By Katie Beckmann Mahon, Communications Manager
The Sisters of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt, New York, Associate Program is an extraordinary one that brings together many wonderful women and men of faith bonded together by the Dominican mission.
For Ellen Nash, the Blauvelt Dominican Associate Program has empowered her “to be a leader and openly share my spirituality.”
She added, “The empowerment I feel is indescribable, and I’ve grown so much being apart of the Associate Program. I know that I matter and that I always have the support of the Blauvelt congregation, as well as the entire international Dominican family.”
Ellen, an active member of the Blauvelt Social Justice Committee, has impacted the congregation by chairing the circle on immigration, which led to her pursuing advocacy opportunities.
A few years ago, Ellen traveled to Juarez, Mexico, with the Dominican Collaborative Circle to work with immigrants at the border. Since then, she has gotten involved with her church, Our Lady of Sorrows in Jersey City, and Jersey City Together.
At Our Lady of Sorrows, Ellen has ministered as a Lector, Eucharistic Minister, and in the Craft Club, and most recently, she started ESL classes at the church.
“One of the things I found through my immigration work was a need for ESL classes. Once I saw a need for it in Jersey City, I duplicated the format of ESL classes at our parish from a nearby one.”
Last week, Ellen hosted her ESL classes via Zoom for the first time in months and was happy to be greeted by her students, who were “grateful to be back together.”
Along with these ESL classes, Ellen has found great joy from her work with Jersey City Together, an community action organization of 32 churches in the area.
“Our group is social justice-oriented and does a lot of good.”
These ministries, especially being a Blauvelt Dominican Associate, have made her become an “empowered woman in the church” and feel that “there’s a greater need for my ministry.”
She explained, “As an Associate, we see ourselves in the Order of Preachers, preaching the Word. We need to be energized to move forward and dream. Not to be put in a box. The Sisters of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt have such a rich history that we can carry on.”