global Summit XVI on October 17. Liz Cheney, former U.S. representative for Wyoming and chair of the House Republican Conference, served as the Vice Chair of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. Her integrity in standing by the constitution and confronting then-President Donald Trump for his role in attempting to block the confirmation of the 2020 election and inciting the January 6 insurrection cost her her leadership positions. Her memoir, Oath and Honor, was published in 2023.

Over the last two weeks of August, there was a visible impact to the Benedictine Sisters’ Glinodo property as the goat herd from Let’s Goat Buffalo cleared out the invasive species along the Creekside trail. (Read more on this years’ long collaboration here). This is the third summer that the goats have visited Glinodo, eating everything green so native plants have equal opportunity to flourish against such species as Japanese knotweed and multi flora rose. Years into this process, the impact of this work is notable, and the influence the goats’ presence has on the land goes far deeper than what meets the eye.

The Benedictine Sisters of Erie 2024 Prophet of Peace award will honor Dr. Alice Edwards, "a healing presence and prophetic witness for peace and justice," a woman of compassion, depth, integrity, and bold vision.