Daughters of Charity Engage in
"Visioning for the Mission"

EMMITSBURG, MD ~ July 16, 2007
Four provinces of Daughters of Charity in the United States — with current provinicial centers in Albany, New York; Emmitsburg, Maryland; Evansville, Indiana, and St. Louis, Missouri — have determined that the mission of the Daughters will be enhanced by further communion, collaboration and sharing among the provinces, up to and including unification of these provinces. For the next several years, the sisters in these four provinces will engage in a planning process, known as "Visioning for the Mission," through which they will discern how to best structure the administration of the provinces to support their mission now and in the future.

The mission of the Daughters of Charity continues today to be what was articulated the their founder, St. Vincent DePaul, when he stated, "The main purpose for which God has called the Daughters of Charity and brought them together is to honor our Lord Jesus Christ as the source and model of all charity, serving Him corporally and spiritually in the person of the poor...."

Historically, provinces — which are geographic subdivisions of the international community of the Daughters of Charity — have been redefined from time to time in the interest of assuring that the Daughters continue to be available and responsive to the needs of those who are poor as circumstances change.

The four provinces involved in the Visioning for the Mission process were established through the division of two larger provinces in 1969. At that time, the membership of the four provinces totaled over two thousand sisters. As of January, 2007, the number of sisters in these provinces totaled approximately six hundred and fifty. This decreased number of sisters together with changes in church and society, are indicators of the need to rethink the organization structures that were established thirty -eight years ago to support the life and ministry of the Daughters of Charity in the United States.

The first general "Visioning for the Mission" meeting of the Daughters of Charity from the four provinces will be held in Buffalo, New York, during July 26-29, 2007. It is anticipated that the process will be concluded by 2011, at which time any plan for redesigned provincial structures will be implemented.

About the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent DePaul

In 1633 Vincent DePaul and Louise de Marillac established the Company of the Daughters of Charity as a group of women who committed their lives to the service of Christ in the person of those who are poor, and who recognized prayer and community life as essential elements of their vocation of service.

Almost two centuries later, Elizabeth Ann Seton, the Foundress of the Sisters of Charity in America, adapted the rule of the French Daughters of Charity for her community. In 1850, the community established by Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland united with the Daughters of Charity in Paris and became an American province of the international community. Subsequently, other American provinces were created as needs evolved.

Within the Roman Catholic Church, the Daughters of Charity are recognized as a Society of Apostolic Life called to serve Jesus Christ in persons who are poor and marginalized.